Car rental in Israel....

[Dorinda]

We are thinking about this....getting off in Haifa...spending the night ashore...rejoining the ship the next day in Ashdod.

 

Anyone done it?

 

Any info or advice appreciated.

 

Cheers- D and J

[motib]

We are thinking about this....getting off in Haifa...spending the night ashore...rejoining the ship the next day in Ashdod.

 

Anyone done it?

 

Any info or advice appreciated.

 

Cheers- D and J

 

It is possible but there are few things you must take into considerations:

 

1. The rental office is not close to the port. All rental offices in Haifa are located in what is called here the Bay area and you'll need to take a taxi or a bus from the port to there. Not a long ride but during morning time it can take a while. One advantage you have, leaving Haifa to the south you don't have to drive again through the city.

 

2. Bigger problem in Ashdod. Again he rental offices are in the city and not close to the port. The issue here is to get into the port and for that you'll need to use a taxi that is allowed to go into the port and can drop you off on the pier, by your ship, not every taxi can do that.

 

3. Parking! Whether you go to Tel Aviv or to Jerusalem expect parking problems in both cities.

 

4. Navigating. Not so much on the way to, but in the cities. If you are thinking of renting also a GPS expect some surprises in spelling the Hebrew names in English.

 

5. Cost of accommodation. That only will add 200-300$USD to the whole cost depending on the level of accommodation you will use.

 

All together I think that in such a small country, with such short distances an overnight is not a "must" (what I wouldn't say about Egypt). You can have full 2 days tour without wasting too much driving time on the roads without the overnight. As for the cost, I think (I haven't checked it all the way down) that an overnight will cost you the same as 2 private tour days with a guide that not only will pick you up from you ship, he will also drive and make sure all the time you have will be efficiently spent.

[Dorinda]

Dear motib - thanks so much for taking the time to reply.

 

Ok - what if we just rented a car for one day....just drove from Ashdod to Masada? I know it's doable in a day because the ships' tours do it. Would you do it? Is it about a 2 hour drive? How are the roads? Much traffic?

 

Thanks for any help. We hate bus tours and private tours are $200-600 per person.

 

Cheers - Dee and John

[motib]

Dear motib - thanks so much for taking the time to reply.

 

Ok - what if we just rented a car for one day....just drove from Ashdod to Masada? I know it's doable in a day because the ships' tours do it. Would you do it? Is it about a 2 hour drive? How are the roads? Much traffic?

 

Thanks for any help. We hate bus tours and private tours are $200-600 per person.

 

Cheers - Dee and John

 

Doable but....

The car rental office in Ashdod is closed at 18:00 so the time your ship is leaving is not relevant.

Ashdod to Masada it is 160 km that mean you'll have around 120 km over mileage. Check well how much you pay for over mileage!

All togeter, if you don't want to join your ship's tours, your best option is to go to your cruise roll call and try to find your self another couple or two to join you on a private tour.

The price 600$ is the price for a 4 seats car and it is not per person!

[Dorinda]

Ok - good points - thanks for the input. And do you know of any tour companies?

 

Cheers - Dee and John

[motib]

Ok - good points - thanks for the input. And do you know of any tour companies?

 

Cheers - Dee and John

 

You can go to the Israel Forum on TripAdvisor and also ask for rercommendation over there.