Thursday, February 16

Depart U.S.A.

Friday, February 17 – Going up into the Land

• Early morning arrival in Israel to be met and assisted by your ITW representative (today’s program depends on arrival time).
• Visit the Palmach Museum in Ramat Aviv for a multimedia presentation about the elite underground organization that played a critical role in founding the State of Israel.
• Tour Old Jaffa, the ancient port city once known as Zion Gate from which Jonah tried to flee and where Solomon brought the Cedars of Lebanon on the way to Jerusalem. Today paintings and sculptures have been installed in its ancient alleys.
• Shehecheyanu/Welcome ceremony on top of ancient Tel Jaffa overlooking modern Tel Aviv
• Lunch on own and free time to explore the Nachalat Binyamin crafts fair and experience Tel Aviv’s young lively spirit. While there, check out the street food in the nearby Carmel Market and bohemian Sheinkin Street – All Three of these Tel Aviv icons meet at the “Magen David Junction”.
• Check in to the Dan Panorama Hotel or David Intercontinental Hotel on Tel Aviv’s Mediterranean Coast.
• Friday/Shabbat evening services at Neve Schechter, a local Masorti (Conservative) synagogue.
• Shabbat Welcome Dinner at hotel

Overnight: Dan Panorama Hotel or David Intercontinental Hotel, Tel Aviv

Shabbat/Saturday, February 18 – And on the Seventh Day…in Tel Aviv

• Shabbat morning services: To be determined with Rabbi Cohen.
• Traditional Shabbat Lunch at Hotel.
• Afternoon walking tour of historic “Little Tel Aviv” – Discover the quaint Neve Tzeddek neighborhood that gave birth to the “first Hebrew city in 2,000 years”, once home to Zionist cultural pioneers Eliezer Ben Yehuda, S. Y. Agnon and Nachum Gutman.
• Free time to stroll along beachside Promenade and watch the people of Tel Aviv play, folkdance and enjoy Shabbat afternoon by the sea.
• Havdalah with Rabbi Cohen
• Free evening
• Dinner on own

Overnight: Dan Panorama Hotel or David Intercontinental Hotel, Tel Aviv

Sunday, February 19 – Southern Exposure: Defense and Innovation in the Negev

Travel to the northern Negev.  Tour of Kibbutz Hatzerim – Producers of Israel’s famous drip irrigation systems to hear about kibbutz society and the changes it is facing in the 21st century.

• Lunch, Camel rides and explanation about Bedouin culture at Kfar Hanokdim.

• Travel to the Dead Sea region.
• Check-in to Herbert Samuel Hotel on the

Dead Sea Coast.
• Swim in the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth, at the hotel’s private beach. The hotel also has a fresh water pool and spa facilities. Massage and spa treatments available by prior reservation at own expense.

• Dinner at hotel.
• Overnight: Herbert Samuel Hotel, Dead Sea

Monday, February 20 – Masada and Ein Gedi

• Ascend Masada by cable car to tour the
ruins of Herod’s palace and the last outpost of Jewish independence 2,000 years ago: Discussion: Which Jewish Legacy – Masada or Yavne? Who were our ancestors? What decision did they make?

• Lunch at Kibbutz Ein Gedi Guest House
• Travel north through Jordan Valley to Beit Shean.
• Visit Maimonides Tomb in Tiberias to learn about the life and times of the medieval Jewish philosopher and his critical impact on Jewish thought.

• Boat ride on the Sea of Galilee followed by a lakeside dinner at Decks Restaurant.
• Check–in to the Ramot Resort Hotel  overlooking the Sea of Galilee. • Overnight: Ramot Resort Hotel

Tuesday, February 21 – The Mystical City of Tzfat and the Strategic Golan Heights

Tour mystical Tzfat’s old synagogues and picturesque alleyways. Tzfat was the cradle of Kabbalah (Jewish mysticism) in the 16th century. Judaism’s Friday night service, Kabbalat Shabbat, and the hymn Lecha Dodi originated in Tzfat at that time. Followed by free time to shop and explore on own.

• Lunch on own
• Tour of the strategic Golan Heights to visit bunkers where the Syrian army used to ‘look down’ at Israel below. Then look out from the peak of Mt. Bental to gain a special perspective on Israel’s complex geopolitics.

Please choose one of the following two delicious options. The group can split between parents and children for the following two tasting activities located next to each other on Kibbutz Ein Zivan.

• Chocolate making workshop at the De Karina Chocolate Factory.

• Wine tasting at the boutique Bahat Winery on nearby Kibbutz Ein Zivan.

• BBQ dinner with young Israeli soldiers who are giving some of the best years of their lives to the defense of Israel – Meet the Israeli army’s human side.

• Overnight: Ramot Resort Hotel

Wednesday, February 22 – Encountering the Roman World

Explore the ruins of Tzippori, the city where Rabbi Judah Hanasi sealed the Mishna. Discover remarkable ancient mosaic pavements, including Mona Lisa of the Galilee, Nile Flood Festival and Orpheus, who looks like King David (?). Then ponder why an ancient synagogue floor features a wheel of the zodiac.

• Lunch on own
• Tour the ruins of Caesarea, including its Roman Theater, Promontory Palace, Hippodrome and Amphitheater. ITC Touch: Learn about a rabbinic debate over Jews attending gladiator games.

• Travel to Jerusalem through the biblical Ayalon Valley, enroute hear about the struggle for the road to Jerusalem during Israel’s War of Independence.

• Check in to the Inbal Hotel in Jerusalem. • Free evening
• Dinner on own
• Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem

Thursday, February 23 – The Old City of Jerusalem: An Ancient Jewish Legacy
• Option: B’nai Mitzvah ceremony at the Masorti Kotel, the egalitarian section of the Western Wall near Robinson’s Arch (requires reservations in advance).

• Discover the archaeological story of the Western Wall and episodes from rabbinic texts while standing where Jewish pilgrims walked 2,000 years ago at Robinson’s Arch and the Southern Wall Excavations – See direct evidence of Jerusalem’s destruction by the Romans in 70 CE and hear about a remarkable discovery connected to the Channukah story.
• Walk through the Western Wall Tunnels to discover underground Jerusalem.
• Lunch on own in Jewish Quarter.
• Guided tour of Jewish Quarter including the Herodian Quarter, Hurva Synagogue, Cardo and Rooftop lookout followed by free time to shop and explore on own.

• Dinner on own
• Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem

Friday, February 24 – Holocaust, Remembrance and Continuity

Guided tour of Yad Vashem Israel’s national Holocaust memorial and museum, including the Historical Museum and Children’s Memorial. • Lunch on own
• Explore the bustling Machane Yehuda Market and take in a slice of local life as you see Jerusalemites prepare for Shabbat. See the picturesque Nachalaot neighborhoods along the way.

Friday evening/Erev Shabbat options:

• Join hundreds of other Jews from around
the world to Greet the Sabbath at the Western Wall. Option to pray together as a congregation at the “Egalitarian Kotel”, where men and women can pray together.

• OR: Attend Friday night services at a local Jerusalem synagogue.

• Festive Shabbat Dinner at hotel • Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem

Saturday/Shabbat, February 25 – And on the Seventh Day…in Jerusalem

Shabbat morning services – TBD with Rabbi Cohen.
• Traditional Shabbat Lunch at hotel
• Late afternoon walking tour to the historic Montefiore Windmill to discover the first neighborhood built outside the walls of the Old City. Then visit Ketef Hinom – A First Temple Period Jewish burial site where the oldest biblical text ever found was discovered.

• Havdalah with Rabbi Cohen
• Farewell dinner at Medita Restaurant
• Late Check-out
• Transfer to Ben Gurion Airport – See you again soon!

Sunday, February 26 – Arrive in U.S.A.

• Begin planning next Israel trip with Rabbi Cohen and ITW Tours!

Tour Package Includes: