Private tours and custom-made tours in Israel

You would like to get the most out of your time in Israel. The best way is to tour privately using professionals. This saves you time trying to decide where to go and what to see. The following rough layouts will give you an idea of what can be done in different amounts of time. While stating the famous highlights, there are many gems less well-known to consider while customizing your tour.

A tour guide is highly recommended. 

It is not quite enough to form a bucket list of places you would like to visit. Touring with an Israeli tour guide gives you a lot more. Instead of time-consuming searching, rely on expert knowledge. Israel is a very complicated country, and hearing about the multiple layers from a local who studies them for an entire lifetime is invaluable. 

What are the most visited touring sites in Israel?

This is a difficult question to answer. The Western Wall is probably the most visited site in Israel, however, people are not counted while going in. For Christians, the Church of Ressurection is one of the most visited sites. The following chart gives a general idea of some of the most popular sites which require purchasing a ticket.

Is it possible to tour Israel while staying at a single location?

It is possible to see a lot while staying in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv. Israel is a small country and many sites are within a relatively short driving time. On longer trips of 5 or 6 days, we would recommend spending at least one night in Galilee. 

1 day- strictly highlights.

Most people who travel to Israel, but only have one day to travel, would tour Jerusalem. Some of the options:

1. Jewish tour of Jerusalem: Valley of Kings, City of David, Western Wall, the Jewish quarter, Jewish markets, the Western Wall Tunnels.
2. Christian Jerusalem: Mount of Olives, Gethsemane, Via Dolorosa with the stations of the cross, Church of resurrection or Garden Tomb, upper room (room of the last supper), Bethlehem Church of Nativity.

   

3. General highlights- a combination of both religions.
4. New Jerusalem: Capital Hill, Israel Museum, Yad Vashem Holocaust museum. This is a good option for people who would like to keep the tour indoors.
5. Geopolitical tour of Jerusalem: Tour around the seamline, visit a settlement, checkpoints, the separation barrier, and Herodium, King Herod’s grave and fortress.

If you have already been to Jerusalem and would like to see something different, here are some great options:

1. A Wine Tour of the Judean Hills (read more here)
2. Tel Aviv tour of neighborhoods and culture. You could also have some expert specialty tours in Tal Aviv (street art and fashion, tour of the resurrection of the Hebrew language).
3. Caesaria, King Herod’s ancient capital city, Akko (Acre) Knights’ Halls.
4. Masada and Dead Sea tour (longer driving times).
5. Galilee ministry of Jesus (longer driving times).

3 days- Israel’s essential highlights

1. Jerusalem and surrounding areas.
2. Tel Aviv tour. This could also include one of the museums in the city or around it.
3. Masada and the Dead Sea.

6 days- Israel highlights

1. The Old City of Jerusalem, religious sites.
2. New Jerusalem: geopolitics and Yad Vashem.
3. Tel Aviv tour, including specialty tours in the city and a museum.
4. Masada and the Dead Sea tour, optionally visiting Qumran, the site of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
5. Travel to Galilee, exploring historical sites on the way based on preference.
6. Golan heights, a viewpoint of Syria from mount Bental, exploring nature and battle sites.

   

9 days- more than essential highlights

1. The Old City of Jerusalem, religious sites.
2. New Jerusalem: geopolitics and Yad Vashem.
3. Tel Aviv tour, including specialty tours in the city and a museum.
4. Masada and Dead Sea tour, optionally visiting Qumran, the site where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found.
5. Akko (Acre), Caesaria and Rosh Hanikra.
6. Travel to Galilee: Zionist History, including the first Kibbutz, nature hike. Alternatively, Nazareth Church of Annunciation, Jesus’s ministry around the Sea of Galilee: Capernaum, Mount of Beatitudes, Magdala, Tabgha and more.
7. Golan heights, winery, Mount Bental viewpoint of Syria, ATV or SUV tour of the Golan Heights.
8. Travel to the Negev Desert. Stop on the way for camel riding. Visit Ben Gurion’s house, and hike a desert oasis.
9. Mitzpe Ramon Crater, rappelling, star gazing, Ramon visitor’s center.

12 days- extensive tour

If you have 12 days to tour the country, there are many customizable options. This would be an opportunity to consider traveling to Eilat and seeing the beautiful red sea. Another option is to combine a visit to Jordan (Petra and Wadi Rum) using our Jordanian contacts.