sharkman1991

We have 10 days from the time we land in Tel Aviv until the time we leave. We would like to spend a couple days in Tel Aviv, Petra, Jerusalem and perhaps a day in Amman. I realize this is a bit rushed, but that's all the time we have and we really would like to hit those four spots, even though we could probably spend more time in each. Below is the first draft of an itinerary I have worked out and I am hoping I can get some feedback - positive or negative. We are going in July:

Day 1 (Thursday) - arrive in Tel Aviv at 8:30am. Get to our hotel and spend the day in Tel Aviv.

Day 2 (Friday) - spend the day in Tel Aviv but take the midnight bus to Eilat

Day 3 (Saturday) - arrive in Eilat at 5am. Take taxi to Jordan border. Wait for it to open at 8am. Cross and make our way to Petra. If there is time and we have the energy, spend a few hours in Petra

Day 4 (Sunday) - spend the day in Petra

Day 5 (Monday) - spend the day in Petra. Supposedly it closes at 6pm so take a bus to Amman that evening

Day 6 (Tuesday) - spend the day in Amman

Day 7 (Wednesday) - travel to Jerusalem via the King Hussein bridge. I realize this could go quickly or take all day. We would be leaving early in the morning.

Day 8 (Thursday) - spend day in Jerusalem

Day 9 (Friday) - spend day in Jerusalem. Take bus back to Tel Aviv that evening

Day 10 (Saturday) - spend day in Tel Aviv

Day 11 (Sunday) - fly out of Tel Aviv first thing in the morning

So...does this make sense, other than the rushed nature of it? I don't know if almost three full days in Tel Aviv is warranted, but the hotel at which we will stay is right on the beach and my wife and step daughter are excited about spending time at the beach so I know they will be OK with it.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

AlexA

Well, I haven't been to Jordan, so I can't comment on half your itinerary!
But as a practical matter, realize that there are generally no buses (no public transportation) in most of Israel from afternoon Friday to early evening Saturday, so no bus back from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv on Friday evening. In July, Shabbat doesn't stsrt until fairly late, but some sites that you are interested in might close early on Friday anyway--maybe 4 pm is my guess.

Now that I think about it--are you sure there's a bus from Tel Aviv to Eilat that first Friday night?

dutyfree

If you are from the US why not fly into Tel Aviv and out of Amman to save time and energy. Delta and Royal Air Maroc fly nonstop from Amman to JFK.From my travels, I would suggest arriving in Petra the night before you want to spend a full day there and you would be fine.If you are going in July,you are going to be quite hot and walking among the rocks for two days may not be what you want to do? Jerash,Wadi Rum and the Roman amplitheatre would be other options to consider?Our family loved the resorts on the Jordan side of the Dead Sea.

laurie_ann

There is no reason to go back to Tel Aviv for last night. The airport is between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem and transportation is easily arranged and not very expensive directly from Jerusalem.

alan43

A bit rushed for all that in 10 days. AlexA is probably correct about bus travel on Shabbat. The airport is between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. There are hotels around the border in Eilat where you can rest a couple of hours. We walked across the border to Aqaba from Eilat. Takes a short time to cross. Have you considered how you will get to Petra once you cross? We were supposed to have a taxi meet but none showed up and if weren't for the Jordanian border guards and some of the local people we would not have been able to get to Petra. It's a couple of hour drive to Petra from the border. One of the local Jordanians had a relative who was a taxi driver so he drove us to his house and his relative met us us and drove us in his taxi after a fare was negotiated. Had a great 3 days in Petra but in July it will be exremely hot. We were there in Sept and the days were hot but the nights were nice and cool. Going back to the border was easy the taxi driver took us from the hotel to the border with Eilat and the crossing was again easy.

In Petra we stayed at the Movenpick which it right by the entrance to Petra. Great hotel with so so food. We ate in Wadi Mussa in the local resturants it's a very short walk.

In Tel Aviv we stayed in our favorite hote. The Melody, we've stayed there 3 yrs straight. It's a contemporary hotel, nice though smallish rooms. Great staff, very accomadating. The hotel is a short walk to both the beach and the pier area with its great restaurants.

Please just make sure about the buses running.
Please make sure reservations are made to be picked up in Aqaba when you cross the border, don't expect it to have taxi lines waiting to take you to Petra.

alan43

Hi Again. We were in Petra 2 yrs ago. We negotiated a fare of 150 JD, which unfortunatley was on the high side but within reason. On the return trip we paid 130 JD. Remember when you cross the border to Jordan you have to buy a visa stamp only cash, if I remember correctly for each members passport.

basingstoke2

For public transportation on Sabbath and holidays consider the Sherut (shared taxi system). These are inter-city mini-vans that can be found at central bus stations and some other locations. The pros are that they can drop you off at a specific address and they do not cost much more than a bus, and other than Yom Kippur when they do not run, they run 24/7. The cons are that they do not leave until the driver feels it is full enough, depending on place and time of day, that may take awhile. Also, see pro #1. Because they can take folks to a specific address, they may make multiple stops before arriving at where you want to go - similar to an airport shuttle.

sharkman1991

Thanks so much for the replies. They have proven to be very helpful.

I went to the Egged website and sure enough, there are no midnight buses running on Friday night so right there is my first itinerary revision! Thanks for pointing that out.

I know that what I'm trying to do is rushed. We are starting our trip in Turkey and then going to Tel Aviv. The main reason we are doing that is so my wife can see Petra so we can't miss that. I don't know if we would be going to this region if it wasn't for Petra so it is of primary importance. My wife and stepdaughter also want to hang out at the beach in Tel Aviv, but if it makes more sense to do it elsewhere, I don't think they'll mind.

We were in Egypt in July 2008 so we know what weather awaits us on this trip. We handled it in Egypt so we'll handle it here too. July is not the best month to travel but it is the only month of the year we can take trips like this.

After crossing the border from Eilat, I read that there are taxis that will take you to Petra but that they are expensive, so I wasn't surprised to see 120-150 JD. I had read the cheapest way to get there was to take a taxi to the central bus station in Aqaba and then taking a bus to Petra from there. That's what I was planning to do.

Once in Petra, I was hoping to use my points to stay at the Crowne Plaza but it appears that it will be closed for renovations this summer, so I am looking at the Movenpick Resort.

I appreciate all of the feedback so far. Now it is time for my second draft itinerary. Again, thanks.

alan43

Hi, I just read your reply that you read that there are taxis waiting to go to Petra. There were taxis in Eilat at the border but none were at the border in Aqaba in Jordan. We were taken to someones relative who was a taxi driver and he took us to Petra.

The Movenpick is a great hotel and at the entrance to Petra which will be appreciated when you want to go back to the hotel. We ate the dinner buffet once and thought it was very poor. We ate our suppers in Wadi Mussa instead, there is agood chice of restaurant s especially bedoin cuisine and priced reasonably. Lunch we ate at the hotel.

wanttogo

Sharkmann:

Have you thought about contacting a Jordanian tour company to pick you up at the border and take you to Petra and do the reverse? A company like Jordan Direct or Petra Moon? It may not be that much more expensive than a taxi.

Pat

losaltos

"If you are from the US why not fly into Tel Aviv and out of Amman to save time and energy." I agree wholeheartedly with this. It would save a lot of driving/time and let you see more in Jordan. I would cut down on the time in Tel Aviv in favor of some time at Dead Sea resorts in Jordan. And we loved Jerash (outside of Amman) and had a spectactular day in Wadi Rum. Also loved the Movenpick, for its location and ice cream!