reneeeileen

how much time do we need to get in the important highlights at a relaxed pace with kids?

reneeeileen

also: we only have 17 days so should we skip a country and do it another time?

Grcxx3

I think folks will need a little more information in order to give you decent advice/recommendations.

How many kids?

How old are the kids?

What are your interests?

What made you pick these countries - in other words, what do you want to see in each place?

reneeeileen

our children are 5 and 7 and are adventurous travelers. we want to see the highlights of all three countries, not sure if we'll get back. we'd love to get some adventure (possibly short safari) in there as well as a few days of dead sea or red sea relaxtion. we are considering dropping israel if its too much.

reneeeileen

of course we are interested in seeing the pyramids and the most interesting historical sites.

LeighTravelClub

I would say that Egypt demands most time and that Luxor is the best base. So much to see there. Jordan offers Petra and Wadi Rum and not an awful lot more and we have not done Israel yet so I can't comment on that.
Avoid the Movenpick in Aquaba. Probably the worst 5 star hotel we have stayed in.

unaS

For 17 days I would suggest 2-3 for Jordan, then split Egypt 9 and Israel 4-5 days.

The children are probably too young to appreciate museums and religious sites to any great extent.

The Dead Sea is NOT good for children. The water burns! The Red Sea is much better from either side, either Aqaba or Eilat. The tourist infrastructure in Eilat is better. There is also an underwater museum and a swim with the dolphins program for children. http://www.inisrael.com/tour/eilat/reef.html

IMHO Jerusalem is a must. The Old City has a great deal to offer no matter what you are looking for.

Don't know what you mean by "a short safari" in the ME, but there is a safari park near Tel Aviv, a good zoo in Jerusalem with a section especially for Biblical animals and lots of nature parks for walking. See this site:
http://www.parks.org.il/ParksENG/ganim_about.php3
It's worth checking out all of the tabs on the top.

unaS

Sorry, that should be an underwater <b>observatory<b> </b></b>