Things to Do in Israel: City Guides & Audio Tours

Things to do in Israel range from exploring Mediterranean cities and ancient religious sites to experiencing the desert, the Jordan Rift Valley and the shores of the Dead Sea. This small country brings together coast, mountains, rift valley and desert within a remarkably compact area. Neywo has free audio guides for 6 cities in Israel, covering 356 narrated places across 23 walking tours.

Israel travel guide: landscapes and climate

Israel sits at the meeting point of several distinct environments. Its western coast faces the Mediterranean Sea, while the country’s southern tip reaches the Red Sea. To the east, the area around the Dead Sea lies near the lowest point on Earth.

The climate changes sharply from one region to another. Tel Aviv and Haifa have cool, rainy winters and long, hot summers. Around Beersheba and the northern Negev, conditions are semi-arid. Farther south, the Negev and Arabah are desert regions, with very hot, dry summers and little rain. Higher areas can be cold and windy, and places around Jerusalem’s elevation usually receive snow at least once a year.

The Jordan Rift Valley follows a fault system between the African Plate and the Arabian Plate. This geological boundary has produced repeated earthquakes over the centuries and helps explain the dramatic differences between Israel’s landscapes.

Things to do in Israel: cities and places to visit

Israel’s cities offer different ways to understand the country, from museums and religious architecture to coastal urban life. These are some of the best cities to visit in Israel, all represented in Neywo’s audio guide.

Jerusalem

Jerusalem is the seat of Israel’s government and its proclaimed capital. The city is also a major centre of religious and cultural history. Its varied heritage can be explored through places such as Yad Vashem, the Center for Human Dignity and Dormition Abbey.

The Israel Museum is another important cultural stop. Its collections include the Dead Sea Scrolls, Judaica and European art. Jerusalem’s architecture and museums reflect the many traditions that have shaped the city and the wider country.

You can discover more narrated places in the Jerusalem city guide.

Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv is Israel’s largest urban area and its economic centre. The city provides a different perspective from Jerusalem, with a strong connection to contemporary culture, art and urban life.

Its narrated places include Rabin Square, the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, the Fire and Water Fountain and Hassan Bek Mosque. Together, they reveal different layers of the city’s public spaces, architecture and cultural life.

For a deeper walk through the city, see the Tel Aviv guide.

Haifa

Haifa lies on Israel’s Mediterranean coast, where winters are cool and rainy and summers are long and hot. The city’s cultural attractions include the Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art and the Shrine of the Báb.

Haifa is a useful base for understanding the country’s northern coastal landscape and its mix of cultural influences. Explore its narrated sites with the Haifa city guide.

Acre

Acre is another important city in the north. Its narrated places include St. John Baptist Church, the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and St. George church.

These sites reflect the religious and architectural layers found in a region shaped by different communities and historical powers. The Acre guide takes you through the city’s narrated places.

Nazareth

Nazareth is one of the northern cities covered by Neywo. Its narrated places include the White Mosque, the Franciscan Monastery, Monastery Saint Claire and the Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation.

The city’s religious buildings offer a way to explore the region’s cultural and architectural diversity. Continue with the Nazareth guide.

Migdal

Migdal has one narrated place in the Neywo guide: the Orthodox church in Migdal Haemek. It is a smaller stop within the country’s northern route network and can be combined with discoveries elsewhere in the Northern District.

A country shaped by many histories

The land now known as Israel has also been called the Land of Israel, Palestine and the Holy Land. Ancient Canaanite city-states, the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, and Hasmonean Judea were followed by the rule of many empires, reflecting the region’s position at a continental crossroads.

Modern Israel’s history is closely connected to the period of British rule after the First World War, when the region became Mandatory Palestine. The Balfour Declaration of 1917 expressed British support for a Jewish homeland in Palestine, while Jewish immigration, Zionism and British rule intensified tensions between Jewish and Palestinian Arab communities.

The United Nations later proposed separate Arab and Jewish states. Jewish leaders accepted the plan, while Palestinian Arab leaders rejected it. Israel declared independence on 14 May 1948, and the resulting war ended with Israel controlling more territory than the United Nations plan had allocated. Most Palestinian Arabs fled or were expelled during the Nakba, and no independent Palestinian Arab state was established.

The conflict remains central to understanding Israel today. After the Six-Day War in 1967, Israel occupied the West Bank, Gaza and Egyptian Sinai, and annexed East Jerusalem and the Syrian Golan Heights. Peace treaties were later signed with Egypt and Jordan, while the Oslo Accords introduced limited Palestinian self-rule in the West Bank and Gaza. The occupation and Israel’s treatment of Palestinians remain subjects of international criticism, and the conflict escalated dramatically after the Hamas-led attacks of 7 October.

Culture, language and everyday life

Hebrew is Israel’s official language and the primary language of the state. Its revival as a daily spoken language is a central part of the country’s cultural story. Supporters of Zionism often opposed the use of Yiddish before Israel’s establishment because they wanted Hebrew to become a shared national language.

Jewish communities arriving from across the diaspora brought different religious traditions and cultural memories. Arab influences are also part of Israel’s cultural life. Music ranges from Mizrahi and Sephardic styles to jazz and pop rock, while Hebrew literature is especially associated with poetry and prose.

Architecture likewise reflects the backgrounds of immigrant Jewish architects. Across the country, culture combines a shared public language with many distinct traditions brought together in one state.

Explore Israel with Neywo’s free audio guides

Download Neywo to explore Israel with 23 walking tours across 6 cities, including Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Acre, Migdal and Nazareth. The guides cover 356 narrated places in total, with narration available in 11 languages.

The app tells the story of each place as you reach it, at your own pace. There is no group and no schedule: simply walk through the city and listen when you arrive at each narrated stop.