My wife and I highly recommend Arnon Eschel (e_arnon@hotmail.com).
He is in his mid-forties, is fully licensed and was a Major in the IDF.
He is extremely knowlegeable, intelligent and personable - a most wonderful Guide and person.
Additionally, his rates are extremely reasonable.
Tell him that Ann and jerry recommended him.
Have a great trip. Israel is so special to visit and I know that you and your family will love it.

Despite the advertising above --basically saying, ' hire us, we are good" I do not see nor recommend you hire an agency. When you hire an agency you end up with the guide who THEY assign you. When you hire a guide directly ==you interview, you pick. You interview first by email and then by phone ( or skype) This way--you decide if you can understand the guide's English. You judge how open they are to your questions. You listen to their suggestions and have a dialogue.

That being said I recommend Oreet Segal. If you look around you will find she also answers questions on this forum. YOu can contact her via her webpage
http://seeingisrael.com/

or directly via email

oreets@gmail.com

Hi

i can recommend Adi Eshed, whom i know personnaly. check:
http://www.aditour.co.il/?lang=en&category=articles&subcat=248
he's a very nice guy, knowledgeable and experienced.
since i also guide (in a few corners of this planet) i know a good guide when i meet one...

enjoy

aby

Please note that my comments above refer to a post that was removed NOT the recommendation for Arnon Eschel--who I do not know but obviously is NOT a company.

Thank you all for your replies. I greatly appreciate the suggestions.

We (2 families of 4, older kids) used Dina Horn (dinatouring@gmail.com, http://www.enjoy-israel.com/). She was GREAT! She was both guide and driver for most of the trip, but did use a separate driver for the longer legs. She is extremely knowledgeable and personable. By the end of our trip (9 days) it was as if she was an old friend.

Also, Dina can make hotel suggestions, and in some cases can get a special rate, but you can do your own booking if you like. We did a little of both, but I did my own research as well.

Every guide is capable of making hotel suggestions and booking for you. Any guide who says they can't ( or won't) deserves a rethink, IMO!

I also used Arnon. He really went up & above what I expected for a tour guide. I was on my own in Jerusalem and he called to make sure I was ok. I have used many private guides for many parts of many trips, but I'm a DIYer and know what I think are important sights. He blew me away by arranging a visit to an Israeli water treatment plant. Believe me, I thought, "hm, I'm not on a school field trip, what's he doing?" But it was so interesting, off the beaten path and opened my eyes to lots of info about Israel I had never thought of. This was my 3rd trip there, so impressing me wasn't easy. I had seen all the A list sights. He knows his history, has many opinions, and will make it an unforgetable trip.