Ashdod Shore Excursion: Jerusalem and Dead Sea Day Trip

We enjoyed the various sights of Jerusalem and our visit and swim in the dead sea. The depth of history and significance of the attractions from a religious perspective was incredible to behold. Our tour was made up of cruisers and departed from the Haifa cruise port. It was supposed to leave from Ashdod cruise port. Because of renewed conflict in the Giza strip, the ship was diverted to Haifa. Consequently we had to travel an additional hour to arrive to the Jerusalem area. Our tour was scheduled to leave at 8am, but did not leave until 9am as we were waiting for some no-shows. Jerusalem was incredibly busy with people and traffic so we did take a different walking route than usual, which was fine. Our guide mentioned giving him $12 US dollars apiece prior to arrival at the Dead Sea if we wanted discounted entry as a group. With the lateness and the hustle and bustle, he never did mention it again or collect the money. When we arrived at the Dead sea, he said it would be too late to get the special group deal and we would pay $17. After a couple complaints, he said he would see if he could make it happen as he had a friend there. A number of us paid the $12 to be able to swim. I believe he likely pocketed the money. We also had lunch at a place he recommended in a restaurant/store near the dead sea. There were other tour groups there as well. There was only a buffet lunch offered, that was alright, but it was almost $20 each. We arrived back at our cruise ship at around 7pm, so it was a full day. Overall, I would say it was a good tour in that we saw everything we expected to.

This was a great tour and we had a good guide and driver. We booked this instead of the cruise ship option because it was a small group (14-16) vs. a bus of 40-50. The descriptions were virtually the same. I believe we saw all the sights except the Last Supper Room on Mt. Zion. The Wailing Wall, Garden of Gethsemane, and Church of the Holy Sepulchre were amazing. The swim in the Dead Sea is interesting and a once in a lifetime experience. This is a WALKING tour. Be prepared. Also there are a couple things that aren't explained in the description. You need to pay for a couple things, can't remember what they were now. Shekels are not required, American dollars are acceptable. Lunch options weren't good. I'd recommend bringing snack food or something from the ship or your hotel. Overall, very good tour. You see amazing sights, which is what we came for.

Very informative tour guide did a good job , just wished we would spend more time shopping.the dead sea was a nice experience , don’t forget your swimming shorts they are $30 a piece , entrance was a little steep $20 per person.but well worth the experience .

Our tour guide met us with fresh dates to start our day. As it was saturday and the sabbath, she told us all about it and how it is celebrated and its significance. The entire tour she shared so many bits of wonderful information both Hebrew and Christian - it was the perfect mixture. Maralite was a beautiful person who graciously shared her country with us

Guide try to finish tour early because of holiday, cut some time at Dead see(we spend only 1.30 min at Dead sea Explanation was so-so, tour was not very enjoyable and boring

it was a long day, but well worth it. Sharon took us to all the historic sights in Jerusalem and was very informative, We were only a group of 15 so we could all hear the information easily. The history of all the different ages of Jerusalem is fascinating. After a traditional lunch we went to swim/float in the dead sea. Not for the faint hearted as the facilities are basic, but the experience is not to be forgotten. We enjoyed the day very much.

Excellent coverage of many important sites in Jerusalem and not to be missed,the Dead Sea.

We hade a wonderful time. The guide even showed us his home. Great tour. We totally recommend it if you want to see a lot of Israel.

This was a phenomenal tour, our guide Jerry, was fantastic. It is amazing what we saw and how quickly he adapted to the crowds. Although due to traffic, Passover, and road closures we did not miss anything. He was quick to reroute us to ensure we saw everything.The Souk, Wailing wall, Church and our winding tour through the alleys of old Jerusalem. We spent 2 hours at the Dead Sea in the afternoon, which was a relief from the heat and the crowds. Highly recommend this tour and the Guide.

We had a fantastic tour of Jerusalem we enjoyed it immensely. The only thing was that it was Easter and the passover so it was absolutely heaving and we could not view the oldest church in Jerusalem as there was a Greek sevice taking place, we were very disappointed but it did not spoil the occasion. After lunch we went to the Dead Sea for which we did not enjoy, it was positively dangerous for older people to enter the Dead Sea, there were huge boulders on entering the water with nothing to hold onto, so it made it so difficult to make your way into the water. Not impressed at all. On a more positive note our tour guide Ryan was an absolute gem he was amazing. He explained everything in detail gave us an amazing tour of Jerusalem learned so much from him. On the way back to the ship he made a point of speaking individually to each of us on the coach asking us if we had any question about the day, which we thought was excellent. We throughly recommend Ryan. We rate tour 10 put of 10