A Guide to Planning Your Next Tour Package to the Holy Land, Israel

One would think that planning for a trip to Israel is relatively easy since the traveling time from Metulla to Eilat is only eight hours. But the truth is, Israel has great diversity and sophistication for such a small country.

Israell is also a country of contrasts and extremes ranging from climates to religion, and culture. An ideal tour to Israel should reflect a variety of ethnic destinations in order to appreciate and enjoy the full flavor Israel has to offer.

First Stop: The Dead Sea

In addition to the rich history of Masada, the Dead Sea is internationally known for the Dead Sea mud. In the Dead Sea, one can relax while floating on the Dead Sea. Treat yourself to a mud massage. Aside from boiling temperatures during the summer months, the Dead Sea has temperate climate. In the early winter months, temperatures can sometimes dip below zero.

Second Stop: Jerusalem

Jerusalem's old city is divided into four main quarters: Muslim, Jewish, Armenian and Christian quarters. Some agencies offer discounted holy-land tours when you buy a combination tour package to the Dea-Sea. With a little bit over 1.5 hours from the Dead Sea, it makes a favorite stop for tourists. Generally, leave yourself a good three-four days in this gold mine of a city. Generally, spring and fall are excellent seasons to visit as it can get quite hot and cold in winter and summer months respectively. A word of caution - avoid traveling during Passover as prices become ridiculously expensively as its a holy city.

Third Stop: Tel-Aviv

Tel-Aviv is a hub-hub of nightlife, museums, sea promenades, and artist's quarter such as Neveh Tzedeck. Many visitors traveling to Tel-Aviv make a point to visit the late Yitzhak Rabin's square where he was assassinated in 1995.

Tel-Aviv attracts a wide number of celebrities such as Madonna and Richard Gere. Their ultimate hotspots have been alongside the Meditterrenean sea, which is Tel-Aviv's gem. Lots of local bands come to play on a Friday night. Since Tel-Aviv is not quite as a religious city as Jerusalem, many stores and pubs are open during the holidays, but typically close for the sabbath or shabbat, which occurs at sundown.

Fourth Stop: Upper Galilee

Many city dwellers enjoy retreating to the Upper Galilee because it offers a rural lifestyle relatively closeby. Enjoy a stroll alongside the Ami Promenade starting from Kibbutz Kfar Blum, an olive picking or wine tasting tour at one of the kibbutzim, or ice-skating at the rink at Metulla.

Whatever tour package appeals to your fancy, check out the prices. With a weak dollar market, the shekel is suddenly gaining ground and even simple services can be quite pricey