Temple Beth Tikvah of Roswell (ag) | Tours to Israel
Sunday. Depart the U.S.A. onboard Lufthansa Airlines flight #445 from Atlanta at 6:10P, arriving to Frankfurt International Airport at 9:00A the next day, with connecting service onboard Lufthansa flight #686 at 10:05A arriving to Tel Aviv at 2:50P. Your international flight includes meals, drinks and in-flight entertainment for your journey. FLIGHT
Monday. Arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport.
Welcome by our representative and assistance with arrival formalities.
Drive to Tel Aviv drive through the "city that never sleeps" and pass by centers of culture and recreation such as the Habima Theater, sprawling beaches, Dizengoff Street and Rabin Square.
Check into your hotel.
Enjoy a middle-eastern style dinner with a Yemenite touch at Maganda with a varied selection of salads and grilled meats, located in the Yemenite Quarter of Tel Aviv. (D) TEL AVIV
Tuesday. Breakfast at the hotel.
Visit to Independence Hall, site of David Ben Gurion's monumental proclamation of the State of Israel in May 1948.
Explore two thousand years of rich Jewish culture and community at Beth Hatefutsoth, the Museum of the Jewish People, located on the campus of Tel Aviv University.
Lunch on your own.
Visit the Ayalon Institute, near Rehovot, for an eye opening tour of a clandestine munitions factory used during the British Mandate.
Visit the Old City of Jaffa and stroll through the renovated artists' colony and the ancient port.
Time permitting, visit the Nachalat Binyamin pedestrian mall, with its restored buildings and sidewalk artists, and continue onto the colorful Carmel Market and then to Shenkin, one of Israel's most avant-garde streets.
Dinner on your own, perhaps at the Tel Aviv Port. (B) TEL AVIV
Wednesday. Breakfast at the hotel.
Depart Tel Aviv and drive along the Trans-Israel Highway for a close up view of the 'Security Barrier' along the seam zone between Israel and the Palestinian Territories.
Short guided visit to Caesarea, one of the Land of Israel's most important cities during the Roman Period; visit the Herodian Theater and new excavations along the Mediterranean shore concluding with a visit to the 900-year-old crusader city built on the same site.
Visit the Yemin Orde youth aliyah village, one of Israel's most innovative educational institutions, specializing in integrating Ethiopian Youth into Israeli society, dialogue with renowned Director Haim Peri and students.
Lunch on your own en route.
Stop on top of Mount Carmel for a scenic overlook of Haifa Bay.
Visit the Zippori National Park, known for its magnificent mosaic collection and central role in Jewish life after the destruction of the Temple.
Drive to the Upper Galilee and check into your guesthouse.
Dinner at the guesthouse.
Where Is My Kibbutz Going? Dialogue with kibbutz members on the ever-changing nature of kibbutz life today. (B,D) GALILEE
Thursday. Breakfast at the hotel.
Walk through the Tel Dan Nature Reserve located on the largest tributary of the Jordan River and the Biblical settlement of Dan, followed by a guided visit to the ongoing excavations.
Explore Israel's security situation on the Golan Heights while overlooking the Hula Valley from former Syrian fortifications. Cross the Golan Plateau to the border with Syria and observe the abandoned city of Kuneitra and the United Nations outpost located nearby.
Visit the award winning Golan Winery, located in Katzrin on the Golan Heights, which launched its first wines in 1984, which were recognized as Israel's first world-class wines, with wine tasting.
Lunch on your own.
Explore Safed, a center of Jewish mysticism for hundreds of years, and a contemporary artists' colony, including:
Guided visits to the Ari and Abuhav Synagogues with their great stories and mystical messages.
A stroll through the quaint Art Galleries and shop in the artists' colony.
Return to the kibbutz for dinner. (B,D) GALILEE
Friday. Breakfast at the hotel.
Depart the Upper Galilee.
Visit the Hula Nature Reserve and the Ophoria Interactive Experience, connecting birds, water and the Zionist endeavor.
Visit Tiberias on the shores of the Sea of Galilee; explore sites that helped make this one of the 4 holy sites in Israel, including Maimonides' Tomb and the Hammath Tiberias Synagogue.
Visit the Beit Shean National Park, one of the largest archaeological sites in Israel with its Biblical Tel and ongoing excavations exposing the vast Roman-Byzantine City.
Lunch on your own, or visit Kibbutz Gesher on the Jordan River for a behind the scenes look at the Israeli Jordanian relationship since peace in 1994.
Drive through the Jordan Rift Valley.
Stop at Mount Scopus to say the traditional "shehechiyanu" blessing, recited upon entering Jerusalem.
Time permitting: The Hills around Jerusalem - Drive around Jerusalem while viewing the city from many of its overlooks and promenades.
Check into your hotel and prepare for Shabbat.
Kabbalat Shabbat at Congregation Mevasseret Zion led by Rabbi Maya Leibovitz.
Festive Shabbat dinner at the hotel. (B,D) JERUSALEM
Saturday. Breakfast at the hotel.
Shabbat Services at Hebrew Union College, followed by a tour of the campus.
Lunch on your own.
Free Shabbat in Jerusalem with optional visits to:
The Museum of the History of Jerusalem at David's Citadel, for a walk through the history of Jerusalem from the time of Abraham 4,000 years ago to the end of the British Mandate over Palestine.
The Israel Museum, one of the most creative and innovative museums in the world with a wide and eclectic collection, ranging from Judaica and archaeology to Renaissance and contemporary Israeli art, concluding with a visit to the Dead Sea Scrolls of the Shrine of the Book and the newly restored Second Temple Period Model of Jerusalem.
The Tisch Family Zoological Gardens, a beautifully landscaped habitat with a special focus on preserving Biblical fauna, geared to children of all ages (2-80)
The Old City Ramparts for a walk along the ancient walls of the city.
Ben Kodesh Lechol Havdallah overlooking the Old City.
Stroll through the Ben Yehuda and Nachalat Shiva Pedestrian Mall, joining the many Israelis out on the town and dinner at leisure. (B) JERUSALEM
Sunday. Breakfast at the hotel.
Meet with Holocaust Survivor Hannah Pick, a childhood friend of Anne Frank, and discuss the meaning of the Holocaust for contemporary Jewish society.
Guided visit through the newly renovated Yad Vashem complex, the Jewish National Memorial to the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust, including:
The Avenue of the Righteous
The new Historical Museum
The Children's Memorial
The Holocaust Toy Exhibit
The Valley of the Communities
A concluding Memorial Service
Lunch on your own.
Visit the Israel Museum, one of the most creative and innovative museums in the world with a wide and eclectic collection, and visit the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Shrine of the Book and the newly restored Second Temple Period Model of Jerusalem.
Dinner at leisure. (B) JERUSALEM
Monday. Breakfast at the hotel.
The Reform Jewish World A glimpse at the critical role the Reform Movement is playing in countries around the world with representatives of the Reform Movement at Merkaz Shimshon.
Walking tour through the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, for guided visits to some of the sites excavated over the past 30 years, including:
Walk along the Rooftops of the Old City for a behind the scenes look at the various communities in Jerusalem and how they live together.
The Cardo, a Byzantine street that is now the world's oldest shopping arcade. The Hurva Square, the central square of the Jewish Quarter.
Guided visit to the Davidson Archaeological Park with a special visit to the Davidson Center, to view the hree-dimensional computer generated film of Life During the Time of the Temple, followed by a guided visit to the Southern Wall Excavations.
The Kotel (Western Wall).
Lunch on your own.
Visit the Western Wall Tunnel, the underground continuation of the Western Wall along the Temple Mount.
Meet with representatives of the New Israel Fund and visit a few of their projects.
Dinner at leisure. (B) JERUSALEM
Tuesday. Breakfast at the hotel.
Depart for the Dead Sea region and stop first to ride a camel in the Judean desert.
Visit Qumran, explore the area where the Dead Sea Sect established a community, see the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found and view the interactive audiovisual program.
Ascend Masada by cable car to visit Herod's mountain palace and site of the Jewish Zealots' last stand against the Roman Legionnaires. Explore the many archaeological remains from the Roman and Byzantine Eras.
Lunch on your own.
Bathe in the relaxing and healthy sulphur springs at the Mineral Beach and float in the Dead Sea.
Return to Jerusalem and time to pack and relax.
Farewell dinner. (B,D) JERUSALEM
Wednesday. Breakfast at the hotel.
Day at leisure in Jerusalem. (B) JERUSALEM
Thursday. Early morning checkout.
Transfer to Ben Gurion International Airport.
Depart onboard Lufthansa flight #691 at 5:30A, arriving to Frankfurt International Airport at 9:10A, with connecting service onboard LH flight #444 at 11:55A , arriving to Atlanta at 4:20P the same day.
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