Travel to Israel and Palestine – 1-week itinerary + Tips

Here’s the perfect Israel and Palestine itinerary for those who are planning to visit this country for a week.

Tour an ancient city of Jerusalem, float in the Dead Sea, climb Mount of Temptation and go scuba diving in the Red Sea, everything in just one week!

QUICK TRAVEL TIPS

Visa for visiting Israel and Palestinian Territories?

As the Palestinian visa doesn’t exist, most nationalities, expecially the EU countries can get a free visa on arrival in Israel and use it to enter Palestinian Teoritories. Border officials no longer stamp passports upon entry, but instead they give you a slip containing all your personal informations. It is important just to check your passport – it must be valid for a period of at least six months from your initial entry into Israel!

Currency

Both in Israel and Palestine, the currency used is the Israeli Shekel. 1EUR= 3,90 ILS

Health & Safety

No vaccinations are required to visit Israel and Palestinian Territories. It is compleately safe to visit even if you are female solo traveller. Just avoid and be aware of any potential demonstrations.

Dress code & Transportation

It is wise to dress modestly when you are visiting sacred places. You can easily get around with public transport, Egged bus or shared taxi. Just be aware that during Shabbat and some Muslim and national holidays transportation schedule could be changed!

Let’s start the journey!

Eilat to Jerusalem

My journey from Vienna started with a low-cost airline WizzAir. You can find the return tickets Vienna – Eilat, already for the price of 40 euros, which makes this trip really affordable to everybody. Flight duration is approximately 3 hours and 45 minutes. Time zone is GTM +2.

I have to admit that I was really scared going to Israel and expecially to Palestine, because at the same time there were some terrorists attacks to Tel Aviv which at the end I didn’t visit. But the situation was not at all bad as they were presenting it in the newspapers and TV. It was really, really safe! After landing to Eilat, next morning I took the shuttle bus to Jerusalem for 25$ per person. This was the fastest and most convenient way to get to Jerusalem. Duration is approximately 5 hours and it depends on if you get the bus or a private driver. It was really amazing experience to drive through so many beautiful desert landscapes with a view on the Dead Sea. You can book your trip here: https://www.touristisrael.com/tours/shuttle-bus-jerusalem-eilat-eilat-jerusalem/

I spend a lot of time researching the cheapest option of accomodation in Jerusalem and I found the great solution! I have decided to sleep in Palestinian village Abu Dis. The price of Airbnb accomodation was almost three times cheaper then to stay in Jerusalem and there is direct bus from Abu Dis to East Jerusalem Station (Damascus Gate) for just 7 Shekels in one direction. The duration of a journey is about 40 minutes because of the Separation Wall. Abu Dis is also a great choice because there is a taxi station where you can find cheap shared taxi to Betlehem, Jericho, Ramallah, Hebron and other beautiful places. You can find accomodation here: https://abnb.me/o1zEZ4J6u2

Jerusalem in 48 hours

Start your Jerusalem walk from the Via Dolorosa – the route where Jesus walked with his cross before beeing crucifixed. On this route it’s obligatory to stop and visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Tomb of the Sepulchre, where historians said Jesus was burried before his resurrection. After this visit take a break and drink amazing fresh squeezed pomegranate juice and head off to the Western Wall!

Western Wall is one of the holiest sites in the world for Jews and thousands of people pray at the Wall every day. I was really lucky, because there I had an opportunity to see a ceremony of Bar mitzvah. Bar mitzvah is Jewish religious ceremony seen as the moment a Jewish boy becomes a man. Place a note between the Western Wall stones and research beautiful Jewish and Armenian Quarter! It is also obligatory to visit a Temple Mount which contains the Dome of the Rock. The best place to buy a souvenirs is definitely Muslim Quarter where the prices are lower and you can easily haggle.

If you like fresh local products next day you can visit new Jerusalem and Machane Yehuda Market! It is a largest market in Jerusalem and offers many sorts of fruits, vegetables and spices. I recommend you to buy a spice called Za’atar – you can eat it with soft sesame seed bread and olive oil. And at the end try some dried fruit tea – it is apsolutely delicious!

Journey beyond the wall – Palestine!

Almost everything was closed during the Shabbat in Israel so I decided to spent time visiting some of the most interesting places in Palestine. Probably because of the media Palestine is not a popular tourist destination and people are scared to visit it. This is really pity because it has got many things to offer – from historical sights, amazing food and people which wants to help you on every corner (even though you maybe don’t need any help) to beaches at the Dead Sea. My great host arranged me private driver in Abu Dis and we started sightseeing – Jericho (Mount of Temptation), Monastery of St Gerasimus, Jordan River and Dead Sea Kalia Beach, all in just one day.

Jericho – Oldest City in the World

As we were approaching Jericho I felt a big excitement, I couldn’t belive that I will visit the oldest and lowest town in the world. At the main city entrance was written that the entrance for Israeli citizens is forbidden. Entering the city I could feel the difference between Israel, it is quite dirty and loud (everybody are honking), but people are really friendly. I visited Mount of Temptation. There are couple of ways to reach it and probably the best solution is to start the trip early morning, because of the really high temperatures. I choose to drive by car to the foot of a mountain and than hike up to the top. The second and easier solution was to take a cable car from Tel Jericho. Mount of Temptation plays an important role in Christian tradition, it was a place where Christ was tempted by the devil during his 40-days fast. The views from the top are fantastic, you can see Jordan Valley, Dead Sea and town. If you will have more time visit also Hisham’s Palace and Hasmonean Palace.

Monastery of Saint Gerasimos

Monastery of St Gerasimos is one of the earliest monasteries in the Judaean desert. Entrance is free and you can see exotic plants and animals in the Monastery garden, as well as to make a great lunch break in green oasis.

Qasr el Yahud – Jordan river

Qasr el Yahud is believed to be the Biblical site where John baptized Jesus and this symbolized his spiritual birth. The literal translation is Castle of Jews. Chatolic and protestant pilgrims comes accros the world just to visit this site and I have to say that (together with Betlehem) this was the most crowded sight I have visited in West Bank.

Dead Sea – The lowest point on earth!

After visiting so many beautiful sights I have finished my day at the Dead Sea Kalia Beach. I choose this beach because it was the closest one and it has a natural mud. This is the stop in the southwestern Asia which you definitely don’t want to skip!

Here are some of the facts: The Dead Sea is not the sea, it is actually a salt lake whose shores are the Earth’s lowest point on land. Because of constant exploitation Dead Sea is a site of looming environmental catastrophe and in couple of years it could completely dissappear. It is just half an hour from Jerusalem and has many things to offer; the lowest bar on the earth, restorant, shops, health treatments and even a camel ride – everything in just one place. Water has the high salt content and people usually float on the surface. Cover yourself with mud and experience the floating! Just don’t try to swim because you can easily get drown. If you don’t have arranged taxi, there is a shuttle bus which goes directly from Jerusalem. Price for entrance at Kalia Beach for adults is 59 ILS and for students and children 46 ILS. If you are looking for a nice place to spend a beautiful day with a family this is the perfect choice!

Betlehem & Bethany

Last day of visiting Palestine I spent in Betlehem and Bethany. From Abu Dis you can take a shared taxi to Betlehem which cost only 10 ILS and it is 50 minutes long. There you can visit Church of the Nativity – believed to have been built over the place of Jesus birth, St. Catherine’s Church, Chapel of the Milk Grotto, St Mary Syrian Orthodox Church and Manger Square where you can find caffes and souvenir shops. Honestly I expected much more from Betlehem, it is really crowded and if you want to see some attractions you will have to wait in a long line.

SWIM WITH A VIEW ON FOUR COUNTRIES

If you ever wanted to swim with a view on four countries, Eilat is the place which offers this unique experience. Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Egypt from just one spot! If you are not a fan of history and religion, this is a place for you. Eilat is perfect spot for diving and you can explore so many different species of fishes and corals in the Red Sea (or just enjoy a day at sun and hot weather). Many tourists are also visiting aquarium and Dolphin reef where they enjoy swimming with dolphins. For shopping lovers there is a tax free zone with a big shopping centre.

Eilat is also located near Jordanian town Aqaba and Egyptian town Taba which you can easily visit by local Egged bus which drives directly to a border crossings. From Eilat, but also Aqaba there are offered organised tours to Petra and Wadi Rum, so if you have couple of days extra you can easily visit Jordan and Egypt. There is a big selection of accomodation, from luxorius hotels up to private Airbnb accomodation which also offers private villas with swimming pools.

Here you can get a discount on your first Airbnb accomodation: https://abnb.me/e/OB4v5JROz2?suuid=79826d25-e016-48e0-94d3-8e7e94301843&slevel=0