Israel

[AvonCallingBarksdale]

Anyone been to Israel on holiday? If so please can I have any recs for where to stay, what to do, what to avoid? We would be looking at October time. Thanks.

Went for 4 days
Look at places the Locals go.
We stayed in Haifa. (Well we lived on a ship at the time)
Local stuff
www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g293982-d319539-Reviews-The_Baha_i_Gardens-Haifa_Haifa_District.html

www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g293982-d325455-Reviews-The_German_Colony-Haifa_Haifa_District.html

We hired a Guide for two days well worth it, he was excellent.
www.facebook.com/Mordi-Tour-guide-100911938469395/about/
Further a field
www.rosh-hanikra.com/home-en/
www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g1883747-d2234684-Reviews-Keshet_Cave-Shlomi_Northern_District.html
www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Tourism-g297736-Acre_Northern_District-Vacations.html

We would love to go again and we would also visit Tel Aviv and use the same Guide he made the holiday so much better

That’s great - thank you!

Hiking up masada at sunrise is amazing. Ein gedi national park also lovely. Dead sea spa too, can just do a day one if you wanted

You wont be disappointed the beaches are great two

How long are you going for and what kind of holiday do you want @AvonCallingBarksdale? Beaches, sightseeing, culture, museums vineyards, religious sites, nightlife?

If you want guaranteed sunbathing weather in October, you need to go to Eilat. There isn't much else to recommend it though! It's also half the country and a desert away from the interesting sights. It will be warm (low twenties) but not necessarily hot sunbathing weather elsewhere.

Tel Aviv has nightlife, culture and beaches. It's also close enough that you could manage the dead sea/masada/Jerusalem as day trips. Actually, the country is so small (290 miles length and at its narrowest less than 10 miles wide), you could visit most places as a day trip (under 2 hours drive) except Eilat. Personally, I would probably stay a few days in different places and end with a few days on the beach either in Tel Aviv or Eilat (if you can fly out from there). In one week, I would do Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Ein Gedi. With 2 weeks, you could explore north of Tel Aviv or go to Eilat and the Ramon Crater).

You are spoilt for choice on places to stay in Tel Aviv. This list has a few of my favourites:
www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/middle-east/israel/tel-aviv/hotels/

You might want to visit the Samaritans in Holon (just outside Tel Aviv) or Nablus (in the West Bank) for their festival of Sukkot (a month after the Jewish festival) if you are there for the right dates.
www.timesofisrael.com/inside-the-samaritan-high-priests-fruity-sukkah-literally/

I would probably stay at the kibbutz hotel at Ein Gedi to do masada, the dead sea, spa, ein gedi oasis reserve (2 days):
www.ein-gedi.co.il/en/our-story/

I would also do at least a couple of days in Jerusalem, more if you want to spend a day in Bethlehem. The American Colony Hotel is amazing, a short walk from the Old City. Try to get a room in the old Pasha's Palace or one of the old buildings, not the new block Tony Blair's old office.
www.americancolony.com/

Places to visit north of Tel Aviv:
Netanya - great beach
Caesarea - Roman ruins
Haifa - Mount Carmel, Baha'i Gardens
Acre - crusader citadel
Rosh HaNikra - cable car, beach, grottos
Safed - mystical (kabbalah) hilltop old city with art galleries and vineyards
Tiberias - Sea of Galilee, Golan Heights

You can do organised day trips that will take you to the main sights in 2 or 3 of those places if you really want to squeeze everything in.

Wow, thanks all. Amazing tips @chesirecat99! There are 4 of us - me, DH, DD14, DS16. DH is keen to go for two weeks in August but I’m wondering if that’d be too hot? I thought October for 9 days. We like exploring, beaches, the odd museum, walking, relaxing, sightseeing, eating out

I went to Israel for four days and absolutely loved it! I only went to Tel Aviv after deciding to forgo Jerusalem as I loved Tel Aviv so much! It reminds me of Barcelona very much. Very safe too. Me and DP wandered around after our flight arrived late afternoon and felt very safe.

I stayed in LightHouse Hotel by Brown’s Hotel in Tel Aviv. I enjoyed my stay here! You get a welcome drink (champagne ) and the room was spacious. I didn’t go with children so can’t comment on the family rooms. It was about a five minute walk to the beach and centrally located. The staff were very friendly and gave great recommendations on where to eat.

Sarona Market & Carmel Market are both so good for food! Lots of cuisines around the world and such a clean food market (compared to other markets I’ve been to).

Old Jaffa is a district of the city and probably the oldest. It’s full of history, restaurants, markets and museums. It’s a mixture of Muslim, Jewish and Christianity and it’s so beautiful as it’s so rare to see so many religions mix in one district in Israel. You can see the skyscrapers and the beach from the top of a hill there somewhere (sorry can’t remember the name) and can see local cats wandering! This area was probably the highlight of my trip as it was so historic and fascinating!

HaYarkon Park is a little out of the city but such a massive green space! Could easily spend the whole day there wandering around and lying there with a good book relaxing. There is a lake nice which is stunning! Could easily spend the day there.

Restaurants:
I didn’t eat out at many restaurants but I loved Cafe Nordoy. Phenomenal food and cracking atmosphere. Might not be appropriate with children but if they’re well behaved then it shouldn’t be a problem. Definitely go in the evening.

Can’t really think of anything to avoid but avoid being political about Palestine/Israel. The public transport from the airport wasn’t great so maybe get a taxi instead.

Tips:
Don’t be alarmed seeing young people carrying massive guns on public transport. They’re doing National Service and they’re very friendly and approachable.
Allow extra time leaving the country on the day of departure. They interrogate you quite a bit. Nothing intrusive and they’re very friendly with it. They’re not trying to catch you out. They’re trying to trying to protect their citizens.
English is widely spoken in Tel Aviv but learning a phrase or two won’t hurt!
Israel is expensive. Think UK prices for most things. So be sure to carry your credit card with you (it’s widely accepted and if it isn’t - cash machines tend to be free to withdraw money from).

Feel free to ask me any questions! I could give more recommendations. I really loved Israel and cannot recommend visiting Tel Aviv enough. I love the city and want to return very soon!

Oh I would recommend try and do things Monday to Thursday. A lot of things shut between Friday to Sunday. Israel in August will be very hot so bear that in mind. I went in February last year and it was 22c most days!

August will be hot in Tel Aviv and on the coast 28-30C, mid 30s at the dead sea, Tiberias, and insanely hot in Eilat 40C.

Teens might like Eilat. It is more of a "holiday resort" and there is diving and swimming with dolphins. I am not a fan... Tel Aviv is probably the best place that fits all your criteria - a city break on the beach. I would definitely do the Dead Sea/Ein Gedi with teens and you probably ought to at least visit Jerusalem. Avoid Jerusalem on Friday/Saturday as most places will be closed and sometimes there are political demonstrations in the Old City.

If you can go for 14 days, it is worth it, you could see so much more of the country and get out of the Tel Aviv bubble - whether it's staying at a kibbutz, visiting the religious sites of Jerusalem or a Druze village, driving past the separation wall and settlements to visit Bethlehem, or through the minefields filled with wildflowers in the Golan Heights to see the crusader castles and old Syrian military look outs (watch The Spy on Netflix for the story of the eucalyptus trees). It's worth looking at organised tours to steal their itineraries Unless you want to avoid the history and politics but there are probably better destinations to visit, if that is the case!

October's a wonderful time to visit, but I would avoid August unless you like the heat. The humidity in Tel Aviv is a killer.

I moved from the UK to TA nearly 10 years ago, and it's a wonderful city and should probably be the base for your trip. The beaches are great, but the restaurants and nightlife and the highlight! Kids are generally very welcome in restaurants, etc, and you'll have no problems with older kids. You don't need a car to get around in the city - mostly walkable or you can pick up Bird or other scooters as the cycle lane network is good (and the traffic sucks).

All good recommendations above! Caesarea is also well worth seeing and is only around 40 mins up the coast from TA. If you like hiking and nature, the north (either the Western Galil or the Golan Heights) are very beautiful and have amazing trails, including crusader castles and rivers/waterfalls. One caveat: it will all be pretty parched in October as there will have been 6 months of no rain by then.

Probably the must-sees though are Jerusalem, and as someone said, Masada, which you can combine with the Dead Sea and maybe Ein Gedi.

Check the dates of the Jewish holidays before booking for October. Mostly compatible with a vacation, except for Yom Kippur which, while quite amazing, means that every restaurant, bar, shop, etc, is closed and there are no vehicles on the roads.