How to get around and get around Israel is one of the first questions you might ask yourself when planning your trip. There are many ways to do this, and each has its pros and cons.
When thinking about moving around Israel, the typical means of transport, such as bus, car, train, etc., will come to mind. But there is one that does not appear on the list, and it is the one that I will talk about later.
I was surprised to see with my own eyes that the roads and means of transportation are very good for moving around Israel. But, yes, I was going with the wrong preconception.
Choose a base site
To move around Israel, we did a city that would function as a base and move from there.
For example, upon arrival, we went to Jerusalem, and from there, we visited not only the city but also the desert of Jericho and the Dead Sea.
Having a base site allows you to go out for the day to places not far from the city (approximately one hour) and return to your accommodation to sleep.
We did the same thing when we were in the country’s north. We stayed in a hostel in Nazareth, and from there, we made daily departures.
Rent a car with driver service in Israel
Like every country in its main cities, traffic can be chaotic. There are many, many vehicles, which means that if you rent a car with a driver service in Israel, it is only if you go out of the city.
We have been pleasantly surprised to see that the roads are very well-marked and mostly in Hebrew, Arabic, and English. In addition, the quality of the highways and roads is very good.
I advise renting a vehicle if you are going out of the city and seeing if your accommodation has a place to leave the vehicle since parking in big cities is expensive.
On this website, they select the companies that rent cars and show you the cheapest ones.
Private tours
The option that we chose to visit some destinations in Israel was private tours. Although they may limit you to the areas you go to, there are so many options that surely adapt to each one.
For me, one of the best things, as I said before, is to stay in a city and move from there. With one of these tours, you can take tours for a day or a little more and return to your base city.
You can look here if you want to see some of the tours we have done.
Using the bus in Israel
Some cities like Tel Aviv or Jerusalem are very large, and your accommodation may not be so central. In this case, the urban bus is a very good option.
Urban buses cover the entire city; they are well-indicated at the stops. However, remember that in some cities like Jerusalem, you must have a transport card to buy at a kiosk and recharge at some bus stops.
If you are going to rent a vehicle in Israel, you should know that the roads are very good, although traffic jams can give you.
As far as long-distance buses are concerned, you can also use them without problems, but keep in mind that the routes may be very limited.
Traveling by bus in Israel is a good option, but you will always be subject to the schedules that they offer you.
You can see the schedules and destinations of the buses on the official website of the Israeli government.
The train through Israel
Although we do not use it, you should know that you can travel by train to Israel. Our refusal to use it was for three main reasons:
He limited us in time for what we wanted to do. In other words, we had to wait a long time or shorten our visits due to train schedules.
It is not present in all towns that we wanted to see.
Sometimes, the stations were a bit far from where we were staying.
If you are not going to travel to small towns and can adapt to the schedules, the train in Israel is an option that you should not rule out. You can see destinations and schedules on the official train website.
