Private Tour: Highlights of Israel Day Trip from Tel Aviv, Including Old Jerusalem, Western Wall, and the Dead Sea

Start your tour with a pickup from your centrally located hotel or prearranged location in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, and meet your private driver-guide. As you travel, hear historical facts about the 3,000-year old city and why it is considered a holy center by Christians, Jews and Muslims. Also, feel free to ask your guide to tailor your itinerary to suit any particular interests you have, perhaps to spend more time at one site than another.

After roughly an hour, arrive at the Mount of Olives and soak up the panoramic views over Old Jerusalem and the gold-plated Dome of the Rock at the Temple Mount Esplanade. Hear about the biblical events that took place on the mount, and then drive through the Kidron Valley past the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed before his crucifixion, and the ancient Jewish cemetery, on route to the city.

Enter through one of the age-old gates in the walls and cross the Armenian quarter into the Jewish quarter to view the restored, 1,500-year-old Byzantine Cardo, and Western Wall (Wailing Wall), Judaism’s most sacred site.

Continue into the Christian quarter and retrace Jesus’ steps to his crucifixion along the Via Dolorosa. Look out for some of the Stations of the Cross on the way and visit the hallowed Church of the Holy Sepulchre said to stand where he was nailed to the cross.

After time at the Old City Market, drive through the Judean Desert to the Dead Sea, the lowest point on Earth at 1,312 feet (400 meters) below sea level. Catch glimpses of the ancient city of Jericho on route and, when you arrive at the sea, enjoy free time to float in the salt-rich waters and enjoy a mud bath in the therapeutic black mud.

Then, drive back to Tel Aviv, where your tour ends with a hotel drop-off.