Help Needed to Plan trip to Israel: Amount of time needed and best sites?

We are an American couple planning to go to Israel at the end of April, but we are trying to plan how much time to spend there and where to visit. We love to visit historical and religious sites, but we also love natural beauty, hiking, and the beach. We also plan to visit Petra in Jordan for a day or more.

We are on a long trip,so we can spend up to one month there, but we have been told that three weeks may be plenty of time. We would love some advice from people about where are the best places to visit in Israel and how much time would be ideal to spend there. After Israel, we are planning to continue onto Greece and then Turkey...

Also, we were told that we need an onward ticket when we come into Israel which is why we want to try to plan how much time to spend there. Has anyone had experience with needing to show this?

Thanks in advance for your help with planning our trip to Israel.

"Best places" in Israel or anywhere else is entirely subjective. One person's must see is another's must avoid.

Would you be travelling by public transport or renting a car?

And end of this April or next year? Meaning you have one week or almost a year to plan this? April isn't guaranteed warm enough for the beach except in Eilat.

Yes, all the above, plus:

It is possible the onward ticket thing is required if arriving by air. I know it is not required when arriving overland.

With that kind of time I suggest you plan on spending two days at Petra and one day / night in Wadi Rum. They can be reached from Eilat by crossing the border to Jordan and taking a taxi from there.

Good luck.

Onward ticket ? How are you planning to get back home ? I assume that you will have return tickets from somewhere that you can show if anybody asks, which I doubt. It is quite common for tourists to fly into Tel-Aviv, cross overland to Jordan and return home from Amman (many British tourists do this on EasyJet).

How much time to spend in Israel ? I suggest a minimum of 10 days if you want to see all parts of the country. Your itinerary should be:
- 1-2 days Tel-Aviv
- rent car and drive to Caesarea, Haifa , Akko, Galilee and Golan - 3-4 days
- Dead Sea - 1-2 days
- Jerusalem (return car) - 3-4 days
You do not need a car in Tel-Aviv and Jerusalem because of the traffic and parking problems.
For "historical and religious sites, ... natural beauty, hiking" - look at the National Parks website for ideas:
http://www.parks.org.il/BuildaGate5/general2/company_search_tree.php?mc=378~All
Note their "Money-saving ticket" offer.

While 10-14 days is a enough time to see the highlights: Jerusalem, Dead Sea, Masada, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Acco and the Sea of Galilee, but if you have more time and are interested in nature and history, then you have endless possibilities.
This is a great source for nature and hiking info:
http://www.tiuli.com/default.asp?lng=eng
A few I'd recommend-
A walk through green forests to a Crusader fort:
http://www.tiuli.com/track_info.asp?lng=eng&track_id=8
Through the forest to an ancient Synagogue
http://www.tiuli.com/track_info.asp?lng=eng&track_id=4
Canyoning in the Golan
http://www.tiuli.com/track_info.asp?lng=eng&track_id=124
A world class bird watching site:
http://www.agamon-hula.co.il/?lang=en_US
An epic Crusader battleground:
http://www.tiuli.com/track_info.asp?lng=eng&track_id=17
Ancient rebel hideout:
http://www.tiuli.com/track_info.asp?lng=eng&track_id=7
Nabatian Ruins:
http://www.tiuli.com/track_info.asp?lng=eng&track_id=81
http://www.tiuli.com/track_info.asp?lng=eng&track_id=47
Geological marvel:
http://www.tiuli.com/track_info.asp?lng=eng&track_id=53
Desert oasis:
http://www.parks.org.il/BuildaGate5/general2/data_card.php?Cat=~25~~989817747

No need to worry about the onward ticket, Israeli officials will not prevent you from entering Israel if you don't have one as long as you can explain how and when you plan to leave the country.

For Petra, I would strongly, very strongly advise you to plan two full days to discover the site. The bare minimum would be one full day. It's gigantic and one of the most beautiful things on earth. Combining Petra with a night in the Wadi Rum, as suggested above, is a good idea.

In Israel there are tons of things to see so it's a matter of taste and everyone will have different ideas for you. On my side, I would say:

• Visit Jerusalem's Old City, including the Haram Al Sharif / Temple Mount, the underground tunnel at the Western Wall, the view from the rooftop terrace at the Austrian Hospice (if you can book a room there)
• Visit the Crusader city of Akko (Saint Jean d'Acre) on the sea, sleep in a hotel inside the Walls and have dinner at seafood restaurant Uri Buri on the port, which I consider to be Israel's best restaurant (Akko's Old City is populated by Palestinians citizens of Israel, with Uri Buri being the only Israeli restaurant there, famous for its creative chef).
• Visit the Kabbalist city of Safed in Galilee, have lunch at Rafa's restaurant inside the Artist colony at Rosh Pina village, see the view at the Mount of Beatitudes over the Tiberiade Lake
• Visit Tel Aviv (Neve Tzedek village, and the bars around Rotshchild and Lilenblum), visit Jaffa (the Palestinian old neighborhood with a flea market and gorgeous seaviews)
• Stop at the Dead Sea (can also be done on the Jordanian side, which personnally I consider to be more beautiful)

On the Palestinian side you can visit Bethleem of course, but also Hebron's Old City (take a Palestinian taxi in East Jerusalem to drive you there, it's easier than the bus). Ramallah has a fascinating nightlife if you like to go out. One of of the most beautiful hikes you can do in the Middle-East is the famous Wadi Qelt hike near Jericho, which stops at Saint Georges Monastery, but if you travel during summer it will be extremely hot and should be done with a guide.

• Visit Bethleem and Hebron's Old City

I would fully agree with the above lists of highlights (Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Sea of Galilee, Dead Sea, Haifa, Akko etc). I'd add also Tzfat and Nazareth if you have time in the north. If you're going to go down to Eilat to cross into Jordan for Petra, then you should also make a stop at the Ramon Crater (Machtesh Ramon) at Mitzpe Ramon. The crater itself is spectacular and it is truly a getting-to-one-with-nature kind of place!

Worth noting that Safed which I mentionned is the same city as Tzfat which VTP mentionned. There are at least four of five different ways of writing this city's name, which is definitely worth the trip.

Actually CatW. There are 4-5 ways to write Tzfat in its transliterated form. There only one way to write it in Hebrew.

As for the Old City, there is also a Jewish and Armenain Quarter. You can find gorgeous ceramics is the Armenian Quarter.

The Israel Museum and Rockefeller Museums in Jerusalem are well worth a visit. Wonder through the market of Machane Yehuda, in west Jerusalem. it's also an good place for lunch

Thereis a few very good Humas places in the Old City-Humas Lena and Abu Shukris

Thank you everyone for your responses. All of the information is extremely helpful. We are actually flying into Israel very shortly, so we have only about a week to plan this trip. We are planning to spend about a week with a friend in Tel Aviv, and then spend about three to four weeks traveling around Israel. While we are in Tel Aviv, we are going to try to figure out our route and how much time to spend in the different parts of Israel. It sounds like some parts of the country are best to see by rental car, but which places are best by public transport? We would like to take public transport as much as possible. Also, besides Petra, is Amman worthwhile visiting in Jordan? And thanks to your responses, we are now planning to spend two to three days in Petra to really see this area...

2 days in Petra might suffice to get a real good look at the ruins

Whether or not Amman is "worthwhile visiting" is purely a matter of personal opinion. My opinion is that it is not, others have differing opinions.

As long as you're going to Petra I would recommend spending a day and night in Wadi Rum, staying in a Bedouin camp.

Good luck.

For public transport in Israel, see here - an "umbrella" site covering all bus companies as well as trains.

Generally speaking, the Galilee and Golan are sparsely served by public transport, so renting a car definitely makes sense there. You don't want or need a car in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem, where it will be more of a liability than anything because parking is almost impossible to find, as has already been said.

Also note that there is no public transport on Shabbat - the Sabbath, from Friday late afternoon until after dark on Saturday, so again a car will be useful then. Bear in mind that except at the airport, car rental offices close at around 1 p.m. on Fridays and reopen Sunday morning. One exception to the no Shabbat transport is the sherut (shared taxi) between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem that runs 24/7. Another exception is the bus from Tel Aviv to Eilat and reverse, which runs on Saturdays starting around mid-morning. In east (Arab) Jerusalem and the Palestinian Authority areas, public transport runs as normal throughout the week, so if you are planning on going to Bethlehem, for example, Saturday is a good day to go. Buses to Bethlehem leave from outside the Damascus Gate of Jerusalem's Old City.

Some people might beg to differ but I would say Amman is not worth a visit.

I suspect Dude set foot in Petra only with one of these giant tourist buses that take you to have a glimpse of the site on a one-day trip from Eilat - a classic tourist trap. You need 2.5 days on location to see the entire site. In one day you will have only a very rough idea of the site and will be frustrated. In two days you will have seen most of the highlights. The Lonely Planet guidebook explains very well the different paths inside the site.

A one day trip from Eilat is not a "classic tourist trap". Catw is correct (for once) that you need 2.5 days to see the entire site, but many people do not have the time, stamina or interest to spend so much time there. A one day tour will allow you to walk the length of the canyon and see all the highlights without being rushed. Catw's statement is equivalent to saying "You need 2.5 days to see the Louvre so any tour that takes you around for 3 hours is a classic tourist trap". Every tourist faces the perennial problem of allotting limited time to unlimited attractions, i.e. an extra day at Petra could mean not seeing something else of interest or importance, and sometimes one day is the only solution.

Regarding Amman, it's a nice place but as a tourist I wouldn't go out of my way to visit there, except perhaps as a base for visiting Madaba, Jerash and Mt. Nebo.

A one day trip to Petra from Eilat is a classic tourist trap. It does not make any sense. It's as ridiculous as the one-day trips to Jerusalem from Taba. You do not have time to see anything. You need to be extremely naive not to realize it.

As I wrote above, if you're on a tight schedule you can do with one full day in Petra (and two nights). However you will be frustrated if you spend less than two full days. You need 2.5 days to really see the site.

Petra is one of the most magnificent places on earth and it's huge. Entrance to the site is also very expensive, so better enjoy it for two days (the price drops if you spend more than one day).

Catw: everything you say is correct but some tourists (a) don't have the time (b) don't have the strength or stamina (c) aren't particularly interested in ruins. You have made your point and now please give the tourists credit for sufficient intelligence to make their decision.

Actually Catw, I spent 2 days there, which is al most people have ad I traveled there on a shared taxi from Aqaba. I entered on both of those days and walked though out most of the main sites. SO careful with you assumptions.

Catw
Just a quick question. What if I did come in on a tour bus, whic I didn't, what of it? Shoud I be seen as a lesser person for it? For someone who claims ot be so well traveled. you sure come of as being ignorant.

Edited by: DUDE057

Personally I love Amman, but there is not much there for a tourist, then again you may find it interesting to simply 'be' in a thriving Arab city. One thought is that you go from Eilat up to Petra, then go on to Amman, have one night and return over King Hussein/Allenby Bridge? If you are heading back to the centre its a similar time scale to going back to Eilat, staying in Eilat and then travelling up - but it depends on what interests you.

G

When you have enough money: I recommend you highly a flight from Haifa or Tel Aviv to Eilat (or reverse). It's extraordinary beautiful!