11 Days Highlights of Israel and Jordan — Self-Launched

Land at Ben Gurion (TLV) and take the Israel Railways train from the airport to Tel Aviv HaHagana or Savidor (~25 min, about £4). Check into a hostel in the Florentin or Neve Tzedek area. Spend the afternoon walking the Tel Aviv promenade to Jaffa — the ancient port, the flea market and the Andromeda rock viewpoint — then wander Rothschild Boulevard for the UNESCO-listed Bauhaus 'White City' architecture. Evening: hummus and sabich on Levinsky market or a beach bar sunset.

🚌Airport train to Tel Aviv ~£4; walking + local bus day pass ~£3

🛏Hostel dorm (Florentin/Neve Tzedek), e.g. Abraham Hostel Tel Aviv or similar

• →Jaffa old port and flea market
• →Tel Aviv promenade walk
• →Bauhaus / White City architecture walk
• →Levinsky market food crawl

Book a small-group Masada + Dead Sea day tour via GetYourGuide or a local operator (roughly £70–90 including entry fees and transport; a shared taxi/coach option via Egged public bus to Masada is cheaper but slower). Do the cable car ascent at Masada and walk the excavations — Herod's northern palace, synagogue, bathhouse and cisterns. Float in the Dead Sea at Ein Bokek, and stop at the Ein Gedi oasis nature reserve for the David stream trail. Late afternoon continue to Jerusalem by bus (Egged 486/444, ~1.5 hrs, ~£5) and check into a hostel near the Old City or in the Nachlaot/Mahane Yehuda area.

🚌Guided day tour includes transport; Jerusalem leg by Egged bus ~£5

🛏Hostel in Jerusalem (Old City or Mahane Yehuda area)

• →Masada cable car and excavations
• →Dead Sea float at Ein Bokek
• →Ein Gedi nature reserve
• →Evening walk in the Old City

Morning at the Israel Museum (~£13) to see the Shrine of the Book with the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Herodian Jerusalem model. Continue to Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial (free, book a slot; closed Fridays/Saturdays). In the afternoon take local bus 74 or a sherut to Ein Karem village for the churches and quiet lanes, then head to Bethlehem — bus 234 from outside Damascus Gate (~£2) or a GetYourGuide half-day Bethlehem tour (~£35–45 with a local Palestinian guide). See Manger Square and the Church of the Nativity. Return to Jerusalem for a Mahane Yehuda market dinner.

🚌Local buses and shared taxis ~£6 total

🛏Hostel in Jerusalem

• →Israel Museum & Shrine of the Book
• →Yad Vashem
• →Ein Karem village
• →Bethlehem: Manger Square and Church of the Nativity
• →Mahane Yehuda market

Self-guided walking day in the Old City (a small-group Old City walking tour on GetYourGuide is ~£25–40 if you want a guide). Enter via Jaffa Gate, walk the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, visit the Western Wall, and go up to Temple Mount / Haram al-Sharif (check opening hours for non-Muslim visitors — mornings only, closed Fri/Sat). Afternoon on Mount Zion: King David's Tomb and the Room of the Last Supper, then cross the Kidron Valley to the Mount of Olives for the panoramic view over the city and down through the Garden of Gethsemane. Evening at Mahane Yehuda or the Ben Yehuda area.

🚌All walking; light rail or bus ~£3

🛏Hostel in Jerusalem

• →Western Wall
• →Temple Mount / Dome of the Rock exterior
• →Via Dolorosa and Church of the Holy Sepulchre
• →Mount Zion and Room of the Last Supper
• →Mount of Olives viewpoint and Garden of Gethsemane

Take the morning bus north (Egged 961 from Jerusalem to Tiberias, ~2.5 hrs, ~£8). Stop or detour to Beit She'an National Park (~£10) to walk the remarkably intact Roman city — colonnaded street, bathhouse, theatre. In the afternoon self-drive or join a Golan Heights half-day tour (~£55) covering the Druze villages, former Syrian fortifications and a boutique winery tasting in the Golan (~£12–15 per tasting). Overnight in Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee — budget guesthouses and hostels line the waterfront.

🚌Intercity bus ~£8; Golan tour transport included

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in Tiberias

• →Beit She'an Roman city excavations
• →Golan Heights drive and Druze villages
• →Wine tasting in the Golan
• →Tiberias waterfront evening

Pick up a local bus or shared taxi along the lake shore to Capernaum (~£3) for the ancient synagogue and St Peter's church, then Mount of Beatitudes, Tabgha (Church of the Multiplication) and the shoreline churches. Optional: a wooden boat sail on the Sea of Galilee (~£12–15). In the afternoon take bus 431 to Nazareth (~1 hr, ~£4) for the Church of the Annunciation, Mary's Well and the old market. Return to Tiberias for dinner; many hostels offer a simple Galilean-style dinner for ~£10.

🚌Local buses and shared taxis ~£10

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in Tiberias

• →Capernaum synagogue
• →Mount of Beatitudes
• →Tabgha
• →Boat ride on the Sea of Galilee (optional)
• →Nazareth Church of the Annunciation and old market

Bus to Acre (Akko) first thing (~1.5 hrs, ~£5) to wander the Crusader stronghold, the Knights' Halls, the sea walls and the souk. Continue by train or bus to Haifa (~£3) — take the Carmelit or bus up Mount Carmel, then walk the Bahá'í Gardens terraces down to the German Colony (free entry, terraces closed Wednesdays). Then train south to Caesarea (~£4) for the Roman theatre, aqueduct beach and Crusader fortress, before the final train into Tel Aviv (~£5). Evening reacquaint yourself with the Tel Aviv beachfront.

🚌Buses and Israel Railways ~£17

🛏Hostel in Tel Aviv

• →Acre Crusader halls and sea walls
• →Bahá'í Gardens and German Colony, Haifa
• →Caesarea Roman theatre and Crusader fortress
• →Tel Aviv beachfront evening

Cross at Sheikh Hussein / Beit She'an border (open Sun–Thu; check hours and the Jordan Pass before you go — the Jordan Pass ~£60 covers visa and Petra/Jerash entry). From Tel Aviv take a bus or sherut to Beit She'an (~£10) then a taxi to the crossing; hire a shared taxi or JETT/coach onward to Amman (~£15–20). In the afternoon visit Jerash (~£12 without Jordan Pass) — Hadrian's Arch, the Oval Plaza, colonnaded cardo, temples and the hippodrome — via a local bus from Amman's Tabarbour station (~£1.50). Overnight in downtown Amman near Rainbow Street, with knafeh at Habiba.

🚌Bus/sherut to border + shared taxi to Amman ~£30; local bus to Jerash ~£3

🛏Budget hotel or hostel, downtown Amman

• →Sheikh Hussein border crossing
• →Jerash Roman city
• →Rainbow Street and downtown Amman
• →Jordan Pass purchase (covers visa + Jerash + Petra)

Take the JETT coach from Amman's Abdali station to Wadi Musa (~3.5 hrs, ~£12) departing early morning — book a day ahead. Check into a guesthouse in Wadi Musa village and enter Petra in the afternoon when the light is best (~£50 with Jordan Pass; otherwise ~£55–70). Walk the Siq canyon to the Treasury (El Khazneh), the Street of Facades, the field of tombs and the obelisks, and climb to the Al Madhbah (High Place of Sacrifice) viewpoint for sunset over the valley. Bring water and a headtorch.

🚌JETT coach Amman–Petra ~£12

🛏Guesthouse in Wadi Musa, e.g. Petra Moon area budget rooms

• →Siq canyon walk
• →The Treasury (El Khazneh)
• →Street of Facades and tombs
• →High Place of Sacrifice viewpoint

Early re-entry to Petra to hike the Monastery (Ad Deir) trail or the Royal Tombs before the heat and the crowds (~1.5 hrs each way). Mid-morning take a local minibus or shared taxi to Madaba (~£8) for St George's Church and its 6th-century mosaic floor map of the Holy Land, plus a quick stop at Mount Nebo (~£3 by taxi, free with Jordan Pass) for the view across the Jordan Valley to Jericho. Continue to Amman by bus (~£3) for the night, or — if you have a late flight — cross back at Sheikh Hussein and head to Tel Aviv (~£35–45 in shared taxis/buses).

🚌Minibus/shared taxi Petra–Madaba–Amman ~£12

🛏Budget hotel in Amman (or Tel Aviv hostel if crossing back)

• →Petra Monastery / Royal Tombs hike
• →Madaba St George's mosaic map
• →Mount Nebo viewpoint
• →Amman evening

If flying out of Amman (Queen Alia, QAIA), take the Airport Express bus from the North Bus Station (~£3) or a shared taxi (~£10). If your return ticket is from Tel Aviv, allow a full day: bus to the Sheikh Hussein crossing, cross, then bus/sherut via Beit She'an to Tel Aviv (~£35) and the airport train (~£4). Leave a buffer of 3+ hours at the border — crossing times from the group-tour reviews regularly ran 2–4 hours. Buy a final falafel and stock up on dates and za'atar before departure.

🚌Airport bus ~£3 (Amman) or border crossing + bus/train ~£39 (Tel Aviv)

🛏None (departure day)

• →Airport transfer and departure