Golan Heights Tours Compared: Day Trips, Jeep & Self-Drive (2026)

The Golan Heights rises steeply from the Sea of Galilee into a volcanic plateau of basalt craters, snowcapped Mount Hermon, rushing waterfalls and cool-climate wineries. It is a world away from the Negev or Tel Aviv beach, and the tour options reflect that — from jeep safaris across lava fields to wine trails and a UN lookout over the Syrian border. Here is an honest comparison of every main format.

Golan Heights tours compared

Prices are broad ranges that vary with operator, group size and season. Check the live price when you book.

Day trips from Tel Aviv or Jerusalem

The most popular format. A comfortable coach picks up from hotels in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem between 6 and 7 am for the two-and-a-half-hour drive north. Most itineraries hit four core stops:

1. Mount Bental — a volcanic cone at 1,165 m with an observation deck overlooking the abandoned Syrian city of Kuneitra and the UN buffer zone. Coffee Annan, the on-site café, has become a pilgrimage in its own right.
2. Caesarea Philippi (Banias) — a roaring waterfall and ancient sanctuary at the foot of Mount Hermon, one of the most dramatic natural sites in northern Israel.
3. Nimrod Fortress (Qal’at Nimrod) — a 13th-century Ayyubid and Mamluk castle perched on a ridge with sweeping views over the Golan and Hermon; the largest medieval fortress in Israel. See the Nimrod Fortress visitor guide for the full circuit.
4. A Druze village — typically Majdal Shams or Mas’ade for lunch; strudel (Druze “pizza”), locally pressed olive oil and a short introduction to Druze culture.

Some operators add Gamla ruins (an ancient Jewish city destroyed in the revolt against Rome, 67 CE) and the nearby Gamla waterfall — the highest in Israel — making it an exceptionally full day.

Return to hotel around 7–9 pm. Long but completely logistically effortless.

Day trips from Tiberias or the Sea of Galilee

If you are basing yourself in Tiberias, Safed or anywhere on the Sea of Galilee, the Golan is a half-day drive. Local operators run shorter 7–9 hour tours that cover the same core stops without the long coach haul from Tel Aviv. Strongly recommended over the full-day format if you are already in the north.

Jeep safaris

Jeep tours unlock the Golan that buses cannot reach: volcanic crater rims, hidden springs like Nahal Majrase, Rujum el-Hiri (a 4,000-year-old megalithic monument — Israel’s Stonehenge), and abandoned Syrian military positions. Small open-roof jeeps (typically 4–6 people) run morning or afternoon half-days from Katzrin, Tiberias or directly from campsites in the Golan.

This is the format for visitors who want the landscape more than the history — for active travellers, photographers, and anyone who has already done the Mount Bental coach-tour circuit.

Golan wine tours

The Golan plateau’s basalt soil, altitude and cool nights produce some of Israel’s best red wines. The Golan Heights Winery (Yarden, Gamla, Golan labels) put Israeli wine on the international map; Pelter, Odem Mountain, Bazelet HaGolan and Nana Estate are smaller boutique producers. Half-day wine tours typically visit two or three wineries with guided tastings and regional cheese pairings.

Combine a wine tour with a morning hike or Mount Bental visit for a well-rounded Golan day. Wine tours are the right choice for visitors who find the standard coach itinerary too rushed.

Golan and Galilee two-day tours

The most satisfying north Israel experience. Day 1 covers Galilee — Nazareth, Capernaum, the Sea of Galilee — and Day 2 covers the Golan. Overnight stays in a Tiberias or Moshav guesthouse. Abraham Tours and several Viator multi-day operators run this format at competitive group rates. See our Galilee tours compared guide for the Galilee day breakdown.

Self-drive

The Golan is very driveable independently. Route 98 runs the length of the western escarpment from the Sea of Galilee to Mount Hermon; Route 91 crosses east from Tiberias to Katzrin (the Golan’s administrative capital). All headline sights — Mount Bental, Banias, Nimrod Fortress, Katzrin Ancient Village — are on or just off paved roads.

The trade-off: missing the guide’s depth at Gamla, Banias and Nimrod. These are densely layered sites — Greco-Roman, Byzantine, Crusader, Ayyubid and Ottoman — where context transforms the experience. Consider the self-drive + local Katzrin guide hybrid: drive yourself, hire a Katzrin-based guide for a three-hour site walk.

For car hire, see our car rental Israel guide and driving in Israel guide.

How to choose

• First visit from Tel Aviv or Jerusalem: a guided day trip — let the driver handle the two-and-a-half-hour each-way transfer.
• Based in the Galilee: a local Tiberias day tour — saves four hours of coach travel.
• Adventure + off-road: a jeep safari — combines craters, springs and the Golan’s wild interior.
• Wine focus: a wine trail tour — boutique producers, tastings, basalt vineyard landscapes.
• Independent driver spending two days in the north: self-drive Golan + Galilee, one day each.

For the full destination picture, see our Golan Heights guide. Compare northern Israel options in our Galilee tours compared and best tours in Israel guides. If you are considering a vehicle, our car rental Israel guide covers the main options.