Hi Ed,

Many of the Jewish sites are closed on Saturdays (beginning on Friday, early afternoon, sites begin to shut down as do many stores and public places (like theatres) as does public transportation---many places open after sundown on Saturday although this won't apply to tourist sites. Many Christian sites are in fact closed on Sundays too and El Al does not fly on the Sabbath except in an emergency. Your planning will have to take these factors into account. Be aware that some cities, like Jerusalem, are more rigorous in observing the Sabbath than are other places like Eilat although even there some sites are closed on Shabbat. Taxi service will continue to run though even in Jerusalem and in a very few places, like Haifa, public buses run on Shabbat. Doing a lot of reading will be important before coming here as without a guide traveling in Israel can be complicated. Robyne

Hi Ed,

I've just (well, in December) come back from 2 months in Jerusalem so I can try and answer some of your questions. I found October and November very good months in Israel - there is a lot going on and the weather isn't too hot, though you can get some rain.

I actually did a similar trip to the one you are planning a few years ago, although in June (way too hot). We took 2 weeks and started up north and made our way down south, via Jerusalem, before going into Egypt and then into Jordan. In all it took 2 weeks.

Shabbat - while I was living in Jerusalem I found it very important to plan my time around Shabbat AND the Christian and Muslim days off! I found that Friday morning and Saturday evening are very busy in the Jewish areas of Jerusalem and lots of restaurants are open, but almost everything shuts down during Shabbat, as it seems does ElAl and the Israeli buses (Egged) will not run on Shabbat.

That said, Arab areas (such as the Old City) wil be up and running on Saturday (though not necessarily on Friday or Sunday - their days of rest, according to whether they are Muslim or Christian), as will taxis and such services. The same goes for tourist sites - you really do have to check opening times as they might be closed on Friday, Saturday or Sunday, or even a combination of those days. If you fancy visiting places like Bethlehem from Jerusalem and your rental company won't let you drive into the Palestinian territories you can easily take an Arab-run bus, just make sure you go to the right bus station! There are 2, one going south and the other going north, from near Damascus Gate.

Tel Aviv is a different matter, as it is less religious than Jerusalem, but I can't advise you on this area.

You didn't say what you were planning to do with your car while you were in Jordan. I know that we didn't cross the border in ours and instead took taxis to Petra once we had crossed into Jordan.

Sorry for being vague; I hope it helped a bit,
Michelle

Hi Ed,

This is Robyne, writing to you from Jerusalem. I am a partner in a tour and travel company here and thought I'd respond to what you'd written. I think that either time of year you're considering would be great and it's wise to avoid those holidays since hotel rates are higher during holidays and some sites are either closed or much more packed with visitors. Your route sounds good and you'll see a lot. I'd recommend that you do a lot of reading though since Israel is absolutely filled to the brim with complicated historical sites and you'll miss a lot without a good bit of research invested ahead of time. Do be aware that many sites are closed on Shabbat as are many restaurants and shops too. Have fun!