Temple Beth El of Riverside & Beth Chaverim Reform Congregation

• Arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport with special group arrival procedures with a representative of IGT/Makor.
• Drive through the Ayalon Valley to Tel Aviv.
• Bruchim HaBaim –ברוכים הבאים – Welcome  Ceremony at the Jaffa Overlook on the arrival shores of Israel and hear the story of Jaffa from the time of Jonah the Prophet until the great return to the land of Israel that happened at this beach starting in 1881.
• Check in to Leonardo Art Tel Aviv Hotel.
• Festive Welcome Dinner at a Tel Aviv Yemenite restaurant.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Walking Tel Aviv: Neve Tzedek, Nahalat Binyamin Pedestrian Mall and Arts & Crafts Fair, and the Carmel Market, with lunch at the Carmel Market or the Levinsky Market.
• Visit Rabin Square and the memorial to one of Israel’s greatest leaders.
• Visit the Ilana Goor Museum in Jaffa, located in a structure that once served as a seaside inn for pilgrims seeking shelter on their way to Jerusalem and today serves as the home/museum of Ilana Goor, internationally renowned artist, designer and sculptress.
• Optional bike tour of Tel Aviv (pending min. # of sign-ups).
• Return to hotel for rest and relaxation and free time to take in the beach, promenade and port of Tel Aviv.
• Free evening and dinner on your own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Guided visit to the Palmach Museum, an interactive experience showing the trials and triumphs of the pre-state elite fighting unit, which was so important to the founding of the state and the formation of the Israel Defense Forces.
• Depart Tel Aviv for northern Israel.
• Drive along the coasal road to Caesarea.
• Guided visit through Caesarea, one of the most important cities in the Land of Israel during the Roman Period, and explore the Roman Theater and Hippodrome and walk along the beach promenade past the Roman Palace and Bath House, to the Crusader Port city.
• Drive to Rosh Hanikra.
• Ride the cable car at Rosh Hanikra for an opportunity to walk through the naturally-hewn grottos on the shores of the Mediterranean.
• Continue to Kibbutz Merom Golan.
• Check in to the hotel.
• Dinner at the hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Drive across the Golan Plateau to Bental, with an overlook into Syria for an up-to-date briefing on the delicate relationship between Israel and Syria, and visit with IDF soldiers guarding the border, including guided visit through some of the historic locations where the Six Day War and the Yom Kippur War were fought.
• Guided visit through the magical city of Safed, its alleyways and synagogues, using the stories of the mystics as a guide, followed by a meeting with Kabbalistic artist Avraham Lowenthal.
• Return to the hotel for rest and relaxaiton.
• Dinner at the hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Nature walk through the Tel Dan Reserve, along the Dan River, concluding at Tel Dan itself, one of Israel’s most significant Biblical sites and considered by many to be the premier archaeological site in the land of Israel.
• On the way to Jerusalem stop at Qasr El Yahud, considered by Christians as the possible site of Jesus’ baptism by John the Baptist and by Jews as the possible site where Joshua led the people crossing into the land of Israel.
• Introductory visit to the Old City of Jerusalem, walking from Jaffa Gate along the rooftops of the Old City to the Kotel (Western Wall), for a glimpse of the extraordinarily diverse make-up of the city.
• Rabbi Suzanne Singer offers a reflection prior to giving everyone time to take in this place and this moment.
• Check in to the hotel.
• Enjoy free time as you prepare for Shabbat.
• Kabbalat Shabbat at one of Jerusalem’s synagogues or at the Kotel, followed by a festive Shabbat Dinner at the hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Choice of free time, synagogue hopping, attending sevices in one of Jerusalem’s synagogues, or a walking tour with Rabbi Singer of some of her favorite neighborhoods in Jerusalem.
• Free time, with an option to visit to the Israel Museum or explore the Old City.
• Late afternoon home hospitality at the home of Rabbi Bill and Batya Berk, with light refreshments, Havdallah, and stories about Jerusalem and Shabbat.
• Dinner on your own.

• Breakfast at the hotel, including a text study session, led by Rabbi Sapowith.
• Drive to the Dead Sea Basin and ascend Masada by foot up the Snake Path or via cable car and begin a guided visit of this ancient fortress and exploration of some of the questions the Masada story raises vis-à-vis Jewish life today.
• Stop at a Dead Sea hotel, with an opportunity to float in the Dead Sea and relax at the spa and pool, followed by lunch.
• Continue to the Ein Gedi Nature Reserve and walk through the Nahal David desert oasis to the Ein Gedi waterfall and, with Bible in hand, read about King David, who spent a lot of time at this spot, and listen to his poetry.
• Return to Jerusalem.
• Dinner on own, followed by a free evening.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Guided walk through the Jewish Quarter, including the Western Wall Tunnel and another opportunity to experience the Kotel (Western Wall), with the tour concluding on Mt. Zion.
• Meet Rabbi Noa Sattath, a leader of IRAC (Israel Religious Action Center) for an update on recent struggles for pluralism in the State of Israel.
• Dinner on your own, followed by the Jerusalem Night Spectacular sound and light show at the David Citadel Museum.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Visit Yad Vashem World Holocaust Rememberance Center, including the Avenue of the Righteous.
• Concluding memorial service and chance to process the experience.
• The Art of Jerusalem, visit the Ein Kerem neighborhood for a glimpse into one of Jerusalem’s most quaint areas, including visits with artists in the neighborhood and the historic sights in the hometown of John the Baptist.
• Lunch en route.
• Drive to the Jerusalem Hills and the Castel Winery for a tour and wine tasting at one of the area’s most beautiful wineries.
• Return to Jerusalem.
• Free time and dinner on your own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Meet with Rabbi Levi Weiman-Kelman, President of Rabbis for Human Rights.
• A guided walk around the neighborhood of Rehavia, using the untold stories of Zionist leaders, their hopes and loves, their triumphs and tragedies, including personalities such as Yitzhak and Rachel Yanait Ben Zvi, Menahem Usisshkin, Golda Meir and her Kitchen Table Forum, Rachel the Poet, and David Ben Gurion as head of the “State in the Making.”
• Guided tour through Israel’s most famous outdoor market, Machaneh Yehudah, followed by lunch in the market.
• Walking tour of Israel’s most pluralistic neighborhood, Nachlaot, across the street from Machaneh Yehudah.
• Summation discussion at the Haas Promenade, overlooking the Old City.
• Festive Farewell Dinner at Olive and Fish restaurant
• Depart for Ben Gurion Airport.

*Program is subject to change.