Any advice on non-revving to Tel-Aviv over Spring Break? It’s too early to check loads right now, but so far so good. Getting back to the USA is our biggest concern.

 

Get StaffTraveler if you don’t have it. It’s a lifesaving verified crew app that allows you to check loads on any airline. (Some responses are more timely than others.) Have plans A-L lined up. ZED travel will vastly increase your options. Obviously, domestic travel is a mess during spring break, but it tends to be less so overseas. If you live in a city that has direct service from Europe, sometimes it can be better to do your extra leg before crossing the Atlantic rather than after. (Ex: TLV/FRA/DFW might be smarter than TLV/EWR/DFW.)

 

When are you going?
Loads around Passover can get pretty bad. On the other hand (if you aren’t Jewish), flying directly on the holiday can workout nicely.

Getting out usually isn’t actually that bad. The flights line up pretty nicely in the evening. The UA to ORD or IAD are after midnight and so are a couple of the ElAl flights, so you can almost bank on at least one or two families showing up for their flight on the wrong day.

They won’t let you go to the gate until you have a seat. They make you wait it out at the ticket counter outside security (at least as of a few years ago). It’s a bit unnerving knowing you are 45 mins from departure and still need to get through security and customs, but the timing works out.
Last minor tip… they take your liquids away at the gate and not at the main security, so don’t buy a bottle of water to take on the flight with you.

 

Thanks for the advice.

Planning to go the week of March 13 for 4-5 days. Any recommendations for getting around, where to stay, etc? Our priority is Jerusalem.

Is it safe and reasonable to get a car and drive around? Or should we hire guides to get around?

 

Rent a car and drive around. Everyone speaks english and will be happy to help you out with directions, etc. You're safe as long as you don't drive outside Israel proper and into ****hole Gaza or West Bank. Jerusalem is majestic and is a must see, but don't forget to check out & enjoy the beach - either the Med or the Red Sea.

 

Awesome. Thanks

 

If you’re flying all that way make sure you go to Bethlehem also… recommend you hire a tour guide/driver as they’ll coordinate for a Palestinian tour guide on the other side… how it works over there. We stayed at the United crew hotel and booked everything through the concierge. Going there in the Spring is probably a bad idea… very busy.

 

Loads are starting to fill up so it’s not looking good for us to go. I’ve read Sept - Feb is the least busy time.

Whenever we do end up going we definitely want to go to Bethlehem. Appreciate the help!

 

I did a nine day tour of Israel with Gate 1 (usually have awesome deals) and added my own stuff before and after. I went in March last year.

We nonrevved to Tel Aviv on EL AL from JFK and came back to PHX via Air Canada through Toronto. We planned to come back on Delta but a flight cancelled—we literally changed our listing using staff traveler and myidtravel while in line.

We stayed in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and up on Galilee. We went to Bethlehem, Masada, Dead Sea, Jericho, up north, etc. All over. The tour was awesome and cheap, like $1100 per person. They do all the driving and tour guiding plus provide hotels—you might consider looking into that.

After our tour we rented a car in Jerusalem and drive south to Eilat where we crossed the border into Jordan (on foot) and picked up a three day tour of Petra and Wadi Rum.

The driving in Jerusalem is hard core aggressive. Just drive like they do, and hopefully you can drive a manual.

Israel has awesome food. Jordan, not so much.

There is so much to see—look up a Gate 1 travel itinerary and you can get an idea what to see.

 

Rent a car but be prepared to put a $1500USD deposit down depending on the rental companies. Parking is hard to find in most cites. I drove around all (except Garza) sides of the country with no issues.