A tour guide in Israel is crucial. Now you may be thinking you don’t need one. I get it. Prior to our trip, that was me. If you’ve stumbled upon this article on accident or in preparation, I hope you take some of these things to heart, especially if they resonate with you.
1. Language
Without prior knowledge of speaking/reading Hebrew or Arabic, getting around the cities will be absolutely difficult. There are rules about where to park that are known to the locals and are not written in English.
2. Communicating with locals will be difficult
Israel has the most wonderful fruits, vegetables, desserts, and dishes. However, menus do not always have English, nor do they always include descriptions. Also, not many speak English.
My sister has several allergies and without our tour guide, there would be no way of communicating in restaurants about specific ingredients in the dishes.
3. Locations are hard to find.
Israel is built upon old layers of old cities. Finding locations is not easy. For instance, the wedding church in Cana is off a busy main road. Once you park near a money-conversion vendor, you walk down an alley for a few minutes before the church appears.
It is the same as when walking down the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem. There are signs marking places on the route but the only parts that are in English is “Via Dolorosa.” Our tour guide showed us all the locations that aren’t marked.
4. You can do as the locals do.
Want to know what dishes are common or what fruits to try? You absolutely need a tour guide. Our tour guide recommended pomegranate-and-orange juice as a combination for juices sold at fruit stands and it was absolutely amazing—hydrating and energizing. At the fruit stands, they press all the fruits fresh and the juice is amazing.
Another tip is you can get insider knowledge at every location. At Ein Gedi, the oasis in the desert, our tour guide took us towards a less-habited area for fresh water pools.
5. Your tour guide can do the work for you. You will need a tour guide or two if you plan to go into Palestinian Territory.
Before you think you don’t know any locations in Palestinian territory, you do. Bethlehem and Jericho, the oldest city in the world are both in Palestinian Territory. Many Israeli tour guides do not go into Palestinian Territory though they can enter. Instead, they coordinate with Palestinian tour guides at locations that are not in Israel.
If you’re looking for a 4-day itinerary into extraordinary Holy Land, I have uploaded the same itinerary built by our tour guide.
There are many resources and search engines for tour guides in Israel and most are verified (but always double check). If you’re looking for a place to start, Dekel Tours is the company our tour guide works for.
Disclaimer: This post is in no way sponsored by Dekel Tours. All opinions are my own. We found our tour guide through a referral by another tour guide we emailed after searching the tour guides. He happened to be unavailable but recommended us our guide, who I searched and found the company he works for.
Are you traveling to Israel anytime soon? Have you ever been or have recommendations? I’d love to hear about it!
