| Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020 | |
Travel IsraelCountry forums / Middle East / Israel | ||
Hi all, I have booked flights to Israel at the end on july for 11 days travel! Super excited. Thinking picking three spots would be best for this samll amount of time. We fly return to tel Aviv so a day or so will be spent either side exploring there. Then we are thinking of a few days in Jerusalem, bus down to Dahab (is this border crossing easy? Possibily staying at the Peguin Village) and then back up to TA via a smaller/undiscovered/less touristy place (any recommendations?). Mostly we would like a mix of cultural/historical adventures with a bit of total chill out relaxing time on beach/scenic areas? possibly tie in a night or two with the Bedouin? Has anyone been during ramadan? we are there then?!! I cant wait to eat thier delicous food and I hope this wont infringe on it too much...obviously respect for their traditions is paramount though! Any advice for two girl travellers? hitching? bus frequency/safety/speed? beautiful spots not to miss on this southern-ish route? all would be much appreciated. I cant wiat to be there.... i hope to hear from some inspiraring travellers soon. many thanks s xxx | ||
First of all, the TLV airport is located between Tel-Aviv and Jerusalem so you can go to either city in approximately the same time upon your arrival. You say your vacation is 11 days, but how many full days do you have ? If you arrive in the afternoon of the first day and leave in the morning of the11th day, then you really have only NINE days for touring. Going from Tel-Aviv/Jerusalem to Dahab takes a full day ! 5 hours by bus to Eilat, crossing the border, then the drive from Taba to Dahab (at least 2 hrs). I assume that after this long drive you will want to spend at least 2 days there, which means a total of 4 days minimum, including the travel. So if you have only nine days total then you are left with no more than 5 days for the rest of Israel. If you spend "a few days in Jerusalem" you have only a day or two for everything else ! I think you should think carefully about your priorities for this vacation. | 1 | |
Welcome. One quick comment. Two women traveling the region should not be hitchhiking. Regardless of what anyone else says, there is no reason to take the risk. Bus travel is cheap and convenient so why do it? IMHO you are thinking of doing too much in a short period of time. Eleven days will go by quickly. You do not mention your budget, but keep in mind that every time you cross country borders your expenses will mount. It will cost 105NIS every time you leave Israel. It will cost you to enter Egypt as well. My advice, based on the limited amount of information you've provided about your interests, is to spend your eleven days in Israel. You can lounge at beaches, go on any number of cultural / historical adventures, see the desert and so forth right in Israel without running around from country to country. Good luck. | 2 | |
lake traveller - thank you lots - thought id ask as hitched in europe but heard mixed re Israel, and yes short time so dont want to waste time on sides of roads any way :) mbgg - firstly 11 full days..arr 5am on day 1 and leave 8pm on day 12... so actually 11.5 days!! :) well thank you both lots for replies... what a great first few responses for a first time travel forum-user!! x | 3 | |
Dahab is fantastic, you'll meet tons of cool travellers there. Penguin is the best. Once there you can arrange to spend a night in the desert with the Bedouins, much cheaper and more authentic than on the Israeli side. Hitchhiking the tourist police will not let you do it in Egypt, it's against the law as whoever drives you could be accused of moonlighting as a tourist guide or tourist driver without a permit, a severe offence in the country. You'll have to take buses or taxis. In Israel it's generally safe and you'll see many youngsters doing it. That said you can always end up in the car of some macho jerk, you never know. I'd agree with the above - public buses are convenient, not expensive and you can chat with Israelis on board, many youngsters travel this way. Jerusalem and Tel Aviv are both very interesting, with very different vibes. Life is super expensive in Israel and youth hostels are sometimes fully booked months in advance so make sure you book somewhere early on, or try Couchsurfing maybe. | 4 | |
Hitching in Israel is just as safe as it is in Europe. But who said it was safe in Europe... | 5 | |
Life is super expensive in Israel The usual Catw exaggeration to deter tourists. Israel is not dirt-cheap like its neighbours and it is more expensive than the US - it is more on a par with western Europe. Definitely not "super"-expensive as you public transportation is "super"-cheap (compared to Britain, for example), there is a good selection of reasonable street food and there are many reasonable hostels. | 6 | |
#4 Hitchhiking the tourist police will not let you do it in Egypt, it's against the law as whoever drives you could be accused of moonlighting as a tourist guide or tourist driver without a permit, a severe offence in the country. That was not in my personal experience! On March 1st as the East Delta Travel buses were striking, and subsequently there was no bus service between Sharm and Dahab. From the airport, the taxi driver dropped me of at the Sharm toTaba road police check point, where I easily hitched a lift into Dahab, from in front of the police check point. The guy who gave me the lift gratefully accepted the money I gave him ''for his children'', when he dropped me outside the Jasmine Pension. Israel's cost of living is on par with Europe, quality costs. | 7 | |
#4 Life is super expensive in Israel and youth hostels are sometimes fully booked months in advance so make sure you book somewhere early on, or try Couchsurfing maybe. That was not my personal experience in March. I walked into the Eilat IYHA, (an ideal location for both plane spotters and swimmers) on two separate occasions, and got the accommodation I wanted without pre-booking. The Masada IYHA was also available at 48 hours notice, and was booked on line. As indicated above: Israel's cost of living is not super expensive, as asserted by #4, it's on par with Europe, quality costs. | 8 | |
Sandyfoot, it's better to read what people say before writing your own reply. Our fellow traveller said he was traveling to Israel in July/August, the busiest period in the year, when hotels and some youth hostels are booked months in advance. Israel is expensive considering it's in the Middle-East. A hotel in Tel Aviv can cost as much as in Europe, and the quality is not that good as compared to Western standards. | 9 | |
CATW: No doubt you are happy with the lot of the average Egyptian because it cheapens your vacation and you wish that Israelis go around around barefoot on donkeys so that your AsAEurpean money would buy more. | 10 | |
.#9 Because the governments have taxes to collect, and a population that have taxes to pay, a country to defend, rubbish to collect and recycle seven days a week. I could go on, but you get the picture. Israel has always enjoyed a higher standard of living, than her neighbours, since its inception. A hotel in Tel Aviv can cost as much as in Europe, and the quality is not that good as compared to Western standards. I do not know where you choose to stay. But of course a hotel room or a serviced apartment can cost a hell of a lot more than in Europe. But Israel also has backpackers/ hostels and cheap hotels. But some people are clearly able and willing to pay, for high end luxury accommodation, and some tourists choose to return several times a year. Hence the continued growth rate in Israel's tourism and hotel building programme. All this is clearly underlined by Israel's hotels high occupancy rates, and profitability as an operating investment. So we come back with your assertion that: Israel is expensive considering it's in the Middle-East. I will ask you a question, should Israel come down to their Middle Eastern neighbours level of living standards? Lol! | 11 | |
mbgg, Well said. Israel's standard of living has shot up because of it's vibrant economy. Seb, it might be worth devoting more time in Jerusalem, which is teaming with things to see. July is really not a good time to go to the Sinai, it wil be blistering hot ( 40C +). Perhaps go north to the Galilee. Safad, Nazareth and Haifa might be good alternatives to a long hot trip to far off Dahab. , | 12 | |
Israel is not a destination for backpackers anymore, the tourism industry is now targeting rich tourists. It has become very expensive over the past years. The cost of labour is not really the issue, as the hotel / restaurant industry employs many immigrant workers with low wages. Israel's expensive prices are mainly due to high taxes and the fact that the economy is at the hands of a few monopolies. The latter were the target of last summer's social protests. July / August is not a good time to set foot in the Middle-East in general because of the heat, no matter the country, except if the plan is to stay on the beach. It's actually cooler in Dahab than in Tel Aviv or Haifai or Sharm because of the local breeze . | 13 | |
Thank you, Catw, the AsAEuropean economist. Israel is hot, Israel is expensive, Israel is ..... the usual Catw negative response, totally irrelevant to the OP's questions. | 14 | |
The OP asked whether touring Israel is expensive and how is the weather, nothing unusual here. This being a travel forum, not a tourist agency trying to sell something, I thought it best to tell the truth. That life in Israel is very expensive is one of the major topics among Israeli citizens, Mbgg. It's better to help the OP plan his / her budget accordingly. That Israel is extremely hot during the summer is not very surprising, considering it's in the Middle-East, not Scandinavia. | 15 | |
#15: +That life in Israel is very expensive is one of the major topics among Israeli citizens, Yes, it always has been that way, no news there. It's a fact that Israeli's and tourists have found the cost of living high, for at least since the early1960’s. Should Israel come down to their Middle Eastern neighbour’s level of living standards? You have not answered the question. | 16 | |
That's why many Israelis go on the beach in Sinai, rather than in their own country. | 17 | |
#19: Israelis have abandoned, relinquished, renounced, forsaken, deserted, the fleshpots and carrot chillums of the camps and resorts of Sinai. After Israel issued (12 months ago) a travel warning to Israelis to leave Egypt's Sinai Peninsula due to kidnapping alerts. This came from the (outgoing) head of the Counter-Terrorism Bureau in the Prime Minister's Office, Nitzan Nuriel. | 18 | |
#24 I am personally both delighted and thrilled you have lived to tell such an epic travelers tale, and that you were not kidnapped or worse. | 19 | |
Sandyfoot, I was in Sinai for a few days last week, I confirm there were many Israelis vacationning in Sinai's Taba, and a few in Dahab, during Pessah holiday. | 20 | |
If you are looking for an experienced Palestinian Tour Guide, Khalid is your guide. He is an English speaking tour guide who specializes in Alternative tours in and around Bethlehem, including Hebron, Ramallah, Jericho and the Dead Sea. | 21 | |