Going to the Middle East (Israel, Egypt and Jordan) Any advice?

In Israel make sure to visit Tel Aviv and Haifa along with Jerusalem. Also if you visit the West Bank head to Bethlehem and Ramallah. They're the most tourist friendly cities with a lot of stuff to do. Bethlehem is obviously more for history but if you want to get a taste of the people and culture of the region check out Ramallah's cafes and restaurants.

 

Jordan may get chilly at nights this time of the year. Keep something warm with you just in case.

 

Take two passports with you. One for Israel, the other for the arabic countries.

 

I did this same trip last summer (minus Jordan). Where are you flying into/out of? Be prepared to be questioned at the Israeli border as to why you visited the Gulf Arab states (Egypt and Jordan are okay). I'll reply back in this later today with some tips/advice.

What ethnicity are you? Even if you are an American with a US passport, but of Middle Eastern descent/a predominantly Muslim country (read: Arab, Iranian, Pakistani, Afghan, etc.), be prepared to be thoroughly questioned at the Israeli border.

My cousin and I (both Americans of Pakistani descent) were questioned for about two hours in Eilat, Israel (border town with Egypt) regarding family history, reasons for traveling to Muslim countries, etc. We were eventually let through, though.

 

Unnecessary. There is no rule against going into Israel after having traveled to Jordan and Egypt, and vice versa (not the case with Lebanon, Syria, UAE, etc.).

When you enter/exit Israel, just request to get your stamp on a separate piece of paper, rather than on your passport (they are used to being asked this, and will always oblige without further questions).

 

I want to visit Egypt so bad. Have fun!

 

We crossed the border from Taba, Egypt into Eilat, Israel...and that's where we were questioned. It really wasn't too bad...they only questioned us for about 10-15 minutes, and the rest of the 2 hours was just waiting for them to "process" us/probably having some sort of background check done. On the way back (from Israel back into Egypt), it only took a couple of minutes to cross.

From the hour we spent in Eilat (before getting on the bus to Tel Aviv), it seemed awesome. It's pretty much a party/beach town (at least in June), but I probably wouldn't spend any time there in November.

One huge piece of advice...make sure you has some transportation lined up in Taba, because Taba is essentially a small border town. We didn't want to deal with the unreliable bus schedules and all the checkpoints, so I just hired a driver to take us to/from Sharm el Sheikh to the border (3 hour drive through the desert). She was a British expat that had been living in Sharm el Sheikh for years...I actually got her contact information through some travel message board. I can actually dig up her email if you're interested. She charged us $100 USD each way for the drive from Sharm el Sheikh to Taba. Not sure if she'll drive you all the way to Cairo, but you might as well check out Sharm while you're in the area (and then fly from there to Cairo on Egypt Air). As bad/weird as it sounds, having a white female drive you through the desert is actually a lot more efficient and safe than having a local male drive you. Reason being is there are 5 or 6 check points along the way. The check point officers love giving the "lower-class" taxi drivers a hard time, but our driver knew how to deal with them (she didn't even speak Arabic), and we never had any problems. Her car also had air conditioning, which was amazing in June.

Let me know if you want her email, and I can forward it on to you.

On this trip, I went to Cairo, Alexandria, Luxor, Aswan, Abu Simbel, Sharm el Sheikh, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem. You'll have an amazing time, since November is a perfect time to go, weather wise. We were in Abu Simbel (10km north of the Sudan border), and the temperatures during midday were pushing 120 degrees (luckily we were indoors during mid-day).

Tel Aviv is an awesome city, although it's the most American-feeling city I've ever been to outside of North America. Great beaches, hot women everywhere, very modern, etc. It's a very secular city, unlike Jerusalem (obviosuly). They're really into Hinduism in Tel Aviv (in a hippie sort of way), so you may be able to play that to your advantage.

Jerusalem is really easy and quick to get to from Tel Aviv. They have city buses that run very often from one city to the other...really cheap, modern, and only takes 45 minutes or so.

I highly, highly recommend one of Abu Hassan's tours of the West Bank. He's extremely knowledgeable about the history and politics of the region. He drives you through the checkpoint into the West Bank (which is very eye opening) and gives you a great insight into what life is like for those that live there. Here is a link for more information.

Luxor, Aswan, and Abu Simbel were all amazing if you're into ancient Egypt history. If you just want to see the pyramids (and are short on time), Cairo and suburban Giza are your best bet.

 

Beware of terrorists like myself.

:grin:

Seriously, just don't drink raw foods like veggies/fruits or meat and only drink bottled water. Absolutely no tap water at all!

 

I added a bit more to my post above. Abu Hassan's tour of the West Bank is the one we took, highly recommend. It was basically Abu Hassan, his driver, myself, my cousin, and two other tourists, so it was a great setup...no huge tour buses, very personal.

For the pyramids in Giza (Cairo), you can easily take a taxi from your hostel/hotel to Giza. I wouldn't go on a tour for that, you can easily go yourself...just take a travel guide so you can read about what you're seeing.

One word of advice about taxis in Cairo: there are no meters in the cabs and the drivers don't speak English. Once you reach your destination, the driver just expects to be paid, and if you're an English-speaking tourist, he'll obviously try to rip you off if you ask how much you owe him . The trick is, know what the fare should be (ask your hostel before you leave what a local would pay to get to Giza), and as you're exiting the cab, just hand the driver however much the "fair" price is and walk out. Taxis are ridiculously cheap there, like $2 USD for a 20 minute ride cheap, so you should never overpay.

I don't speak a word of Arabic either, but I was visiting my brother who was studying Arabic in Egypt last summer, and he is fluent. He did the same thing with taxis...never ask the driver how much, just act like you know a fair price, hand him the money, and walk out.

How are you getting from Tel Aviv to Eilat? I took a bus from Eilat to Tel Aviv, and flew o from Tel Aviv to Eilat on the way back. Domestic airfare in Israel was pretty cheap, but the bus was also pretty quick and comfortable as well. The flight was about 40 minutes, the drive was about 4-5 hours.

 

Here's the webiste for Abu Hassan's Jerusalem/Ramallah tour. It looks like you can reserve a spot on the tours there. They're located at the Jerusalem Hotel in East Jerusalem; we just showed up and were lucky enough to get on a tour right away, but you might as well reserve a spot ahead of time.

When traveling from Jerusalem to Cairo, keep in mind the journey is 5 hours by bus from Jerusalem to Eilat, plus crossing the border by foot, plus waiting for the bus from Taba to Cairo, plus 6 or 7 hours for the ride from Taba to Cairo. Realistically speaking, you'll be lucky if you can make the journey in one day - it'll likely require an overnight stay in one of the cities in order to make a connecting bus...especially if your traveling on Shabbat (Friday afternoon through Saturday evening).

If you can't make the Taba to Cairo bus until the next morning, I'd stay in Eilat for the night (rather than Taba), and walk across the border the next day to catch the bus.

 

make sure you eat food from the street vendors in Egypt

 

Not really the case. I love street food in most countries, but I'll be honest, the food in Egypt is less than stellar. My brother, who I was visiting, speaks the language and lived in Alexandria for the summer, and even he agrees. Just watch the Cairo episode of Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations...no good.

 

Know that the buses in Israel do not run on the Sabbath or Jewish holidays and plan accordingly. That means don't expect to take a bus from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday and check your calendar for holidays before planning your trip. Don't get a tour of Jerusalem, you can get a free map from wherever you are staying and just look around on your own. The tours are a rip off. When you are riding the bus, there will most likely be soldiers with rifles, just be prepared to see that. Most of the people speak English, so nothing to worry about on that front. Getting into and out of the country can be a bit of a hassle. I was questioned for about fifteen minutes on the way in and a half hour on the way out at the airport in Tel Aviv. If you can get to Haifa, the Baha'i gardens are amazing. Other than that, have fun.

 

Yeah, I can't believe people can't tell the difference between a Pakistani Muslim and an Indian Hindu. It's so damn obvious.

You're taking a trip that I've wanted to take (well, Egypt and Israel for sure, but seeing Petra would be awesome, as well) but haven't had the time to. I'm jealous. BTW, I'm an Indian Christian, but I often get confused with Pakistani Muslims and Indian Hindus. People are such morons!

Good luck, take pics, and post them here when you get back. :grin:

 

Interesting that you ask, I was going to add this to my original post.

So my cousin and I were walking around Jerusalem right after checking into our hostel, looking for a bite to eat. We were wandering the narrow streets of the Old City, not really going anywhere in particular. As we were strolling down one of the streets, a guy came running after us, and told us (in English), that we can't continue walking in the direction we were going. We were really confused for a second, and then he told us it's "the Dome of the Rock - only Muslims can enter."

My cousin and I (both Pakistani), looked at each other (both thinking to ourselves how we were questioned at the Israeli border less than 24 hours earlier), then back at the guy and said "okay, well we're Muslim, are you going to let us through?"

That's when the "Are you really a Muslim?" test began. He basically asked us the following:

1. Are you a Muslim?
2. What is your name?
3. Can I see your passport?
4. Where are you from?
5. Where are your parents from?
6. Recite Sura Al-Fatiha (a passage from the Quran)

We passed all six steps, and then he introduced himself to us, and volunteered to be our guide around the mosque.

Considering my cousin and I were both allowed inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, as well as to the Wailing Wall, I find it pretty ridiculous that only Muslims are allowed inside (or even near) the Dome of the Rock.

In short, your brownness won't be able to get you in, sorry. Your only option is as follows, per wikitravel.org

Entrance to the restricted sites on the Temple Mount may be obtained in writing from the Director of the Islamic Waqf via the following address:

Director of the Islamic Waqf
Islamic Waqf Council
P.O. Box 19004
Jerusalem, Israel​

In the request, make sure to include your nationality, some information about yourself (ex. your occupation), and the reason why you want to enter the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosqe. Do not refer to the Temple Mount by its English name; refer to it as "Haram-el-Sharif".