March 2022

Rough Draft: One Week Itinerary in Israel

A trip that almost was and hopefully will be soon. When exploring a destination for a spring trip, Kevin suggested Israel and I immediately went to work creating a perfect one week itinerary. I created a perfect itinerary and everything was ready to go. So what happened?

Well, you know when you have that feeling that something wasn’t right? I had that every time I went to pull the trigger on this trip. It was not about not wanting to go – it is an incredible destination – but I was more concerned about the timing.

• Israel still required a 24 hours quarantine and an arrival COVID test – this concerned me for such a short trip to spend 24 hours in our room – that is precious PTO time right there.
• We did not plan on renting a car and were going to rely on day trips to explore areas. This allowed us to enjoy ourselves and all go with a guide to learn about the dense and massive history in this county. Many tour companies were not operating at full capacity and even then had a minimum group size great er than two – so my fear was that if we were the only ones booked on these tours that it would get canceled due to the low demand.
• Activities I wanted to participate in – such as wine tasting and having Sabbath dinner with a local family – were also unavailable.

So with all that, I just did not have the confidence we were going to get the most of out this Israeli itinerary in March 2022. But it is certainly ready to go when Israel is back open and the tourism industry is up and running.

Before we jump into the itinerary, here are some planning considerations to keep in mind that I found helpful.

• Sundown Friday to Sundown Saturday is Shabbat – the day of religious observation and a day of rest. For tourists, weekend availability to important to choreographing a trip and depending on where you are in Israel at this time, transportation and many tourist attractions are unavailable.
  • Things to do during Shabbat:
    • Visit religious areas as they are open for worship on the day of rest
    • Participate in a traditional Shabbat dinner
    • Stay in Tel Aviv where it caters more to tourist
    • Do like the locals and unwind and disconnect for 24 hours
    • Rent a car to explore on your own
    • Book a day trip with a company operating on Saturdays
• There are many ways to get around the country:
  • Buses and trains connect the major cities
  • Taxis are widely available
  • From what I read, stay away from renting a car for traveling in the cities
  • Tour companies are a popular and convenient way to explore destinations outside the major cities
• For such a small looking country, there is so much to do here and much of that is attributed to the insane history this location has to offer. Depending on the time that you have will help guide what you are able to fit in.
  • Tel-Aviv
    • Explore city neighborhoods
    • Jaffa / Old Jaff
    • Tayelet beachfront
    • Markets: Shuk Ha Carmel, Levinsky, Sarona
  • Jerusalem
    • Markets: Machaneh Yehudah, Shuk, Cardo
    • Yad Vashem
    • Israel Museum
    • Mt Olives
    • Old City: Temple Mount, Done of the Rock, Western Wall, Church of the Holy Sepulchre, various gates
  • Day Trips
    • Masada, Dead Sea, Ein Gedi – Can find tours that bundle these spots together!
    • West Bank
    • Eilat for snorkeling
    • Mitzpa Rimon Crater
    • Rosh Hanikrah grottos
    • Sea of Galilee and Nazareth
    • Caearea for roman ruins and full amphitheater
    • Wine tasting
    • Extended trip to Wadi Rum and Petra, Jordan
• Places I had marked to eat:

Here is how we plan on spending a week exploring Israel!

For more travel inspiration, see all DESKRIB itineraries here!