Sorry, no. Touring Israel ONLY offers customized private tours. We have no way of combining tours. Having said that, if you come to us as a group we can put together a customized group for you, but if you wish to JOIN a group of other tourists for a tour we unfortunately do not offer this option.

You MAY book your own hotels, but we do strongly urge you to book through us, or at least allow us to quote you on hotel options. We have excellent relationships and our hotel pricing is better than what you will get if you book directly from the hotel, and we promise you that booking through us is a better bet than one of the online hotel booking sites since our personal relationship with the hotels means you will always get exactly what you booked and no nasty surprises. We do not work with ALL hotels in Israel, but we work with SELECTED PARTNERS who we know through experience are giving you the best option in a category.

The simple answer is a resounding yes! The most common thing for a first time tourist to Israel to remark upon return is how safe they felt. The reason is that Israelis are more vigilant than most other peoples. Unfortunately we have learnt the hard way to be aware of suspicious behaviour, suspicious packages etc. There is a lot of security in Public places in Israel and our national security policies have helped us to minimize the threat of terrorist attacks. That doesn't mean that they don't happen - of course they do - but a survey of the locations of these attacks - public transport, Jewish settlements in the West Bank - and a close look at who are the targets - military personnel and visibly religious Jews - shows that it is quite easy to avoid areas that of higher risk. Also, you will be touring with an experienced tour guide who will never take you anywhere that is risky. And Touring Israel is always working behind the scenes to identify places that have an elevated risk and thereby avoid these new areas as well. You won't even notice its happening. And beyond the terrorism issue, Israel has comparatively very low levels of crime. Israeli cities are as safe - and in many cases safer - than most North American and European cities.

Would you travel alone in Italy? Or Spain? Or Greece? If the answer is yes, then you should feel extremely comfortable traveling alone in Israel - with a few caveats. Anyone traveling alone should be extra careful. Touring SOME neighborhoods alone as a woman, IF NOT DRESSED MODESTLY can be dangerous in certain religious Jewish and Muslim areas. If you are not sure where these areas are, your guide can tell you where to go and what to do during the day and at night to stay safe and he or she will always accompany you whenever asked anywhere you would like to go as long as the guide feels its safe.

Lots of people come to us and announce their intention to stay in Tel Aviv for the duration of their tour to see the country from there. Israel is a small country - its the size of New Jersey - but its not SO small that its convenient to tour the whole country from a single location. You can comfortably tour Jerusalem from Tel Aviv and visa versa, and you can tour the Dead Sea from Jerusalem, but if you want to go up North or down South, you really need to stay overnight to do it properly. Count on a MINIMUM of 2 nights in the North if you want to see the Galilee and the Golan. On the flip side, there is no need to spend the night at the Dead Sea if you are staying in Jerusalem. Its easy to visit the Dead Sea as a day trip from Jerusalem.

Good question. We can give you a ballpark price once we know how many people are travelling, when you will be travelling, which guide would you prefer and an idea of what you are interested in seeing. The main reason that the rates aren't posted on my site is that the final price depends on many factors, such as • How many people will be touring? • What size and style of vehicle will you need? • Will this vehicle need a driver as well as a guide? • Do you want a specific guide (their chargers vary)? • Depending on the guide and final itinerary, the guide might need overnight stays which do cost extra. • Will you be traveling to Jordan and Egypt as well? The rates are different outside of Israel. • Will you be booking your own hotels or would you like for us to do that for you? • What level of hotel would you prefer? • Do you require airport assistance and transfers? • Any other special requests? Once we have answered the questions above we can give you a solid quote.

The length of time for your tour, which is a private tour, is totally up to you. It may be anywhere from one full day of touring (11 hours maximum per day) to a few weeks. It's up to you.

In Israel it is most common for the guides to own and driver their own vehicle. The make and model of vehicle varies, but most commonly they own a 6 passenger seat van - always a late model, air conditioned van in tip-top condition. Occasionally for groups of 3 or less you will tour in a comfortable SUV or sedan. For tours of more than 6 people it is necessary to have a van or bus with a separate driver. These vary from 9 seater vans to 50 seat buses. All buses and vans are clean, comfortable and of course air conditioned.

I always say that you need a minimum of 7 days, and up to 14 days to see everything. If you only have a week, you can have a fantastic tour that includes the major sites in Tel Aviv, the North and Jerusalem (plus the Dead Sea). If you wish to add the South (the Negev Desert) you need another couple of days. If you wish to include a visit to Jordan, add another 2 days to that, and if you want to do it all comfortably and not too rushed - 14 days is your sweet spot.

Tough question to answer. Mid Summer (July & August) is very hot. Its guaranteed to be 30 degrees Celsius or warmer & very humid on the coast, and even hotter (but less humid) inland. In the desert areas and in the Jordan Valley it is more likely to be 40 degrees plus. So if you don't like the heat, obviously you should avoid July & August. If you do like the Summer and enjoy the beach and water sports, then you will probably love it! And there is the added bonus that it will literally NEVER rain in July or August. Well, maybe never is too strong, but the chances of rain are next to zero. Mid Winter (January & February) is cool and wet and it can even snow in the hilly areas including Jerusalem. So if you don't like the cold or you are worried that rain might spoil your tour, avoid the winter. However take into consideration that January & February are low season and prices are considerably lower in hotels and many regions of Israel have delightful weather in the winter. What about the Spring and the Autumn? They both offer absolutely delightful weather for touring. My personal favorite months are March - May and October - November.

Some people may wish to avoid the peak seasons as defined by hotels. These are most major Jewish holidays (Passover in the Spring, and the 3 weeks from Jewish New Year through the end of Sukkot in the Autumn) and mid Summer (July & August) as well as the week from Christmas through New Year. Jewish holidays are holidays for Israelis so they tend to fill up the hotels themselves, particularly in the North and in the South. Christmas can be very busy due to foreign tourism. The Summer - particularly August - is very busy in Tel Aviv and the North.

If you are planning on touring during Spring Break, May through June or Christmas time - its never too early to book. These are our (Touring Israel's) peak seasons and our guides tend to get snapped up a long time in advance. The earlier you contact us the higher the chance you will get that specific guide that you liked on our website or that your friends recommended to you. On the other hand, if you're planning low season - December through March (except Christmas - New Years) you can relax a bit and 2 - 3 months is sufficient. For all other months we recommend booking at least 6 months in advance whenever possible. Of course if you have a last minute tour we will be more than happy to do our best to accommodate you.

You can try, and we get calls all the time asking for a tour tomorrow, and often we can arrange them successfully. However you are risking not having a guide available and you are severely limiting the kind of activities that we can offer you. Many of our most popular activities must be booked in advance and cannot be arranged from one day to the next. We always recommend that you contact us at least a few weeks in advance to arrange a tour for the best results.

Absolutely not. Hitchhiking, while once very common in Israel can be dangerous today and should be avoided.