Jewish Israel and Petra Tour Package, 9 Days

After you touch down at Ben Gurion Airport and make your way to your Tel Aviv or Jerusalem hotel you’ll have time to relax and settle in. Your hotel accommodation is included in your tour package.  If you want you can use some of our suggestions about how to spend your first day in Israel or you could spend the day discovering the unique character of the Holy Land and its people. Welcome to Israel!

On this tour discover the original Jerusalem settlement built over 3,000 years ago and now hidden beneath the ground. But start with an overview of Jerusalem from Mount Scopus where you can look down on an ancient Jewish cemetery, Garden of Gethsemane and Old City. See the Kidron Valley’s ancient Jewish tombs then go into the Old City through the Zion Gate. Walk through the fascinating Armenian Quarter with its brightly colored ceramics and enter the Old City’s Jewish Quarter. Here highlights include the Byzantine-era Cardo and the iconic Western Wall. We stop to place a prayer note in the Wall then leave the Old City through the Dung Gate. From here the tour takes you underground to the 3,000 year old City of David. See the ancient tunnels hewn from rock to bring water to the city thousands of years ago from the Spring of Gihon.

This tour heads to southern Israel through the Judean Hills and past the Inn of the Good Samaritan. We pause at sea level for an unforgettable photo-op then continue our descent further and further down beneath sea level towards the iconic Dead Sea. Our first stop is at Masada where we take a cable car to the plateau summit and tour the remains of Herod’s 2,055 year old palace fortress. We see remarkable structures including palaces and a bathhouse. From Masada the tour takes you past the desert oasis of Ein Gedi and Qumran where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. We spend the rest of the day relaxing on one of the Dead Sea beaches. You can float in the salty-water that is 8.6 times more saline than the ocean creating natural buoyance. Use the Dead Sea mud as a natural skin mask and soak up the glorious Dead Sea sun. 

The Golan Heights Tour takes you north through the Plain of Armageddon and past Megiddo into the Galilee. The Galilee has rolling hills, farmlands, vineyards and the beautiful Sea of Galilee. Crossing the Jordan River we ascend the Golan Heights through lush countryside. We pass Hamat Gader, a site with hot springs used by the Romans and modern-day spa-goers. We travel to the Shalom Observatory and from this elevated point we have stunning views all the way to the Sea of Galilee. In Katzrin we see an excavated Jewish village from the Mishnah and Talmudic eras. Nearby we visit the Golan Antiquities Museum and see archaeological discoveries from the Golan plus a film on the ancient Jewish city of Gamla.  At Mt. Bental we explore the remaining Syrian bunkers and trenches captured by Israelis in the 1967 Six Day War. 

This tour day starts with a look around the kibbutz to learn about this unique community. The tour travels to the foot of Mt. Hermon and the Hermon River. We stop at the Banias a former site of a Roman city dedicated to the God Pan. The lush forests, streams and waterfalls of the Banias are so beautiful it has been compared to the Garden of Eden. We tour Kal’at Nimrod, a 13th-century fortress perched on a hilltop where there are brilliant views of the Golan. Next, we stop for lunch in a Druze restaurant before traveling to the holy Jewish city of Safed. Here we tour the Caro Synagogue, Ari Synagogue and the Artists’ Quarter before returning south and leaving the Galilee and Golan.

Tour the coastal cities of Israel as we drive north of Tel Aviv and make our first stop in Caesarea. Here we tour the remains of an ancient Roman port city and see the amphitheater, hippodrome and ruins of palaces, temples and bathhouses. We travel further north along the coast to the port city of Haifa. Here we see the terraced Baha’i Gardens on Mt. Carmel and learn about the Baha’i faith. Continuing all the way to Israel’s border with Lebanon the tour takes you to the sea caves of Rosh HaNikra. Here we can enter the cave chambers and tunnels where waves crash against the rocks. We return south and the tour visits the Crusader city of Acre. Here we tour the Crusader fortress built in the 12th century, the Ottoman structures and a former Turkish and British Mandate citadel prison. 

Take a day off in Tel Aviv. This is your time to get rest and explore the city that never sleeps!
Relax on one of the stunning beaches; discover Yarkon Park or explore the city. Shopaholics and bargain hunters will love the malls; Carmel Market and Jaffa’s flea market. Visit world class museums like the Museum of Art. Wander through the old neighborhoods like Neve Tzedek where there are indie stores and art galleries or discover the White City’s Bauhaus architecture. Follow the narrow lanes of Jaffa to the old port and feast yourself at Tel Aviv’s many eateries. We can offer suggestions to help you plan your free day in Tel Aviv.

Take a short flight from Ben Gurion Airport Tel Aviv (Terminal 1) to Ramon Airport near Eilat.

The tour starts with a transfer from Ramon Airport near Eilat to the Arava border, where our representatives will meet you and assist with the visa requisition and border crossing. Our local tour guide will meet you on the Jordanian side of the border and you will start the two-hour drive to Petra.
Traveling along the Desert Highway we pass breathtaking desert and mountain scenery. When we arrive in Petra you can choose to enter the city on foot or horseback. We’ll tour Petra, a magnificent archaeological site dating back about 2,300 years to when the Nabataean people carved their city out of red-hued rock cliffs. See intricately decorated tombs and grand temples as you walk down Petra’s ancient colonnaded street. Some of the rock facades will tower above you like the Treasury and the 40 meter high Deir Monastery. On the return journey we’ll stop at several observation points overlooking Wadi Rum, a desert wilderness known as the “Valley of the Moon.” We may have time for a brief panoramic tour of Aqaba, Jordan’s Red Sea port before making our way back to Ramon Airport for your flight to Tel Aviv.

Depart from Ramon Airport Eilat to Ben Gurion Airport Tel Aviv having had a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience. 

On your last day in Israel you will have time to pack your bags and say good-bye to the Holy Land. If your flight is in the evening check-out at 11am and leave your luggage at the hotel. Head into the city to enjoy a “last supper” or do some last minute shopping. Perhaps return to a place you fell in love with; visit somewhere new or mix with the locals at a neighborhood café. If you would like to use your last day to the fullest we would be happy to make suggestions or help you plan a tour.