Basic Itinerary
(As of 6-2-11)
Day One: Sunday, October 23, 2011 – Departure
Depart for Israel.
Day Two: Monday, October 24, 2011 – Arrival & Welcome
Arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport. Meet and assistance by our representative with welcome formalities.
Baruch HaBa - welcome!
You have landed at the modern Ben Gurion airport, but a 100 years ago you would have come by boat and docked in Jaffa. In the 1930’s Tel Aviv became the main port.
As you drive into Tel Aviv and feel the cosmopolitan nature of Tel Aviv, look around you.
During your time here you will connect with the ancient and modern history
Check in to your hotel.
Welcome Dinner at your hotel
Late night options – please go to your hospitality desk or concierge for options
Overnight: Tel Aviv
Day Three: Tuesday, October 25, 2011 – Tel Aviv – First Hebrew City (by lottery…)
Breakfast at the hotel followed by a speaker giving an overview of the political climate “the Mood of Israel”.
"Go under" at the Ayalon Institute in Rehovot, were a secret underground ammunition factory existed against the British Mandate's ruling.
Depart the hotel and visit the Palmach Museum, an experiential museum covering the Palmach legacy through the stories of individuals and groups.
Lunch on own whilst walking around the arts and crafts fair at Nachalat Binyamin.
If you were here a 100 years ago you would have gotten on a train to Syria, serving later as an IDF base, now one of Tel Aviv’s hottest spots for eating and shopping, go visit the “Tahana”. (Time permitting)
Return to hotel to freshen up.
Depart hotel for evening Cultural Event arranged together with the Tel Aviv/Los Angeles Partnership with a cocktail reception followed by welcome greetings from the the mayor of Tel Aviv and by a program featuring highlights of the Tel Aviv/Los Angeles Partnership’s master classes.
Shuttle buses to drop off at certain points around Tel Aviv for dinner on own.
Overnight: Tel Aviv
Day Four: Wednesday, October 26, 2011 – White City – World Heritage Site
Breakfast at the hotel.
Travel along the coast to Caesarea to see the latest archeological finds in this Roman town built by King Herod.
Lunch on your own at Zichron Ya'acov, one of the first Jewish settlements in the country founded by Baron Edmond De Rothschild and enjoy walking through the pedestrian through fare with its many shops and cafes.
Drive through Haifa and stop for a panoramic view. (Time permitting)
Continue north to Yemin Orde Youth Village. Cultivating their self esteem and building leadership through innovative educational and community outreach, Yemin Orde is home to more than 500 immigrant children who are disadvantaged or at risk.
Return to the Tel Aviv to your hotel to freshen up.
Enjoy dinner at one of Tel Aviv's restaurants and get a taste of the local dining scene. (Included)
Overnight: Tel Aviv
Day Five: Thursday, October 27, 2011 – Celebration on the way to Jerusalem
Breakfast at the hotel.
Check out of the hotel.
Drive straight to Jerusalem via the Jerusalem hills.
Stop at Tel Azeka located in the Elah Valley, where it's believed that David fought Goliath. Beneath the spot where you are standing are the ruins of a number of cities, whose histories span the period of the Prophets, from the early days of the Jewish settlement in Judea under the leadership of Joshua, to the final days of the First Temple
or Visit Yad LaShiryon, one of the most diverse tank museums and Israel's official memorial site of the IDF Armored Corpses'.
Sightseeing to include Old City, Jewish Quarter, Davidson Center.
Enter through the Jaffa Gate; walk along the rooftops for a sneak look into the daily life of the different communities co-existing in-between the walls of the Old City. Explore the Jewish Quarter to discover the layers of history beneath what you see today. Possible sites to visit are the Herodian Mansions (basements of 2,000 years ago), Broad Wall (defense against the Assyrians) or the Burnt House (a story created by artifacts found)
At the Davidson Museum layers are peeled away from the area of the Southern Wall of the Temple Mount to reveal Early Muslim, Byzantine and Second Temple Period structures. Stand in the area where Jews mingled before going up to the Temple to offer sacrifice.
Lunch included on this day.
Enjoy a special welcome to Jerusalem as a community saying the traditional Shehecheyanu blessing joined together by the Mayor of Jerusalem, Nir Barkat
Check in to your hotel to freshen up
Check out one of Jerusalem's neighborhoods or the Mamilla Shopping Arcade for dinner on your own.
Optional: Tower of David Museum – Night Spectacular, the walls of the Citadel serve as a stage for a night time show which is a celebration of sight and sound.
Overnight: Jerusalem
Day Six: Friday, October 28, 2011 – Memory and Renewal
Breakfast at the hotel.
Plant a tree- "If you are holding a sapling in hand and someone tells you, 'Come quickly, messiah has come', first finish planting the tree and then go to greet the messiah" (Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai, Avot D'Rabbi Natan, 31b).
Morning visit to Yad Vashem, Israel's National Holocaust Museum including:
- The Historical Museum
- The Avenue of the Righteous
- The Children’s Memorial
Visit the graves of Herzl and Rabin at Mt. Herzl, followed by a visit to the military cemetery.
In the afternoon enjoy the sites and smells and noises of Machaneh Yehuda Market on its busiest day of the week as Jerusalem prepares for Shabbat, followed by Lunch on your own.
Kabbalat Shabbat- Walk to the Kotel (Western Wall) and bring in the Shabbat with singing and dancing.
Shabbat dinner at the hotel with lone soldiers (who have immigrated to Israel without their families) and with students who are spending a year studying and volunteering in Israel with the NATIV program.
Overnight: Jerusalem
Day Seven: Saturday, October 29, 2011 – Shabbat in Jerusalem
Breakfast at hotel
Optional: Shabbat morning services
Optional tours:
· Visit to the newly renovated Israel museum, the largest museum in Israel, to see the Dead Sea Scrolls and the model of the Second Temple followed by free time to explore some of the many new exhibitions.
· Return to the Old City, for a tour of Mount Zion, Walk along the Ramparts and free time at the Bazaar.
· “Secrets of the Jerusalem Neighborhoods” Walk through the streets of Jerusalem, led by the poetry of Agnon and Amichai.
Shabbat lunch provided at hotel or Sephardi Center depending on walking tour followed by an afternoon study program at the Sephardi Center.
Ben Kodesh Lechol Havdallah – Centennial Mission Gathering overlooking Yemin Moshe
Dinner on your own and evening at leisure.
Overnight: Jerusalem
Day Eight: Sunday, October 30, 2011 – The Pioneering Spirit of the Negev
Breakfast at hotel
Depart the hotel for the south.
Visit one of the many Federation projects that the LA Federation has supported and see where your donations have made a difference!
Depart for an active digging experience at the Beit Guvrin archeological digging site. Come prepared for getting your hands dirty with sifting, pottery examination and an exciting crawl through the unexcavated cave system at Tel Maresha.
Lunch en route – felafel or picnic box.
Continue to the Hatzerim Air Force Museum and IDF base.
Afternoon and evening Mega event at Ashalim: The Ayalim Project combines University studies & Community Service and the vision of settling the land. Exciting presentation given by the students followed by a BBQ dinner, kumsitz and folk dancing and drummers circle workshops
Late return to Jerusalem
Overnight: Jerusalem
Day Nine: Monday, October 31, 2011
Breakfast at hotel
Descend to the Dead Sea via the Judean hills.
Ascend by cable car to visit Massada, King Herod’s historic hilltop fortress, which, following the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 BCE, became a base for a small band of Jewish zealots in revolt against the Romans. Although the rebels held their own, they were eventually overcome by siege, and according to historian Josephus, chose mass suicide over surrender. Explore the many archeological remains from the Roman and Byzantine eras.
Descend Massada by cable car and drive to Ein Bokek and enjoy a “float” in the Dead Sea suspended by the high concentration of salts and minerals followed by lunch at a Dead Sea Resort Hotel.
Return to Jerusalem.
Free time to freshen up.
Depart to ICC for Farewell Dinner Mega Event.
Closing speeches with dignitaries, (pending confirmation) followed by dinner with theme of Machane Yehuda Market
Continue to Ben Gurion airport for your international flight