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Tours of Israel – Guided Groups
Are Your Better Choice
If you have never been to Israel before, and you would like to visit for the first time, I strongly recommend you to take a GUIDED TOUR.
There are many travel agencies that specialize in tours of Israel. You will usually join in a group of like-minded people based on age, religion; interests etc. the travel agency will then arrange the flights, accommodations, bus to drive the group around and a tour guide.
Click here to jump to the section about my reccomended Israeli tour guides.
Here is a group on a guided tour in the Ein Gedi area. some of the
people in this group are my friends and family.
What are the advantages of a guided tour?
- Convenience. You don’t have to worry about hotels, car rental, driving, finding your way around etc. All those and many other details are being taken care of, and you don’t need to be concerned with administration problems. That leaves you focusing on enjoying your trip, and learning new and interesting facts.
- The tour guide. A tour guide can make or break your trip. A knowledgeable tour guide can enrich your trip with hundreds of details in areas such as: the history of Israel, the culture, interesting stories about a site and personal experiences. And if he/she is friendly and funny – of course this is always a plus.
- The group. It is very common for people who know each other to join as a group for a travel in Israel. This can be a congregation, group of students or any other group you can think of. If you join with friends, you will usually have a lot of fun together anyway. Having said that, there are many groups of people who didn’t know each other before the trip and still had a great time together. There are even match making groups...
Even if this is not your first time in Israel, you can still greatly enhance your trip by having the above advantages.
Points to check before booking:
- Experience - check that both the travel agent and the tour guide have been in business for some time. This doesn’t mean three centuries, but you definitely want at least a couple of years of organizing travel groups.
- Food – if you only eat kosher food make sure that this is known. While most food in Israel is kosher, there are exceptions.
- Transportation – make sure the group will be picked up at the airport on arrival. Sounds basic but you will be surprised…
- Get a name – make sure there is a REAL person at the travel agency (even if you book online) who is responsible for your group. Take the phone number of that person, so you can call if you encounter any problem on your trip.
Another point to check with yourself is if you have healthcare/medical/travel insurance coverage. This is an absolute must before you travel.
How long should the Tour be?
I will tell you up front that in my opinion you should look for a tour of at least 14 days. The absolute minimum would be 10 days.
Don’t be tempted to go on any less than that. The reason is that there are a lot of “must see” sites in Israel. True, it is a small country and the distances aren’t so big. Still, if you would like to taste a little bit of everything without running from one site to the other like a mad dog, you will need some time.
Here is another reason: if you come after a long flight – say North America – you are likely to have a jet lag for 2-3 days. Why be jet lagged for half your trip? Take my advice and go for the over 10 days tour. Preferably 14 including the flights and hotel transfer to and from Israel.
Here is my recommended tour guide for your travel to Israel:
Joel Berman (in Hebrew it is Yoel). Joel is a very experienced and knowledgeable guide, and a super nice guy. Here is what Joel has to say:
"Among all the available commodities for touring in Israel, there is one unique option that will allow tourists to travel all around the country with a private tour guide and in the comfort of a private car. This is the "Rehev Eshkol" private car, which is specially tailored for tours of couples, families and small groups.
Any tourist wishing to tour the country by car and not by bus has the possibility of reserving this service which includes a super comfortable motor car/mini-van/full size van designed for touring, a licensed tourist guide and personal service.
Each private car is driven by an experienced, government licensed, private tour guide trained to give maximum service and impart maximum knowledge. The guides have an affinity to tourists and an extensive knowledge of the languages and countries they come from.
These tours are especially designed for the comfort of the individual tourists, as opposed to large (bus) group tours. The tourists travel according to their own time-table and itinerary. On a private tour you will also see much more than on a bus tour. The very important part of travelling with a private tour guide is the flexibility of the guide, of the sights and your schedule. You are able to finess the itinerary to your exact interests and your timetable. Want to leave earlier or later in the day - no problem. Want to see "local" attractions - only your private guide can do it for you. Want to change the daily focus - no problem.
Your guide will plan your tour according to your interests and your budget. He can also make all your ground arrangements - airport transfers, accommodations, local flights, onward tours to Jordan and Egypt, Bar/Bat Mitzvah services, weddings and any other occasions.
If you are coming on business you can combine touring with your visit here - the guides are very flexible and offer personal service.
The guides are very well informed and educated having graduated from a 2 year course (MA equivalent) and having passed exams by a board consisting of their peers and Ministry of Tourism officials. Every year they participate in filler-in study-days and that is one of the conditions of the renewal of their government license."
One of these guides is Joel Berman. Joel prefers to travel with 1-6 tourists and enjoys families.
To contact Joel Berman please fill out the following form and Joel will call/email you back:
Click here to get my suggested itineraries in tours of Israel
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