Israel & Palestinian Territories Self-Launched: 9 Days Deluxe, Independently
9 days · Israel & Palestinian Territories
Booking Tours charges £1,725
No-markup version: ~£695 per person
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
A self-launched version of Booking Tours' 9-day "Israel Deluxe" coach circuit — same coast-to-Galilee-to-Jerusalem loop, minus the 25-55 person bus and 5-star hotel bill. You'll base yourself between Tel Aviv and a Galilee/Jerusalem split, use Israel's excellent and cheap buses and trains, and take small-group day tours from GetYourGuide/Klook for the sites where a guide genuinely adds value (Masada & Dead Sea, Nazareth/Galilee, Bethlehem/Jericho). Costs are approximate per person in GBP, assuming shared hostel/guesthouse dorms or budget privates split between two, and self-catered or hummus-and-falafel lunches. Note: check current FCDO travel advice for Israel and the Palestinian Territories before booking — some regions on this circuit have seen closures at short notice.
Day-by-day
Arrive Tel Aviv — Ben Gurion to the city
Tel Aviv
Land at Ben Gurion (TLV) and skip the tour transfer: the Israel Railways train runs directly from the airport to Tel Aviv HaHagana/HaSulam and takes about 20 minutes for around £4. Buy a Rav-Kav travel card at the station. Check into a hostel in the Florentin or Neve Tzedek area — Abraham Hostel Tel Aviv is the classic backpacker base and doubles as a day-tour pickup point. Spend the evening walking the beach promenade to Jaffa for sunset and eat a cheap sabich or shakshuka dinner. Get an early night; tomorrow starts early if you take a northern day tour.
🚌Israel Railways train TLV airport → Tel Aviv, ~£4
🛏Abraham Hostel Tel Aviv (dorm) or Florentin guesthouse private
- →Airport train into Tel Aviv
- →Beach promenade walk to Jaffa at sunset
- →Sabich/shakshuka dinner in Florentin
Caesarea, Haifa, Rosh Hanikra & Acre
Tel Aviv / Galilee
The original does all four sites by coach in a day — the independent version is tight but doable if you book a small-group northern day tour (GetYourGuide operates this exact Caesarea–Haifa–Acre–Rosh Hanikra route, ~£80-95 including the Rosh Hanikra cable car and Caesarea entry). Alternatively do it by public transport over two days: bus 910 from Tel Aviv to Caesarea (~£4, 1hr) for the Roman theatre and hippodrome, then train Caesarea → Haifa for the Bahá'í Gardens terrace tour (free, book the terrace slot online), and continue by train to Akko for the Crusader City and Turkish prison (combined ticket ~£12). Rosh Hanikra's cable car (~£8) is easiest tacked onto a tour. If you tour-ify it, sleep up north tonight rather than backtracking.
🚌Small-group day tour minibus ~£85, or buses/train ~£12 total
🛏Akko or Haifa hostel/guesthouse dorm (e.g. Akko Gate Hostel) or return to Tel Aviv
- →Caesarea Roman theatre & hippodrome
- →Bahá'í Gardens, Haifa (free terrace tour — book ahead)
- →Rosh Hanikra grottos cable car
- →Acre Crusader City & Turkish prison
Nazareth, Sea of Galilee & Yardenit
Nazareth / Tiberias
Base yourself in Nazareth or Tiberias for the next two nights. Bus 331/826 from Tel Aviv or Haifa to Nazareth takes 1.5-2hrs (~£6). In Nazareth, the Church of the Annunciation and Church of St. Joseph are free to enter — walk in yourself and use a free audio guide or downloaded walking-tour app. For the Galilee loop (Capernaum ~£3 entry, Mount of Beatitudes, Yardenit baptismal site where baptism is free to watch and ~£15-20 to do), the cheapest realistic option is a Galilee day tour (~£60-75) or a shared taxi with other hostel guests. Megiddo and Mount Tabor are easiest as photo stops on a tour. Buses around the lake (Tiberias–Capernaum) are infrequent, so plan around them.
🚌Bus Tel Aviv/Haifa → Nazareth ~£6; Galilee day tour ~£70 or shared taxi
🛏Nazareth or Tiberias hostel/guesthouse (e.g. Fauzi Azar Inn area)
- →Church of the Annunciation & St. Joseph, Nazareth
- →Capernaum synagogue & St. Peter's house
- →Mount of Beatitudes viewpoint
- →Yardenit baptismal site on the Jordan
Safed (Tzfat) & Mount Meron
Safed / Tiberias
Bus 361/364 from Tiberias to Safed takes about 45 minutes (~£3). Safed's Old City is compact and free to wander: the Ari Ashkenazi and Ari Sephardi synagogues, the artists' quarter galleries, and the candle factory/museum (~£8). Mount Meron and the Tiberias graves sites are the hardest part of the original to replicate independently — they're pilgrimage stops with no public transport of note, so either hire a shared taxi (~£40-50 split) or accept a shorter Safed day and use the afternoon for a Sea of Galilee swim at Gai Beach or a free hike on the Jesus Trail's Arbel cliff section (spectacular, and genuinely free). Return to Tel Aviv by evening bus (~£8) or stay one more night in the north.
🚌Bus Tiberias → Safed ~£3; return bus to Tel Aviv ~£8; optional shared taxi ~£45
🛏Tel Aviv hostel (Abraham Hostel) or second night Tiberias
- →Safed Old City & Ari synagogues
- →Safed artists' quarter galleries
- →Optional Mount Meron
- →Arbel cliff hike on the Jesus Trail (free)
Jericho & Bethlehem
Jerusalem / Bethlehem
Move base to Jerusalem — bus 480 from Tel Aviv (~£5, 1hr) drops you at the central bus station; hostels around the Old City (e.g. Abraham Hostel Jerusalem, Post Hostel) are the backpacker standard. Bethlehem and Jericho are in the Palestinian Territories and need a passport; the cheapest way in is the shared Arab bus/sherut from East Jerusalem's Damascus Gate or the bus from Bethlehem's checkpoint area. A small-group Bethlehem + Jericho day tour (~£70-85) is genuinely worth it here — guides handle checkpoints, and you'll see the Church of the Nativity, St. Catherine's, Milk Grotto, Shepherd's Fields, the Sea Level marker, Mount of Temptation cable car (~£5) and the Tel es-Sultan excavations in one day. Eat lunch in Bethlehem — it's cheap and excellent.
🚌Bus Tel Aviv → Jerusalem ~£5; Bethlehem/Jericho day tour ~£75 (or shared bus ~£5 + cable car £5)
🛏Abraham Hostel Jerusalem or Post Hostel (dorm)
- →Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem
- →Milk Grotto & Shepherd's Fields
- →Mount of Temptation cable car, Jericho
- →Tel es-Sultan excavations
Masada, Ein Gedi & the Dead Sea
Dead Sea / Jerusalem
Bus 486 from Jerusalem's central bus station to Masada takes about 1hr 15 (~£5). Buy the Masada cable car + site combo (~£18) and walk the palaces, bathhouse, synagogue and Roman barracks yourself — signage is excellent. Continue on the same bus line to Ein Gedi (Ein Gedi public beach ~£6 entry) or hitch/short taxi to a Dead Sea beach for the float and mud. For a guided sunrise version, GetYourGuide runs Masada sunrise + Dead Sea tours from Jerusalem for ~£60-75 including transport and entry — the best value way to do the whole day. Bring water, a hat and flip-flops; the salt hurts bare feet. Back to Jerusalem by evening.
🚌Bus 486 Jerusalem ↔ Masada/Dead Sea ~£10 return, or GetYourGuide day tour ~£70
🛏Abraham Hostel Jerusalem or Post Hostel (dorm)
- →Masada cable car, palaces & synagogue
- →Ein Gedi oasis/beach
- →Float in the Dead Sea
- →Optional Qumran Caves stop
Tel Aviv: Jaffa, Neve Tzedek & the museums
Tel Aviv
Train back to Tel Aviv (~£5) or keep Jerusalem as your base and day-trip. ANU — the Museum of the Jewish People (formerly Beit Hatfutsot/Diaspora Museum) on the Tel Aviv University campus costs around £10 and is a 20-minute bus ride from the centre. Then walk the city: Rothschild Boulevard, the Rabin assassination site, Neve Tzedek's lanes, the Nahalat Binyamin crafts market (Tue & Fri), Sheinkin Street cafés, and finish in Old Jaffa — the flea market, the artists' quarter and the free St. Peter's Church viewpoint. A self-guided Jaffa walking audio tour is £5-8 on VoiceMap if you want context. Budget for a cheap Tel Aviv lunch — the Carmel Market is where the value is.
🚌Train Jerusalem ↔ Tel Aviv ~£10 return; city buses ~£3
🛏Abraham Hostel Tel Aviv (dorm)
- →ANU — Museum of the Jewish People (~£10)
- →Neve Tzedek & Rothschild Boulevard walk
- →Nahalat Binyamin & Carmel Market
- →Old Jaffa artists' quarter & flea market
Jerusalem Old City & Yad Vashem
Jerusalem
The Old City is entirely walkable and free: enter through Jaffa Gate, walk the Byzantine Cardo and the Armenian Quarter, then the Western Wall, then the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, finishing in the Muslim Quarter market for lunch. Get up early — by 9am it's crowded. A free (tip-based) Old City walking tour or a £15-20 small-group tour adds real depth if you want the history layered in. In the afternoon, take bus 20 or the light rail plus a short walk to Yad Vashem (free entry, ~£0, but book the free timed slot online and allow 2-3 hours). Mount of Olives and the Garden of Gethsemane are best at golden hour — bus 75 from the centre or a 25-minute walk down from Lion's Gate.
🚌Light rail/buses ~£3; Old City on foot
🛏Abraham Hostel Jerusalem or Post Hostel (dorm)
- →Western Wall & Jewish Quarter
- →Via Dolorosa & Church of the Holy Sepulchre
- →Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum (free, book slot)
- →Mount of Olives & Garden of Gethsemane at sunset
Depart from Ben Gurion
Tel Aviv / Ben Gurion Airport
Take the train or shared sherut from Jerusalem or Tel Aviv straight to Ben Gurion — the Jerusalem–airport train is ~£5 and takes 25 minutes, though it doesn't run on Shabbat (Friday afternoon to Saturday evening), when a sherut (~£12) is the fallback. Allow three hours before an international flight given security questioning. If you have a late flight, squeeze in a last hummus breakfast and a walk on the Tel Aviv beach.
🚌Train Jerusalem/Tel Aviv → Ben Gurion ~£5 (sherut ~£12 on Shabbat)
🛏—
- →Train to Ben Gurion Airport
- →Last hummus breakfast / beach walk if time allows
Self-launched vs. Booking Tours
| This itinerary (self-launched) | Booking Tours | |
|---|---|---|
| Price per person | ~£695 | £1,725 |
| Duration | 9 days | 9 days |
| Who books it | You and your group, direct | Tour operator, guided group |
| Savings | £1,030 per person (60%) | |
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
Want to see more Booking Tours-style trips? Check them out here.~£695
estimated per person
You never pay Travel Crew for this — you pay hostels, transport, and activity providers directly, the same as if you'd booked it all yourself.
This publishes your dates so other travellers can find and join you — no tour operator needed.
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Frequently asked questions
How much does Israel & Palestinian Territories Self-Launched: 9 Days Deluxe, Independently cost?+
Doing it yourself with this self-launched itinerary costs an estimated £695 per person for 9 days in Israel & Palestinian Territories. This is an AI-generated estimate based on typical budget-traveller prices — actual costs will vary by season and how you book.
Is this cheaper than booking with Booking Tours?+
Yes — Booking Tours charges around £1,725 per person for a similar tour. Doing the same route independently, using the same standard of accommodation and activities, costs an estimated £695 — a saving of roughly £1,030 (60%) per person.
How long is the Israel & Palestinian Territories trip?+
This itinerary runs 9 days, covering 9 day-by-day stops through Israel & Palestinian Territories.
How do I join this trip?+
You can join an existing open departure using this itinerary if one is scheduled, or launch your own departure with your own dates and invite other travellers to join you — no tour operator required.
Isn't it easier to just use a tour operator?+
Well, yes, a tour operator will book all the individual parts of your travel for you and provide a guide. That's obvious, but doing this has the potential to save the group thousands, which can in turn improve your itinerary substantially or save you huge amounts of money. Also, when you launch a departure, Travel Crew has tools in place to help you book the individual sections of the trip or make it easier for you to do this as a group. Really, you do not need a middle man. If you are more comfortable paying more and using a middle man, then you should certainly do this.
Is it safer to book through a tour operator?+
Arguably, there isn't much difference. A self-launched trip runs on the same principle as a group travel crew: collective responsibility, everyone looking out for each other, the same way it would if a group of friends organised the trip themselves — because that's exactly what's happening. You should always take out travel insurance before you go, self-launched or not; that doesn't change either way. Every open departure is published publicly with real dates and a real trip organiser, so it's never an anonymous arrangement, and our support team is reachable any time you need help, including in an emergency while you're away. Longer-term, we're building direct relationships with ground DMCs in popular destinations, offered as an optional paid add-on for extra on-the-ground support. Ultimately, though, the group is responsible for its own conduct and safety on a self-launched trip, same as on any trip you plan yourself.
What kind of trip is this?+
This is a culture, adventure, budget trip through Israel & Palestinian Territories, self-launched rather than run by a tour operator — you organise it with a group you find or bring yourself.
Would you like to name the operator, name the trip, or have any suggestions about how to improve this itinerary?
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