Tel Aviv to Petra?

Hello.
Me and other 2 friends are travelling to Tel Aviv for work.
We got this idea to visit Petra while we are there.
So my questions are:

1.- We arrive to TLV @ 17:20 on Friday 12th; we will rent a car and we will head to Elait. How long will that take?
2.- Is the road safe to travel by night?
3.- At what time the border closes and opens?
4.- Is this the fastest route?
5.- Any other advice?

tnxs everybo

It takes about five hours to drive from Tel Aviv to Eilat. It is a long and boring, and narrow, road. Certainly not a multi-lane highway and not well lit. You ask whether it's safe. The only danger is that the road is notorious for traffic accidents. Stop frequently to avoid the danger of nodding off (there are plenty of roadside cafes etc. on the way).

Thanks Shuffaluff.
Is it the fastest route?
or should I go via Jerusalem?

I don't drive, so I'm not the best person to advise. The shortest isn't necessarily the most convenient.
Are you planning to go straight from the airport? I think the quickest way would be to go via Road 6, which is a toll road but takes you away from all the traffic - and Friday night is likely to see heavy traffic.
You don't pay cash on the ground; there are sensors that read the car's licence plate. The bill will go to the car hire company and they will forward it to you.
From the airport follow signs to Jerusalem (Road 1), and then after about 15 km the highway divides, with Road 1 going to Jerusalem and Road 6 to the south. Go to the end of Road 6 (it currently ends, according to its web site, at the Ma'ahaz interchange). From there, you will certainly see signposts to Eilat.
I can't get the English site to come up; you might have better luck: http://www4.emap.co.il/derecheretz/?lang=eng
As I say, this isn't my field of expertise (I do public transport), and would certainly bow to others' superior knowledge.

Tnxs again Shuffaluff.
Yes we will be heading straight from the airport.
Your advise its greatly appriciated.

Yeah it is the quickest way, and on Friday nights the public transport is very limited. Your only other real alternative is a taxi. What I would consider is a connecting flight which will take much less time. They run almost hourly, so check Israir and Arkia. Cost might be more but itll be much quicker and easier but you wont be driving through the desert, an experience in itslef, although at night there isnt much to see.

Info on border opening hours can be found at this page on my site: http://www.touristisrael.com/landborders.html

Hope this helps

Tnxs touristisraelcom.
Yes the airplane sound like a good option, the only issue is the have to get to Jerusalem after that. So renting a car and returning to the airport seem like a logical option.

Any other airline?

Please be advised that you cannot take a rental car across the border. You would have to leave your car at the border or somewhere else in the Eilat area.

a1 is right of course...so why bother renting ? there are night buses and since your not pressed with time (going there at 17:20 means spending the night asleep in a sleeping bag next to the border crossing - I've done this once) since it wont open before mourning time you should consider egged busses (get off at Eilot Junction next to Kibuts Eilot). There is also a nice taxi driver named Pini who does this rout at night 052-8772733. He's fast and safe. Make sure to have something warm to wear at night time.

Edited by: chatul

There is no night bus on Friday night/Saturday morning. If you come back from Eilat by bus, it means you have to go to Eilat by bus, unless you return your rental car in Eilat.

Chatul, OP says they are arriving in Tel Aviv, presumably meaning their plane lands at Ben-Gurion Airport, at 17:20 on Friday. There is no way to get from Tel Aviv (or the airport) to Eilat by public transport on a Friday night.

The first bus from Tel Aviv to Eilat on Saturday is at 16:00, arriving in Eilat at 21:39.

OP says:
>Me and other 2 friends are travelling to Tel Aviv for work. We got this idea to visit

Petra while we are there.

But then goes on to say
>We arrive to TLV @ 17:20 on Friday 12th; we will rent a car and we will head

to Elait.

This isn't at all clear to me. OP, you will be spending some time in Tel Aviv working, and in addition you want to go to Petra. But as I understand it, you are coming straight off the plane and heading that same night, Friday night, to Eilat? That doesn't sound like a very practical idea to me. Your profile says you are from the Netherlands Antilles. Is that where you'll be flying from? If so, you'll be jetlagged, and you're planning to go straight on this long and boring drive, on a dangerous road at night.

I would spend at least a day in Tel Aviv first, just to get your breath back, and then head to Eilat and Petra.

Tnxs a1,
We where aware of that