Hi Penny, Yes, we did 2 different tours, both with Insight.

We could not recommend the Israel tour with Insight. As christian catholics coming from a primarily christian country, although not expecting a 'pilgrimage', we did expect a christian slant on the tour commentary. If we go to Israel again we would go with a different company. We love Insight and have done 6 tours and they are our first choice for other places.

We did the Jewels of the Nile and would highly reccomend it. We loved it.

John & Joy

Thanks for replying so quickly, and so candidly. We are also Christians (Baptists - Peter is a minister) and were looking for something that wasn't as you say a "pilgrimage", but definitely had some Christian input, which surely must be relevant!!!

Given the guide was disappointing, did you feel you went to the sites that you would have wanted to see? Did you see enough of those that you did visit to feel that you had "seen" them. Were there any that you were close to, but didn't visit and wished you could?

This sounds like a barrage of questions, and I appreciate your taking the time to answer.

Regards,

Hi Penny, We did go to the included sites as described in the Brochure. Where the tour fell down, in our opinion, was that the tour guide did not explain enough of the actual places we were seeing. Example - in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre We could see a line of about 20 people to go into an area. We were told we didn't have enough time to wait. We have since found out this was the tomb of Jesus, which to us was one of the most important places to visit. This was not explained, although we had spent long times on that day having explained to us how the Jews had built the City.

Another time in the Garden of Gethsemane it was mainly explained to us about pressing olives.

As your husband is a minister, he would be of help as he could do his own explanation, which we would have greatly appreciated.

As I said in my first posting, we were not happy with the whole experience, although we do feel very pleased to have visited the holy land. It is a special area and one that all christians would take away fond memories from.

Having said all that, we will still do more Insight tours, they are a great company, just not good in Israel. Not sure if the 'first timers' from our tour, would travel with them again.

Don't hesitate to ask anything else and I have posted pics on my facebook if you would like to have a look.

Joy

I can understand you being upset about not visiting the tomb, when you were right there. Also why else visit the Garden of Gethsemane, there are olive groves all over the Mediterranean? I had expected more Christian input particularly from an historic point of view, and I think from rereading the itinerary, it is fair to expect it.

I do appreciate your warnings, and we are talking with friends who have been recently and did it quite differently. So we have our options open.

I would love to see your Facebook pictures but you will have to me find you, or vice versa. You know my name, so you might like to ask me to be your "friend" if you want to keep your privacy. My profile picture has me (blond) in a pinky red top, we live in Auckland.

Thanks very much

Dear Joy

Having read your comments I have to admit to feeling a little concerned about booking the Insight Israel Discovery tour.

Will do some more research. Thank you for your information.

Happy travelling.

Hi John/Joy,
How long did your transfer from Jerusalem to Ben Gurion Airport take at the end of your trip, and how early would you recommend getting there? I have a late evening flight scheduled on the last day, and I am trying to decide what extra touring I can get in that day.
Thanks, PLT

Hi PLT, From memory the ride to the airport took around 40 minutes. The airport is about in the middle of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Most countries recommend you are at the airport 3 hours before your international flight and Israel was no different. They do scan your baggage before you check in and this does take a small extra time. The tour director should advise you while you are on your tour of your pick up time to get to the airport. Enjoy! John & Joy

Hi John/Joy, One more question for right now. Do you recommend drinking only bottled water in Jordan? When I went to Egypt, it was highly recommended to avoid drinking anything but bottled - even when brushing your teeth.
Thanks again, PLT

Hi PLT, We are always very careful drinking the local water in overseas countries. Who wants to be on a holiday and have an upset tummy? They have a problem in Egypt with the water, hence the advice to even clean your teeth with bottled water. In Jordan we were given as much bottled water as we needed. When water is is given out take it as a sign that the tap water should not be drunk. Some advice we were given on an earlier tour was to have the local yoghurt when in another country. It balances out the system, so we always had yoghurt with our cereal in the morning and had no problem. We also always carry tummy tablets with us just in case. John & Joy

quote:

Originally posted by John/Joy:
Hi PLT, We are always very careful drinking the local water in overseas countries. Who wants to be on a holiday and have an upset tummy? They have a problem in Egypt with the water, hence the advice to even clean your teeth with bottled water. In Jordan we were given as much bottled water as we needed. When water is is given out take it as a sign that the tap water should not be drunk. Some advice we were given on an earlier tour was to have the local yoghurt when in another country. It balances out the system, so we always had yoghurt with our cereal in the morning and had no problem. We also always carry tummy tablets with us just in case. John & Joy

Hi John/Joy, I have a couple of questions if you don't mind. Did you ever complain to Insight about your tour guide and do you remember his name? I am planning on this tour and would be very upset if we missed the Tomb of Jesus and if there was no one to meet us at the airport after about a 16 hour trip. Thanks, Janet