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13 Day Bar/Bat Mitzvah Tour of Israel
 
 
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Highlights
 
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Tour Highlights

  • Memorable communal Bar and Bat Mitzvah Ceremony
  • Bar and Bat Mitzvah preparation with local Israeli Rabbi
  • Kibbutz Ideology and Israeli Reality in the 21st Century, night walk and dialogue
  • The Jezzar Pasha Mosque in Acre
  • Camel Ride through the desert
  • Visit the home and meet the children of “Save A Child's Heart” as part of Zedek Project
  • An Inside View into the Israeli Political Arena, dialogue with a Political Analyst
  • Special tour to the Western Wall Tunnels and the City of David
  • The new Davidson Center in Jerusalem
  • The refurbished Yad Vashem complex in Jerusalem
  • Visit Masada and swim in the Dead Sea
  • Rafting on the Jordan River (seasonal)
  • Jeep tour on the Golan Heights
  • Explore Caesarea National Park
  • Optional day trip to Petra (Jordan)

  • Day at leisure in Eilat

 

Trip Includes


  • 11 nights accommodation in selected hotels
  • 1 night Tel Aviv
  • 2 nights Galilee
  • 1 night Haifa
  • 4 nights Jerusalem
  • 2 nights Eilat
  • 1 night Tel Aviv
  • Breakfast daily and 6 dinners
  • Bar/Bat Mitzvah ceremony, preparation and services at an additional cost of $950 per family
  • Sightseeing per itinerary in a modern air-conditioned motor coach with panoramic windows, reclining seats and footrests
  • Services of a friendly and professional English-speaking Expedition Educator throughout the trip
  • Entrance fees per itinerary
  • All hotel and airport portage and tipping included
DAY ONE: Sunday
DEPARTURE
  • Leave the U.S.

Overnight: Flight


DAY TWO: Monday
ARRIVAL IN ISRAEL

  • Land in Israel. Welcome by our representative and assistance with arrival formalities at Ben Gurion International Airport.
  • Transfer to your hotel in Tel Aviv, known as the ‘city that never sleeps.'
  • Check into your hotel.
  • 6:30-6:45 p.m - Pick up from your hotel for orientation and dinner in Tel Aviv with your tour educator.
  • Visit the Jaffa Overlook for an introduction to Tel Aviv at one of its important, historical reference points.
  • Enjoy a Middle-Eastern style dinner with a Yemenite touch at Maganda, serving a varied selection of salads and grilled meats, located in Tel Aviv's Yemenite Quarter.

Overnight: Tel Aviv


DAY THREE: Tuesday
ALONG THE COAST

  • Breakfast at your hotel.
  • Check out and departure.
  • Begin the day with an introduction and special visit to Independence Hall, site of David Ben Gurion's monumental proclamation of the State of Israel in December 1948.
  • Stroll down Rothschild Boulevard, Tel Aviv's Bauhaus architecture district that is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site and led to Tel Aviv's other name, the ‘White City'.
  • Visit the Nachalat Binyamin pedestrian mall, with its restored buildings and sidewalk artists, and continue onto the colorful Carmel Market and then to Sheinkin, a trendy Tel Aviv shopping street.
  • Lunch on your own.
  • Depart Tel Aviv.
  • Guided visit to Caesarea, one of ancient 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.
  • Walk through the 2,000-year-old underground water tunnels at Park Alona, which once brought water to Caesarea (weather permitting, water shoes recommended) or guided visit to Zichron Ya'acov, one of the first communities established by the early Zionist pioneers, including a walk along the colorful Pedestrian Mall or Wine tasting at a local winery.
  • Check into your kibbutz guesthouse.
  • Dinner at the guesthouse.

Overnight: Kibbutz guesthouse, Upper Galilee


DAY FOUR: Wednesday
NATURE AND SECURITY

  • Breakfast at your kibbutz guesthouse.
  • Walk through the Tel Dan Nature Reserve located on the largest tributary of the Jordan River and near the biblical settlement of the tribe of Dan.
  • Take a jeep tour climbing into the Golan Heights, following in the footsteps of IDF soldiers and their battles in the Six Day War, Enjoy the beautiful, natural scenery and gain insight into the strategic complexity of the Golan, followed by a tour of the Golan Heights.
  • Cross the Golan Plateau to the border with Syria and observe the abandoned city of Kuneitra and the United Nations outpost located nearby.
  • Lunch on your own.
  • Enjoy rafting or kayaking on the Jordan River (weather permitting, water shoes recommended) or visit the Hula Nature Reserve and the Ophoria Interactive Experience, connecting birds, water and the Zionist endeavor.
  • Da'at Encounter: Dialogue with a kibbutz member.
  • Return to your kibbutz for dinner at the guesthouse.

Overnight: Kibbutz guesthouse, Upper Galilee


DAY FIVE: Thursday
THE GALILEE AND THE CARMEL

  • Breakfast at your kibbutz guesthouse.
  • Check out and departure.
  • Explore Safed, ancient and modern center of Jewish mysticism, and the city's contemporary artists' colony, including guided visits to: The Ari, Caro or Abuhav synagogues with their great stories and mystical messages, followed by a shopping stroll through the quaint artists' colony and galleries.
  • Drive north to Rosh Hanikra, a collection of rock grottoes at the very northern tip of Israel. Rosh Hanikra was created when the strong Mediterranean waters carved subterranean tunnels out of the soft limestone rock, creating beautiful caves and formations.
  • Lunch on your own.
  • Visit Acre (Akko), a UNESCO Heritage Site with history ranging from the Crusader period into modern times. The tour includes guided visits to the newly renovated Crusader city, Jezzar Pasha Mosque, one of the most important mosques of Israel's Muslim community, and the Ottoman Fortifications around the city.
  • Da'at Encounter:Visit a Druze village in the Carmel Mountains for a window into the unique world of the Israeli Druze community, including dinner at a Druze home.
  • Drive to Haifa and check into your hotel.
  • Evening at leisure.

Overnight: Haifa


DAY SIX: Friday
THE LAYERS OF JERUSALEM

  • Breakfast at your hotel.
  • Check out and departure.
  • Stand on top of Mount Carmel for a scenic overlook of the Haifa Bay and Bahai Gardens and Shrine, one of the holiest sites of the Bahai religion.
  • Drive to Jerusalem via the Trans-Israel Highway for a close up view of the ‘Security Barrier' along the seam line between Israel and the Palestinian territories.
  • Upon entering Jerusalem stop to recite the ‘shehechiyanu' blessing, traditionally recited upon entering Jerusalem, followed by an introduction to the city.
  • Guided visit through the Old City of Jerusalem, travelling through 3,000 years of Jewish life.
  • Experience the sites, smells, and tastes of Jerusalem while walking through the Machaneh Yehuda market, with lunch on your own.
  • Check into your hotel.
  • Optional Kabbalat Shabbat services at local synagogues in Jerusalem, on your own. 
  • Festive Shabbat dinner.

Overnight: Jerusalem


DAY SEVEN: Saturday
SHABBAT IN JERUSALEM (NO GUIDE)

  • Breakfast at the hotel.
  • Shabbat services with a bar/bat mitzvah ceremony overlooking the Old City.
  • Lunch on your own.
  • Enjoy dinner on your own in Jerusalem, at a choice of a wide array of restaurants.

Overnight: Jerusalem


DAY EIGHT: Sunday
HEAVENLY AND EARTHLY JERUSALEM

  • Da'at Fitness Walkabout Jerusalem: Integrate Wellness and fitness into your trip experience with your athletic trainer in Liberty Bell Park.
  • Early breakfast at your hotel.
  • Guided visit through the newly renovated Yad Vashem complex, the Jewish National Memorial to the
    six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust, including the new Historical Museum, the Children's Memorial, and a memorial service.
  • Lunch on your own.
  • Return to the Old City and experience the special energy at the Western Wall (the Kotel), followed by a visit to the Western Wall Tunnel, the underground continuation of the Western Wall alongside the Temple Mount.
  • Guided visit through the City of David's new excavations, which have redefined the origins of Jerusalem and wade through the 2,600-year-old Hezekiah's Water Tunnel in the Kidron Valley (depending on weather conditions. Water shoes recommended).
  • Da'at Encounter: Israeli Society @ 2011 Dialogue with a scholar.
  • Enjoy dinner at Olive & Fish, a meat and fish restaurant, located across from the Liberty Bell Gardens.

Overnight: Jerusalem


DAY NINE: Monday
JEWISH STRATEGIES FOR SURVIVAL

  • Early breakfast at your hotel.
  • Descend below sea level to the Dead Sea Basin.
  • Camel ride through the desert in biblical style.
  • Ascend the cable car to Masada, Herod's mountaintop fortress and site of the Jewish Zealots' last stand against the Roman Legionnaires. Discuss Masada's role as a symbol of Jewish defense and its current significance for modern Israel.
  • Lunch on your own.
  • Experience the weightlessness of the Dead Sea as you float in its saline waters.
  • Return to Jerusalem.
  • Enjoy dinner on your own in Jerusalem, at a choice of local restaurants.

Overnight: Jerusalem


DAY TEN: Tuesday
DIGGING FOR ROOTS

  • Breakfast at your hotel.
  • Check out of the hotel.
  • Da'at Encounter: Tzedek Project Visit to meet children from Save A Child's Heart, an Israeli-based, international humanitarian project providing life-saving heart surgeries and follow-up care for children from around the world. (Gifts of art supplies and small treats are always appreciated.)
  • Visit the Ayalon Institute, near Rehovot, for an eye opening tour of a clandestine munitions factory used during the British Mandate.
  • Lunch on your own.
  • Take part in an active dig at the Beit Guvrin Caves, south of Beit Shemesh and prepare to get your hands dirty as you uncover pottery from the Hellenistic period, 2,300 years ago, followed by a crawl through the Maresha Cave Labyrinth.
  • Transfer to domestic airport.
  • Depart on a domestic flight to Eilat (commuter plane).
  • Arrive in Eilat and transfer to your hotel.
  • Check into the hotel.
  • Enjoy free evening and dinner on your own in Eilat.

Overnight: Eilat


DAY ELEVEN: Wednesday
THE WONDERS OF THE RED SEA

  • Breakfast at your hotel.
  • Day at leisure in Eilat with the following possible activities:
    • Guided tour of the 1,800-year-old Nabatean city of Petra, recognized as one of the Ten Wonders of the World, including lunch (advance purchase required).
    • Visit the Eilat Underwater Observatory on your own and experience the wonders and mysteries of the world beneath the Red Sea.
    • Have some fun with optional water sports, swimming with the dolphins; Red Sea cruise or rest and relaxation.
  • Dinner on your own and evening at leisure.

Overnight: Eilat


DAY TWELVE: Thursday
EILAT TO TEL AVIV

  • Breakfast at your hotel.
  • Morning at leisure in Eilat.
  • Check out and departure.
  • Transfer from your hotel to the Eilat Airport.
  • Check in and depart for domestic flight to Tel Aviv.
  • Transfer and check-in to your hotel in Tel Aviv.
  • Free evening and dinner on your own in Tel Aviv.

Overnight: Tel Aviv


DAY THIRTEEN: Friday
RETURN TO THE U.S.

  • Breakfast at your hotel.
  • Check out and departure.
  • Transfer to Ben Gurion International Airport for your flight to the U.S. (arrival on the same day).
  • Tour prices are per person in U.S. dollars. All hotel accommodations, motor coach transportation, special dinners, sightseeing, admissions, luggage handling and the services of local guides, drivers, and the Expedition Educator are included.
  • Hotel Accommodations: The tour price includes all hotel accommodations, in hotel rooms with private baths. Our standard is to provide the best available hotels while considering value. Although the level of the accommodations may differ slightly from hotel to hotel, we are committed to your comfort. Two-bed rooms are reserved in most hotels. Triples are two-bed rooms with a rollaway cot where available and are not recommended when considering the comfort of those in the room. King-size beds are not available in most hotels; what is considered king-size usually consists of two single beds pushed together and made up separately, but with one headboard. Some two-bed rooms may have two twin - not full- or queen-size - beds.
  • Meals are included as specified in the itinerary.
  • Expedition Educator: All trips are conducted by our Expedition Educators or local guides who remain with the group throughout the tour.
  • Gratuities Included: All gratuities for restaurant and hotel staff.
  • Luggage Responsibility: All tour packages allow one piece of luggage per person and one carry-on bag. Excess luggage will be subject to charge of up to $100 per piece. The Travel Agent and/or Tour Operator shall not be held responsible for any damage to or loss of luggage/personal items. All damage/loss must be reported at time of incident and documented in writing by local authorities for submission to your insurance company.
  • The Bar/Bat Ceremony will take place in Jerusalem (please note that the Southern Wall is closed on Saturday). The Bar/Bat ceremony is an experience which is shared by all the families who are participating on the trip. Once you have signed up for the trip, we will put you in touch with a Rabbi who will contact you about the details of the actual ceremony.






Not Included


  • Airfare to the tour departure point and from the tour ending point is not included. Airfare may be purchased from us for travel originating in the United States. Please see Flights tab in the right-side toolbar.
  • Personal Expenses: All personal expenses such as: laundry, valet service, cables, telephone calls and postage are not included.
  • Guide and Driver Gratuities:
    • 4 seater - $70  (i.e. 2 pax) - per day
    • 7 seater - $90 (i.e. 3-5 pax) - per day
    • 10 seater - $110 (i.e. 5-7 pax) - per day
    • 10-19 passengers: Guide $10, driver $5 - per participant per day
    • 20 passengers and more: Guide $8, driver $4 - per participant per day 


       

Additional Information


  • Airline Security Measures: In the U.S., you must provide identification in the form of a passport at the time of airport check-in for travel to international destinations. Your passport name must match the name on your tour reservation and airline ticket or you may be denied boarding.
  • If you are traveling from an airport outside the jurisdiction of the U.S, you will need to determine what travel documentation and identification is required for that particular airport.
  • Due to heightened security regulations, certain items such as a metal nail file, pocketknife, cigarette lighter or tweezers, and some liquid, gel, or aerosol items may not be permitted in your carry-on luggage. Please call your airline prior to departure to obtain current information on non-permissible carry-on items and recommended airport check-in times. You may also wish to visit the Transportation Security Administration website at www.tsa.gov to obtain more information on acceptable identity documentation and prohibited luggage items.
  • Holidays and Museum Closures - Museum visits and personal shopping time may be disrupted due to unforeseen circumstances or the many religious, state and local holidays locally observed in the destinations being visited.
  • Photography During Tours: We will occasionally use photographs taken by fellow guests or your trip director for promotional purposes. If you prefer that your photo not be used in any marketing activities, please notify us at the start of your tour.
 
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