Driving Experiences in Israel, Compared —
Every Type, One Table

Sports-car driving on a closed track— you're behind the wheel of a car with hundreds of horsepower, on a real race track, with a certified instructor beside you. This is the type closest to genuine motorsport: G-forces, braking, a racing line. Here's what that looks like for us at the Arad race track.

A mountain-road driving experience— the same sports car, but on a winding, scenic mountain road, at a controlled pace. Less about extracting maximum performance, more about the experience of the drive itself. For us, that's Nes Harim in the Judean Hills.

Karting— small, light cars on a dedicated track. Competitive, accessible, and it doesn't require a license, which makes it popular with groups and teenagers. The adrenaline is real, but the speeds and power are an order of magnitude smaller than a sports car's.

A racing simulator — a virtual experience with a wheel, pedals, and screens. Great for learning tracks and for gamers; there are no G-forces and no risk — and also none of the moment when a real car pushes you back into your seat.

4x4 off-road driving — jeeps or ATVs in open terrain. A nature-and-dust experience at a relatively slow pace; the thrill comes from the terrain, not the speed.

Five criteria that actually matter: how much adrenaline you get, how much you learn about driving, what documentation you walk away with, how well it works as a gift, and who can even take part:

If the goal is peak thrill— nothing really competes with a real sports car. The gap between 300–450 hp and a kart or a simulator isn't quantitative, it's qualitative: your body feels the acceleration, the braking, and the cornering. It's a difference you can't explain — only experience.

If the goal is to become a better driver— a track experience with a certified instructor is the best driving lesson you'll get: racing line, brake management, working with the car's weight transfer. A simulator teaches excellent theory, but without the physical feedback that turns knowledge into habit.

If it's a gift— ask what the recipient's dream is, not what's convenient for you. For a man who loves cars, the difference between a karting voucher and a Corvette voucher is the difference between "nice" and a gift people talk about for years. We covered this in our guide to gift ideas for a man.

If you're a mixed group — karting and off-roading win on accessibility (no license required for everyone), but a track experience with a spectator area solves that differently: some drive, and everyone takes part from the stands.

EXR Racing operates in the first two categories in the table. On the track — the Arad race track driving experience: a race track with 14 technical corners, an official pit lane, and a spectator area that holds up to 1,000 people, licensed by the Ministry of Culture and Sport and the Performance Driving Authority. In the mountains — the Nes Harim driving experience: Judean Hills roads, about 30 minutes from Jerusalem.

The fleet: a Chevrolet Corvette C6 (450 hp, V8, rear-wheel drive), a Mitsubishi EVO X (300 hp, turbo, 4x4, manual transmission), and a BMW M240 (turbocharged six-cylinder). Every experience — in every car and at every location — includes a briefing, a certified instructor for the entire drive, insurance, and video and photo coverage. We've gathered every number on our EXR Racing facts page.

There's no "best" driving experience — there's a match between a person and a goal. Teenagers and large groups will find a great evening at karting; gamers will enjoy a simulator; nature-loving families will head off-road. But if the question is where you get the biggest thrill, the most real learning, and the gift that gets remembered the deepest, the answer is a real sports car, on a track or in the mountains.

One more piece of advice from experience: don't choose based on what's close to home. The difference between an average experience near home and a dream experience an hour's drive away is the difference between a forgettable evening and a story people tell for years — and the drive itself, especially south to the track or up to the mountain roads, becomes part of the day rather than a chore on the way to it.

Want to keep comparing? Our guide to extreme experiences in Israel extends the comparison beyond the world of driving, and our guide on how to choose a driving experience helps you nail down the details once you've picked a category. And if you've already decided — our experiences page is waiting, and WhatsApp is open.