Jerusalem tours

Hi all, I have a stop in Jerusalem in a few weeks and I'm having a hard time getting a tour group together on my rollcall. There doesn't seem to be a lot of activity in private tours, we came a little late to the cruise, and we want a Jewish oriented tour in Israel. I contacted a few tour companies but a private tour is really too expensive. A couple of the major tour companies have a slot but it is not the kind of tour in which we are interested.

Are there taxis/tour guides near the port and if so, are they safe to use? We've been successful in other ports not prearranging a tour but being able to join one at port or create one with others we've met on board. We did this in Dubrovnik and with with huge success in the southern Caribbean. (I know I can not compare the Middle East port to the Caribbean)

So back to my question, are there taxis or safe tours available once I get off the ship?

Thanks.

M

Simplest & best value for a group of up to 5 is to negotiate a taxi at the port - you'll probably have to take a free shuttle from ship to port gate, where you'll find the taxis. Didn't see anyone offering tours.

Yes, the taxis are perfectly safe & modern well-maintained vehicles. The rate a couple of years back was a hefty 100 euros each way for the approx. one hour drive (yes, they accept euros, I don't know about USD).

Get the driver to drop you at the Jaffa Gate of the walled city, & arrange a time for him to collect you from there. There are plenty of taxis in the area if the guy fails to appear.

At the Jaffa Gate you can take a free walking tour of the old city, just tip the guide.

http://www.newjerusalemtours.com/

despite the booking form, there's no need to book, as long as you're at the appointed place (paved area just outside the gate) at the appropriate time.

Doesn't fit your requirements (Jewish slant, etc) but it's better than nowt. ;)

There may not be enough taxis at the port, so go early to secure one.

JB :)

Thanks for the great information.

Marci

Simplest & best value for a group of up to 5 is to negotiate a taxi at the port - you'll probably have to take a free shuttle from ship to port gate, where you'll find the taxis. Didn't see anyone offering tours.

Yes, the taxis are perfectly safe & modern well-maintained vehicles. The rate a couple of years back was a hefty 100 euros each way for the approx. one hour drive (yes, they accept euros, I don't know about USD).

Get the driver to drop you at the Jaffa Gate of the walled city, & arrange a time for him to collect you from there. There are plenty of taxis in the area if the guy fails to appear.

At the Jaffa Gate you can take a free walking tour of the old city, just tip the guide.

http://www.newjerusalemtours.com/

despite the booking form, there's no need to book, as long as you're at the appointed place (paved area just outside the gate) at the appropriate time.

 

Doesn't fit your requirements (Jewish slant, etc) but it's better than nowt. ;)

 

There may not be enough taxis at the port, so go early to secure one.

 

JB :)

I must say John, it has been probably along time since your visit to Israel and some of the information you gave it totally out of date!

The OP didn't mentioned the port they are going to be and I assume that it is Ashdod.

It is true that the chance to join a Jewish tour coming on a cruise ship is not that big, most tours offered in this form, of shared small groups, follow the Christian heritage. However, for a group of 5 I don't think that a private tour is that expensive, a private tour from Ashdod to Jerusalem should cost 600$USD, that is 120$USD per person, way less than the ship price and we are talking about a private tailored itinerary tour...

the cost f a taxi from Ashdod port to Jerusalem is 323NIS one way, so both sides will cost 646NIS that is 165$USD, I don't know where you got the 100 Euro price. There is no problem getting a taxi in Ashdod Port. in the terminal there is an official taxi station with publish rates that are presented there to all, as you can se in my attached photo. you don't need to take any shuttle or leave the port to get one. There are always taxis there throughout the day (they have to according to the contract they have with the port authority) so there is no problem with that too.

Only authorized taxi can enter the port, so the problem is not leaving the port but getting a taxi that will bring you into the port, as in Israel you cannot walk from the port gates to the ship. Asking your taxi driver from Ashdod to pick you up from Jerusalem back to the ship will involved with extra cost. There is a price for every hour waiting but this part in negotiable.

The free tour offered from Jaffa Gate to my opinion doesn't worth even the money not paid for it. It is base on what is known in the tourism business on "pass by" or "view of" and although guided by official licensed tour guide it is designed t make you book the other tours that cost money of course. In any case this tour is mainly Christian heritage and not offering much in the Jewish Heritage side.

All in all, if I would have to recommend the OP, taking into consideration her needs and Jewish agenda, I would recommend her to go on the private tour option. After the taxi cost my guess it will cost her only 80$USD extra per person for the tour and I don't think that this is much and certainly great value for the money.

Enjoy Israel and your visit to Jerusalem.

Hi Talia,

Yes, I've presumed the port to be Ashdod too.

Just to fill you in with the background of our visit...........

As I mentioned, it was 2 years ago.

Taxi rates are very definitely accurate at the time, we juggled euros & shekels amongst our party to use up the shekels.

(Of course, in the meantime the euro has dropped significantly against world currencies - including the GBP, the USD, and the shekel.)

We actually shared a rented car through our RollCall, & stayed overnite in a Jerusalem hotel. But because the second day was a religious holiday (don't it always work out that way ;)) the car couldn't be returned pm, so we had to either return to the ship mid-day or drop the car in Jerusalem in the morning. We chose the latter.

We had to take the free shuttle to the port gate (as you say, no walking in the port) & a taxi from there to the rental agency. We weren't berthed at a terminal, just a pretty desolate quayside, & saw no available taxis in the port. Had a bit of a job persuading a driver to take us the short distance into Ashdod, they were all looking for jobs to Jerusalem - at 100 euros.

Don't quite understand your points about waiting-time or getting back to the ship. :confused:

No waiting time or cost involved, we simply booked a driver to meet us at the end of the day, 100 euros. Same applies if the OP wants a taxi both ways - what the driver does between the two jobs is up to him.

Driver took us back to the port gate & we took the free shuttle from gate to ship - no matter what arrangements may have changed since then, clearly it has to be possible to get from port gate to ship.

Yes, I did make the point that taxi + free tour wasn't ideal, but is a simple & good-value option since Marci couldn't find sensibly-priced pre-booked tours, and there are no on-the-fly tours offered at the port. Perhaps you could link Marci to the $120 pp private tour - I agree that's worth the extra cost but Marci seems to be struggling to find one. And struggling to find sharers on her RollCall. If she's just a twosome, the price gap between taxi & private tour opens up considerably. And the prospects of sharing a taxi with folk they meet on the ship, or even on the quayside, will be very much greater than those of sharing a Jewish-orientated private tour.

The quality of the free walking tour is subjective, we found it enjoyable & informative, and it visited all the important parts of the walled city as well as plenty of others. A very worthwhile overview of the walled city.

And wandering unguided in the walled city a visitor could spend all day trying to find their way around - hellfire, we got lost in the alleyways when we wandered off after the tour! :D

I'll disagree that the focus is Christian, it pretty evenly covered Jewish & Muslim & Christian, plus a dash of Armenian and non-religious sights. The couple with whom we shared the rental car were Jewish, they took the same free walking tour & thoroughly enjoyed it.

Most of the stalls & shops in the rabbit warren of alleyways are Muslim.

So denigrate it all you like, doesn't diminish our experience. ;)

tip for Marci - if you take this tour, the last place we visited was the Church of the Holy Sepulchre but the tour didn't take us inside. Guide then took us back to Jaffa Gate, where we all tipped him & went our separate ways - we chose to return to see inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Ignoring religious differences (and I'm a heathen :D) its well worth seeing inside, so it's simpler if you tip the guide here & leave the tour at this point.

All just MHO as always.

JB :)

Thank you both for offering information. We are considering a private tour for the two of us. Pricy - but that way we make the best of our limited time.

M

Just returned 2 weeks ago from cruise and had 2 days in Ashdod. Free shuttle bus runs from the port to the gate but did not begin until 9a.m and the last one was at 5p.m. Official taxi point was inside the terminal and prices were clearly stated. We chose one excursion with Guided Tours Israel and I would recommend them only reason did not do 2 was lack of numbers interested to join us for Masada and Dead Sea (so booked that through Thomson ship which we were on.) We did Jerusalem and Bethlehem but not sure if you can try and organise one for your specific requirements. I gave a family a guide book I had and they did go to Jerusalem on a public bus however they did say they were pushed for time as they were relying on shuttle bus to get to and from the ship. Ship staff pointed out that they themselves have found out from experience that only certain taxis can enter the port and if not in one you cannot enter the area to board the ship so if only taking a taxi back ensure the firm can take you in. A staff member spent 2 hours negotiating with immigration/port security! Hope you get what you want. We did and had a great time.:)

Hi There. there is a party of 8 going on the Spirit 25th May. We all want to do the Jerusalem tour and we have one member that has walking difficulties but gets about on a mobility scooter. Would this tour be a problem for the disabled person.

Thanks Paul

DH & I just returned from a week in Israel, and we used a private guide for the entire week. I've taken many cruises, and my recommendation is that if there is any way you can afford it, use a private guide for Israel. You'll have a limited time in Israel, and using a private guide will be the most efficient use of your time because there are so many incredible sights to see. We used Sandy Kuttler, who was born in NJ but emigrated to Israel about 30 years ago. I highly recommend him, and he also specializes in tours for people with disabilities. His website is www.israelwithsandy.com, and his email address is sandy_k@sarid.org.il. I've travelled extensively and have done a lot of self-touring, but have also used private guides. I really think using a private guide in Israel is worth every penny. Unlike other countries, guides in Israel must be licensed, and go through a rigorous training program.