9 or 10 day Intensive Israel cruise

[puppymama1]

After we do our Baltic cruise next month, the last bucket list item we want to check off is a trip to Israel.  While the ever-changing conditions in that region do concern me, I think I would feel safer on a cruise for some reason.  I did some research and the cruise that we liked the best was the Azamara 10-day Intensive Israel cruise in October, 2020... or the 9-day similar cruise in April, 2020.  We would love to hear some reviews from anyone who has done either of these cruises... did you enjoy them?  Did you do ship excursions or book your own tours?  If you booked your own, who did you use and were you happy with them, etc?  Is it better to book your own airfare or do it through Azamara?  Is it better to use a travel agent or go direct to the Azamara website?  We have never sailed on Azamara before, but have a friend who is a much more experienced cruiser than we are, and she loves them.  We are thinking of making the reservation and paying the deposit now, to ensure getting a balcony cabin, and if we end up not being able to travel a year and a half from now, we would only lose the $150 nonrefundable portion....  Our upcoming Baltic cruise on Royal Caribbean is only our second cruise, so we have lots of questions... We did book that direct with RC, and did manage to get 2 price reductions after the initial booking, so I didn't know if that would be possible to do if we use a travel agent... Any feedback or suggestions would be greatly appreciated... thanks!

[Redtravel]

We did the Israel cruise in October 2015.  We were a bit tense going into Jerusalem at that time. There had been some unrest and most people were not walking in the Old City.   Since we had visited Israel before on a land trip, we chose to get our own guide. certified guides know where to go or not. We did not have any problems. However, right after we left, the unrest escalated.  Cruise ships that were supposed to stop in Israel were diverted to Crete.  On that trip we also experienced demonstrations in Turkey.  Israel is a very interesting country.  Just be aware that Israel is in turmoil. Cruise ships don't always get to land.