Temple Emunah Israel 2026

• Depart U.S.A to Israel.

• Arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport, with assistance from a Makor Educational Journeys representative.
• Drive into Tel Aviv.
• From the Four Corners of the Earth, stop at the Jaffa Overlook for an introduction to Israel and the city of Tel Aviv.
• Check in to the hotel.
• Opening program at Charles Clore Park on the shores of the Mediterranean.
• Festive Opening Dinner at the hotel or at a Tel Aviv restaurant.

• Meditation/Tefilah
• Breakfast at the hotel.

Option 1 – The Western Negev: The Legacy of October 7

• Depart for the Western Negev and begin with a briefing overlooking Gaza.
• Continue to Sderot, which has become a symbol of Israel’ s longstanding conflict with Hamas – drive through the town, stopping at the once famous police station, which was demolished in the aftermath of the attack and replaced with a memorial.
• Lunch in Sderot.
• Drive to the site of the Nova Festival, located next to Kibbutz Reim, where close to 400 people were killed and many were taken hostage on October 7, 2023.
• Visit one of the Kibbutzim or Moshavim that was brutally attacked on October 7th.
• Continue to the Tekuma Car Cemetery, where many of the destroyed vehicles from October 7 are located.

Option 2 – The Western Negev: Building Israel’s Future (Recommended for youth)

• Drive to the Western Negev and visit Shvil Hasalat – The Salad Trail, for a full desert hydroponic agricultural experience, wrapped in fun and creativity.
• Visit Osi’s House, a private home in the town of Ofakim, for home hospitality lunch and a glimpse into life in Ofakim and the Western Negev.
• Visit the Weizmann Institute of Science for a glimpse at some of the cool and cutting edge technology about to be transferred from  research labs to the market.

Entire Group

• Return to Tel Aviv.
• Dinner on own followed by free time for personal exploration.

• Optional early morning run, yoga class or bike ride along the Tel Aviv Promenade.
• Breakfast at the hotel
• Drive to Glilot and visit the Israel Intelligence and Heritage and Commemoration Center for a glimpse into the world of Israel’s shadow wars and a briefing by a former official of Israel’s intelligence community.
• Tel Aviv Graffiti Experience in the Florentine Neighborhood, for a look at Israel under the surface, including a guided tour through some of the city’s iconic and newest graffiti, concluding with a graffiti workshop.
• Tasting Tour of businesses owned and managed by reservists while meeting people who dedicate themselves to Israeli society, with lunch.
• Free time for personal exploration and a visit to the Nachalat Binyamin Arts and Crafts Fair.
• Optional Beginners Surfing Class – appropriate for all ages.
• Shabbat candle lighting at 6:49 pm with group photo.
• Kabbalat Shabbat at the Shechter Center Synagogue in Neve Zedek, with Rabbi Roberto Arbiv.
• Festive Shabbat Dinner at the hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Creative Shabbat morning Tefilah overlooking the Mediterranean, followed by Kiddush.
• Optional morning walking tour to Jaffa, with parallel youth activities.
• Festive Shabbat lunch at the hotel.
• Free time.
• Optional afternoon walking tour through Neve Zedek, in the footsteps of Agnon and Shlush, with parallel youth activities.

Additional Afternoon Activities 

• • Temple Emunah Tel Aviv Sports Challenge in the Charles Clore Park.
  • Shabbat Friendly Creative Poetry Workshop
• Late afternoon learning session with Rabbi Lerner and Me’ir Sherer.
• Seudah Shlishit.
• Havdalah at 7:48 pm.
• Free evening in Tel Aviv.

• Breakfast at the hotel and check out.
• Depart for Northern Israel.
• Visit the recently opened National Park of Sussita (Hippos) on a hill on the slopes of the Golan Heights and discover impressive finds from the Roman-Byzantine periods and enjoy a scenic site with views of the Sea of Galilee and the Lower Galilee.
• Drive to Yesod Hamaalah.
• Lunch at the home or farm of Gadi Elias.
• Depart for the Ramim Ridge for a glimpse into the rebuilding efforts in Israel and a view into Southern Lebanon, with the new geopolitical reality resulting from the October 7^th
• Conclude the afternoon in Safed with a special musical -mystical tour through the city.
• Drive to Haifa and check in to the Dan Panorama Hotel.
• Dinner at the hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel and check out.
• Full morning partnership program with the Boston Haifa Connection.
• Depart Haifa after lunch.
• Stop at Zichron Yaakov.
• Visit the newly renovated Aaronson House, which tells the story of the World War I Jewish spies who helped the British in their conquest over the Ottoman Empire.
• Free time on the Zichron Yaakov Promenade.
• Early dinner en route or box dinners.
• Take part in the – MASA Israel – Israel Memorial Day Ceremony at Latrun, beginning with the One Minute Memorial Siren.
• Drive to Jerusalem.
• Check in to the hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Meditation/Tefilah.
• Building with Memory, a conversation with a bereaved family member involved in a project memorializing their loved one with parallel programming for youth.
• Depart Jerusalem for the Burma Road.
• Stand on the side of the road during the Two Minute Memorial Siren.
• Jeep Ride in the footsteps of the liberators of Jerusalem during Israel’s War of Independence.
• Lunch on your own in Beit Shemesh.
• Return to
• Free time as the country prepares for Yom Haatzmaut.
• Take part in a Yom Hazikaron-Yom Haatzmaut Havdalla/Transition Ceremony, in Jerusalem.
• Enjoy the celebrations of Israel’s 78^th Birthday on the streets of Jerusalem, with dinner on your own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Tefilat Shaharit and B’nai Mitzvah service at the Egalitarian Kotel – Robinson’s Arch, followed by a guided visit through the Davidson Archaeological Garden, led by the B’nai Mitzvah.
• Stop at the Kotel (Western Wall) for a reflection by Rabbi Lerner, followed by time for meditation and prayer.
• Guided visit through the Western Wall Tunnel, including the yet unopened Roman Theater that was covered for almost 2000 years.
• Depart for a secluded forest spot for a Yom Haatzmaut BBQ, possibly with invited guests.
• Return to the hotel.
• Free evening with dinner on your own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Meditation/Tefilah.

OPTION I – The Dead Sea and Masada

• Ascend Masada (by cable car or the snake path), once Herod’s Mountain Fortress and later a stronghold of Jewish Zealots who fought the Romans 2000 years ago, for an exploration of its meaning in modern Israel, as well as some of the outstanding efforts in recent years to renew the Roman mosaics and frescos, with a historo-drama by the youth and children.
• Descend Masada and drive to Ein Bokek for an opportunity to float in the Dead Sea and use the spa facilities, with
• On the way back to Jerusalem, stop at Eretz Beresheet (Genesis Land), with the mountains of Jordan as the backdrop, and be invited into Abraham’s tent for a chance to “catch up,” followed by a camel ride through the desert.

OPTION II – Living with the Other

• Geopolitical drive around the borders of Jerusalem.
• Become an archaeologist for a day and take part in the ongoing dig at Beit Guvrin, where hundreds of caves that served as storerooms, burial crypts and safe havens dating back to the time of the Phoenicians.
• Lunch en route.
• Looking Forward: Visit the Jerusalem YMCA and and meet with representatives of the Parents Circle Family Forum, a joint Israeli-Palestinian organization of over 700 families, all of whom have lost an immediate family member to the ongoing conflict.
• Continue with a musical workshop with the Jewish-Christian-Muslim Youth Chorus workshop.

ALL

• Return to the hotel with free time for rest and relaxation.

• Depart for an evening in the area of the Machane Yehudah Open Air Market, dividing up into four group dinners at Market area restaurants, followed by free time in the Market at Jerusalemites prepare for Shabbat and the weekend.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Meditation/Tefilah.
• The Memory of the Holocaust in contemporary State of Israel, dialogue with Rachel Korazim, with parallel programming for youth.
• Visit Yad Vashem, the national memorial to the six million Jews killed in the Holocaust, including the Avenue of the Righteous, with parallel programming for adults and youth, as well as an opportunity for return visitors to visit the Archives, Art Museum, Room of Great Questions and Not Childs Play.

Optional program for returnees:

Visit the Israel Museum, with a great model of Jerusalem during the Second Temple period, and the Shrine of the Book, housing the Dead Sea scrolls.

Children: Special program at the Israel Museum Youth Wing.

• Guided tour of the new National Library, including its rare historic manuscript exhibition, which includes handwritten texts by Maimonides and Agnon.
• Return to the hotel for Shabbat preparations.
• Shabbat candle lighting at 6:34 p.m.
• Kabbalat Shabbat overlooking the Kotel in the Old City (possibly Culinarium).
• Shabbat dinner at the hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Shabbat morning services.
• Lunch at the hotel.
• Depart for the Old City of Jerusalem for a guided walk from Jaffa Gate along the rooftops of the Old City for a bird’s eye view of the Temple Mount and continue into the Jewish Quarter for a scavenger hunt through Hurva Square, exploring Jewish life 2000 years ago and today, followed by an optional tour of the Christian Quarter.

 ADDITIONAL ADULT OPTIONS:

• Agnon in Jerusalem – Walk through the streets of central Jerusalem, using the writings of Shmuel Yosef Agnon, Israel’s first Nobel Laureate as a guide, exploring the Jerusalem of over 100 years ago, its differences and similarities to today.
• The Poet and the Windmill – Guided walk through Yemin Moshe with the poetry of Yehudah Amichai.
• The Israel Museum – Visit the Israel Museum, its model of Jerusalem during the days of the Second Temple and the Dead Sea Scrolls, followed by an opportunity to visit the Jewish Life and Living, Archaeology, Israeli Art and Design exhibits and much more.
• The German Colony of Jerusalem – Walk through the German Colony, built by the German Templars in the late 1800’s, with their unique buildings and stories that have become part of Jerusalem’s lore.
• Christian Jerusalem – Guided visit through the Christian Quarter, including part of the Via Dolorosa and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
• Guided walk to the Hill of Mistaken Identities, where nothing is what it seems – at Mount Zion.

 YOUTH OPTION

• Shabbat treasure hunt in the Old City.

EVERYONE

• Free time for rest and relaxation.
• Seudat Shlishit at the hotel.
• Concluding program and sharing: What this Experience has Meant to Me.
• Havdallah overlooking the Old City (7:59 pm).
• Depart for Ben Gurion Airport.

Program is subject to change, pending confirmations.