Traveling in Israel is a cherished dream of many people. This trip becomes very special, because the tourist gets the opportunity to travel to the holy places that help cleanse the soul of all worldly and vain, improve health at the resorts of the famous Dead Sea and enjoy the ancient historical monuments, perfectly inscribed in the modern urban landscape. Does all this make a trip to Israel a real adventure, which is so nice to embark on your own? without time and route restrictions. Therefore, most of our compatriots organize a trip to the Promised Land on their own. However, do not forget about the pitfalls of such a journey. After all, you have to book hotels on your own, make a route and look for transport in order to get from one city to another. Most often, our compatriots are interested in how to get from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv and back. Therefore, we decided to devote this article to this topic.
Features of a trip to Israel: a brief description
Despite the fact that travel agencies quite often offer Russians various tours of Israel, many of our compatriots decide on an independent trip and are won. Judge for yourself - you can go around all the sights of the country on your own route (and somewhere even linger for a few days), saving on transport and booking hotels. Indeed, in Israel there are a large number of decent and inexpensive hotel complexes that are focused on Russian guests, but for some reason are not presented in advertising booklets and catalogs.
If you are afraid to go to the Promised Country because you don’t know a foreign language, then you don’t have to worry - here you can safely speak Russian. In Israel, a huge number of immigrants from the former USSR live, who will be happy to tell you a good hotel or the most economical option of transport to the desired city. For example, if you start to ask a passerby how to get from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv, then you will immediately be listed with all possible ways, indicating the price, travel time and convenience. And you just have to choose and thank the local for their participation and talkativeness.
Many tourists claim that in order to explore all the sights of Israel, not even a guide is needed. This is the most important feature of the trip - you will find the Bible useful. If you carefully read the New Testament, then with it you will easily find ancient cities, settlements and other cultural monuments that tourists love to visit. The Israelis were able to preserve almost all the shrines mentioned in the Bible. It is amazing how modern the world easily fit into the boundaries outlined by antiquities. Israel is a dynamically developing country, in the depths of which a real treasure is hidden, accessible to absolutely everyone who seeks and suffers.
Transport in Israel
Before you think about how to get from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv, you should know that Israel has a very good transport connection between cities. Therefore, you will have absolutely no problems with independent movements.
A lot of tourists rent a car and go around the numerous attractions of the country with great comfort, due to the good quality roadbed and an abundance of free parking in the cities and also on the territory of hotels.
But, traveling around the country, do not forget about the religious traditions of the Jews, which affect their entire lifestyle. And therefore, for tourists located in Israel. The main obstacle to moving around the country is a holy day for Jews - Shabbat. At this time, life in the cities practically stops and all local residents spend time with their families, leaving all their business and concerns behind the doorstep.
Shabbat: a special day
Almost all Jews observe the established tradition of not working on Shabbat. In general, Saturday is considered a holy day; it is precisely it that must be dedicated to God and the family. At this time, you can’t write, work, even tie the shoelaces and it is forbidden. Therefore, it is not surprising that public transport on Shabbat is without traffic. Some tourists think that the active life in the city freezes and you can hear how the hearts of people who went on a family outing beat.
Despite the fact that Shabbat is Saturday, already on Friday after four o'clock in the afternoon, the movement of buses and trains stops, resuming only by Saturday evening. Therefore, it is better not to plan all excursions from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem at this time. It will be quite difficult for you to get from one city to another, as well as move within the same settlement. In addition, many shops and public institutions will be closed, and you will be able to check into the hotel only after sunset.
However, unforeseen overlays happen, and a tourist is forced to travel from one city to another on a holy day for Jews. How to be in this case? How to get from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv on Shabbat? We will talk about this in the next section of the article.
Travel arrangements for Jerusalem - Tel Aviv on a holy day
If you still need to get to Tel Aviv on Shabbat, then the only way is a shuttle bus that runs daily and around the clock. You will not find other vehicles at this time, so it is worth using this option. Keep in mind that ten people fit in one minibus and the driver will not hit the road until he picks up the right number of passengers. You can spend fifteen minutes or an hour waiting, it all depends on those who wish to make this trip. Usually, only tourists use public transport on Shabbat, so (if you are guided by the reviews of travelers) the wait rarely lasts more than half an hour.
Minibuses leave from Jerusalem from the intersection of two streets - Jaffa and Rav Kuk. The average ticket price is thirty-three shekels; Children under three years of age who do not occupy a separate seat can travel for free. In Tel Aviv, a fixed-route taxi arrives at the bus station located on Lewinsky Street. From here you can get to anywhere in the city on foot or with the help of rare taxis that remain on Shabbat.
Distance between two cities
Many travelers care about the distance between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Indeed, the attractiveness of this trip often depends on this. We are in a hurry to please those who cannot stand traveling long distances - you will have to overcome only about seventy kilometers to be in Jerusalem or, on the contrary, in Tel Aviv. Usually this distance takes a little more than an hour of your time. This is partly why such trips are made independently and are so popular among tourists from our country.
Jerusalem: Ben Gurion Airport
Most international flights arrive at the country's main air gate - an airport located about fifty kilometers from Jerusalem. Therefore, if you have already planned your entire future route for traveling to the Promised Land and know exactly how to get from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv, then you will need information about flights to the city from Ben Gurion.
The only road on which you can move is the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem highway. The airport is located just next to it, so travelers will not have problems with transport. They can use the following options:
- Taxi;
- minibuses;
- bus routes.
The choice of transport depends on the preferences of tourists and their financial capabilities. For example, a taxi will take you from the airport to Jerusalem in thirty minutes, and you will pay about two hundred and fifty shekels (a little over two thousand rubles) for this trip.
There is a bus stop near the airport, from which several buses leave in the direction you need. Tourists can use the bus routes under the following numbers:
The journey takes about one and a half hours and will cost travelers twenty shekels (one hundred and sixty rubles).
The most popular option to get from Ben Gurion to Jerusalem are minibuses. The cost of the trip does not exceed fifty shekels, and in time it lasts about an hour.
Upon arrival in the city, many tourists check into hotels and immediately start sightseeing, and only then go to Tel Aviv, which is an indispensable point of the travel program in Israel. How to get to this city from Jerusalem, we will now tell you.
A trip to Tel Aviv: all possible ways
We already wrote that the transport connection between the cities of Israel is very well established. Therefore, independent travelers have five options to be in the treasured city for very reasonable money:
- a train;
- bus;
- minibus;
- Taxi;
- car.
Each of the methods we will describe in detail.
How to get from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv by train
Tourists consider this option the slowest, but also the most picturesque. During the trip, you can enjoy incredibly beautiful landscapes, because the train passes through the mountains, tunnels and serpentine. And this sight can bewitch anyone. How long will the train journey from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem take? Definitely longer than on other vehicles - about an hour and a half. But this time flies almost imperceptibly in comfortable modern cars.
The train passes along the route ten times a day, so tourists can choose the most convenient travel time for them. The movement begins at five in the morning, and the last train leaves at seven hours and fifty-five minutes in the evening.
You can catch the train directly in the Ben-Gurion terminal building, for this you need to go down to the lower floor of the third terminal. In Tel Aviv, the train departs from the main station. Traveling along the route costs about thirty shekels, but there is a flexible system of discounts for different categories of the population:
- kids up to five years old can ride for free, and children from five to ten years old are entitled to a ten percent discount;
- a student card can also get a discount of ten percent;
- retirees can pay only half of the ticket price;
- when buying round-trip tickets, tourists can pay fifteen percent less than the usual cost.
The train schedule is available on the railway website, it has a Russian-language version and is easily loaded on the territory of our country.
Bus trip
The easiest way to travel around the country is by bus. Tel Aviv - Jerusalem is a fairly popular route. Many independent travelers around the country use it, because the road is inexpensive and takes no more than one hour.
Transportation along the route is carried out by the well-known company Egged. Tourists can take two flights: No. 405 and No. 480. In Jerusalem, they depart from the bus station, considered central. Tickets can be purchased at the box office on the third floor or purchased directly from the driver when boarding a transport.
The average ticket price is twenty-eight shekels. The same discounts apply for this transport as for the railway. The bus traffic interval is twenty minutes.
Minibus
This transport operates around the clock, which is very convenient for tourists. It is best to leave straight from the airport, but if necessary, you can go to Tel Aviv and from Jerusalem. It is interesting that minibuses carry passengers not to stops, but to the indicated place. That is, you can drive directly to your hotel or immediately start sightseeing.
Taxi
This is a fairly expensive way to travel between cities in Israel. Keep in mind that all transportations have a fixed tariff, so you should not expect fraud. Taxis can be taken right at the airport from the reception, the fare to Tel Aviv is three hundred and fifty shekels. Usually a small amount has to be paid for luggage and a third passenger.
Rental car
Since the roads in Israel are in excellent condition, many tourists rent a car and travel around the country on it. You can choose the right car on a special site in Russia, in which case it will be waiting for you upon arrival at the airport.
For those who have not previously taken care of renting a car, there is a special desk at the airport where you can solve all the formalities in a few minutes and become the happy owner of an iron friend. The main document is an international driving license, and the experience should not be less than three years.
The average cost of renting a car per day is one hundred and sixty shekels, and a liter of gasoline will cost five and a half shekels. Almost on all routes, gas stations are found every five meters, so you will not have problems with fuel.
Conclusion
Israel is a beautiful country, a visit to which greatly affects a person. Each of the tourists noted that he received some incredible surge of energy after a trip to the promised land. Therefore, if you are planning a trip to these parts, then use the information from our article, and it will become even easier and more exciting for you.