OreetS

Wow! I didn't know that! Never saw it, and I had what were considered "good" guides on my two or three trips to the site.

 

Is it worth another trip there to see it?

The church is located in the southern section of the top of Masada.

It is interesting to know that it is there and that the network of Byzantine monasteries reached Masada as well. Not sure I would make a special trip unless you are following up on Byzantine churches - however, do look for it next time you are there.

To answer a few of the recent questions:

1. Ashdod is a closed port with a very high level of security. There is only one taxi company (the one mentioned) that is pre-cleared to enter the port.

That said - tour guides can get clearance (we all know what paperwork has to be done to arrange for this) and so can enter the port to meet you and return you to your ship. This clearance can also be arranged for other taxis. This is not a last minute thing - it needs to be arranged a few days in advance.

Yes - your tour guide had to show his license to re-enter the port and you probably needed to show your passports too.

2. As someone suggested, if you are touring on your own, or did not pre-arrange clearance - you can use any mode of transport to get to Ashdod and then call Moniyot Ha-Namal to pick you up locally and get you to your ship.

3. Even though Masada is not associated strongly with Christian history, there are the remains of a Byzantine era church on the top of Masada.

It has not been announced officially yet - but most probably the 4th or 5th day of Sukkot will be the traditional day for the Priestly Blessing. What this means is that many, many men who are of the Priestly clan - Cohen - will come to pray at the Western Wall as will thousands of others to be blessed. Putting it mildly, the Western Wall area will be extremely busy.

In all, during the Sukkot holiday, schools are off and many Israelis use this time to take family trips too so that many sites, especially in Jerusalem will be more crowded than usual.

I suggest you get an early start, start on the Mt. of Olives, work your way down and then through the Via Dolorosa. Keep track of the time so you can get to the entrance to the Temple Mount in time for the afternoon hours. When you are done there cut across the Jewish Quarter to Mt. Zion.

There is no bus route that will easily allow you the other option.

The Temple Mount is in the Old City, so I am a bit confused by your statement of "returning to the Old City". You can start there - take any bus that will get you to the Dung Gate and follow the signs to the security check for access to the Temple Mount (buses 1, 2, 38)

You will leave the Temple Mount through a different gate from the one you entered. You will be in the midst of the Moslem Quarter, not far from the Via Dolorosa. If you want to go back to the first station, you will have to back-track a bit but it is easy to find.

Thank you so much for infos. Here our draft plan... Any suggestion is welcomed...mainly on time to move from one location to another.

 

Leave from the ship at about 7. I see we need 1 hr by taxi to reach the Mount of Olives.

Visit the main places here and move down to the old city.

Visit the Temple Mount esplanade with the Dome in the Rock (what about opening time?) and the wall.

Move to the Via Dolorosa for the full Via Crucis up to the Holy Sepulchre.

Walk along the Cardo and the renovated Jewish Quarter. Ascend to Mt. Zion and visit the Hall of the Last Supper and David's tomb.

Back to the old city to the David Tower and Jaffa gate.

Back to the ship. Our ship will leave at 10pm so we think we can leave at 6pm.

 

Suggestions or other useful infos?

 

Thank you again.

A few observations regarding your plan.

You plan to leave the ship around 7 am and take a taxi to the Mt. of Olives. One hour travel time is beyond optimistic. You need to allow between an hour and a half to two hours - you will be hitting rush hour up to Jerusalem and in Jerusalem. If all goes smoothly you will make it in less than an hour and a half, but not an hour.

Access to the Temple Mount is only from the Mughrabi Gate which is adjacent to the Western Wall. It is open from 7:30 am to 10:30 am and then from 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm only. It's not clear that this will fit in with the rest of your plan. Additionally, you will not be allowed into the Dome of the Rock. Non-Moslems are allowed up to the Temple Mount and can visit the plaza and see the outside of the Mosques, etc. but entry to any building up there is limited only to Moslems (this is the decision of the Waqf - the Moslem religious authority).

You can visit the churches on the Mt. of Olives and on the way down (Dominus Flevit and Gethsemane). From there you can go to the Lion's Gate and walk the entire Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This will take at least an hour - more if you stop for devotionals on the way and then allot time in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

You can proceed from there to the Jewish Quarter, the Cardo, Mt. Zion, Hall of the Last Supper, David's Tomb, etc and then to the Western Wall.

By now, it's not clear that you will still be able to visit David's Citadel (David's Tower) which is at the Jaffa Gate - it's all a question of how your timing works out, but it is very doubtful.

You haven't told us what time the ship sails that evening - or is the ship staying in port overnight - also, what day of the week will you be in Haifa.

If you are staying overnight, you can rent a car and return it the next day. If you are docking on Saturday, no rental agencies will be open. If on a Friday, they all close even earlier than other days.

A car and driver will probably run you at least $300, probably more.

Without giving us an idea of how long you will be docked, it is hard to say what you can get done in the time you have.

The timing of your port call creates a major logistics problem. The issue is not getting the car - however, if you can't be at the rental office before they close then you are stuck - no way to return the car.

You are left with having to hire a private driving/guide - or a car and driver (and then the driver will do just that - drive only).

Have you checked the ship's tours carefully - often they include a stop at Yardenit.

You will be more comfortable in a skirt - it is cooler which is an important consideration in August.

About footwear - you should go with what you are most comfortable with. I know that many people suggest closed shoes and this topic has had some rather "heated" discussions on a few other travel forums. All I can say is that I am a major supporter of the sandals camp. If they are comfortable and you are used to wearing them (again, we're talking about good sports or walking sandals) then there is no reason for you not to wear them.

My job keeps me on my feet all day with lots and lots of walking and I wear sandals ALL the time - just wish I could wear them in the winter:)

Additionally, there is no way you can see ALL the Christian sites in Jerusalem in one day. The Holy Sepulchre is open straight through the day, almost all other churches close for 2-3 hours in the afternoon.

If you plan on actually entering the Edicula (the Sepulchre itself) you will have to wait on line for anywhere between one to three hours. Plan ahead of time and consider if you want to allocate time for that.

Actually, renting a car from Ashdod is not as convenient as it sounds, so your decision to forego a car is a good one.

Ashdod is a closed port. If you choose to skip the ship tours then you will need to have different arrangements for leaving the port. You will usually find that the ship has arranged for a free shuttle bus that will take you from the dock to the Central Bus Station in Ashdod. You can easily catch a bus from there to Jerusalem (the express is #448, the route with more stops is #438) - you can check schedules, etc. at http://www.egged.co.il/eng

If the shuttle is not convenient or is not running early or late enough then you can take a taxi from the dock to the bus station. There will be taxis waiting on the dock. (Make sure you get a contact number as there is only one company that has clearance for their taxis to enter the port).

To visit the Old City of Jerusalem, etc. you would take the bus to Jerusalem and then either take a cab or a city bus to your destination.

If you want to head to the Dead Sea you would need to take another inter-city bus from Jerusalem - again check schedules at the same web-site above.

Keep in mind that visiting hours for non-Moslems to the Temple Mount are limited (7:30-10:30 in the mornings and 1:30 to 2:30 in the afternoon - no visits on Friday or Saturday).

Will you be staying in Jerusalem overnight? You may want to consider that, otherwise you will be spending a lot of time on buses back and forth. The bus from Ashdod station to Jerusalem is close to 2 hours, as is the return.

No such thing as a dumb question - I see you are from Australia - in which case we drive on the "wrong" side of the road for you.

In Israel we drive on the right.

I don't agree that driving in Israel is not for the faint of heart - except for the crowded cities, driving here is not much different than anywhere else. You can do very well without a car when in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, etc. You really do need a car when in the northern areas, the south, near the Dead Sea. While there is public transportation it does not run that frequently and there are places that are more cumbersome to get to.

The picture on the left is of the interior of the Abuhav Synagogue in Tzfat.