Sample itinerary for a family trip – winter – incl. north

Activities:

• Arrival at Ben Gurion Airport - Your VIP agent will be waiting to greet you at the sleeve of the plane. After assisting with arrival procedures and collecting your baggage, you will be taken to meet your driver.

• Group Transfer to Jerusalem and check-in to your hotel

• Welcome Friday night dinner - Options: at the hotel dining room / Shabbat traditional meal at a local family / a local restaurant (meal and transfers are not included)

• Jerusalem - The David Citadel Hotel, Deluxe Rooms

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel - Every morning you'll enjoy a delicious buffet Israeli breakfast at your hotel.

• Tour of Masada - Ascend the mountain by cable car to explore Masada, a scene of the epic stand by Jewish rebels at the end of the Great Revolt against Rome nearly 2,000 years ago. The new museum at the Visitor Center reveals the secrets of the daily life of the rebels, the story of the excavations, and how the site became one of Israel’s most important symbols.

• Time to swim, float and get all covered with mud - Israel’s Dead Sea is the lowest point on earth, a stunning, other-worldly landscape of shimmering blue water ringed by bare, orange and yellow hills. The waters of the Dead Sea hold a potent solution of minerals and salts that have strong healing properties. Together with its ethereal beauty, these health-giving minerals make the Dead Sea’s beaches and spas popular vacation spots for Israelis and tourists alike. At one of the local spa hotels, have lunch and 'float' in the Dead Sea.

• Travel back to Jerusalem

• Dinner on your own - We will be happy to give restaurant recommendations and assist with making reservations.
  (meal and transfers aren't included)

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• B’nei Mitzvah tour with Yad Vashem's Twinning Program - Israel’s national Holocaust Museum presents a profoundly Jewish memorial of the Shoah. Tour the outside memorials to the darkest moment in world and Jewish history, its children’s memorial, and exquisite gardens. From its dramatic structure designed by world-renowned architect Moshe Safdie – and which cuts through the mountain in the form of a spike – to its powerful exhibits, such as the and the Children’s Memorial, The Garden of the Righteous Among the Nations, and Janusz Korczak memorial. Yad Vashem is an unforgettable place of tribute and remembrance. You'll be guided by a Yad Vashem staff member it will be a suitable tour for kids.

• Young kids track: Biblical Zoo OR Israel Aquarium - The guide will take the younger kids to a fun activity during the tour of Yad Vashem. They will then join the rest pf the family to the Bnei Mitzvah ceremony in Yad Vashem.

• Mount Herzl (Optional and time permitting) - As Israel’s national cemetery, Mount Herzl is the final resting place of leaders of Zionism and Israel, including Yitzhak Rabin and Herzl himself, and of thousands of soldiers killed defending the State of Israel. At Mount Herzl you will find a moving monument to the 28,000-odd soldiers and civilians killed in combat or by terrorism since the founding of the state.

• Tasting tour at Machane Yehuda Market - After a meaningful morning focusing on our past, we will head to the present and modern day. In the heart of Jerusalem, at a bustling multi-ethnic market bursting with life, enjoy the hustle and bustle with all the rich fragrances, colors, and sounds this iconic Jerusalem market offers. Truly fun for all ages.

• Enjoy the hotel facilities and relaxed evening

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Bnei Mitzvah ceremony in Ezrat Israel - Gather together to celebrate in front of the Western Wall, in The Egalitarian Kotel. (a Rabbi, donation, photographer etc. is not included)

• The Western Wall Tunnels Tour - For a better connection to where you celebrated your Bar and Bat Mitzvah, learn about the history and significant of the Western Wall and Temple Mount. Explore what’s under the Muslim Quarter through the Kotel Tunnels Tour. The greatness of the Kotel is truly discovered when you descend underground. The tunnels run along approximately 488 meters (1601ft) of the Western Wall, giving visitors a taste of the challenge that stood before Herod the Great during the biggest of all his immense building projects - the expansion of the Temple Mount.

• - OR - City of David and water tunnel - Take a trip back in time through the layers of Jerusalem’s past. It was on this hill where Jerusalem was built 4 millennia ago. Continuously excavated over the last 120 years, discoveries are regularly made. Tour the palace of King David, ritual purification pools, and the tour's highlight - a walk through water in Hezekiah’s Tunnel built to protect the water supply. Exit the site onto the magnificent road where the Jewish pilgrims walked, over 2,000 years ago. Get your flashlights ready!

• Time to reflect at the Western Wall - Proceed to the Kotel, sacred because it is one of the last remnants of the Second Temple that was destroyed by the Romans. Feel the stones that have witnessed so much in the history of the Jews. Place your special and personal prayer in the cracks of the stones.

• Authentic lunch at the Arab Market including tastings along the tour - Browse in the famous Arab shuk (market) in the Muslim Quarter. Check out the local hummus and sweets, the many stalls selling spices, pastries, pottery, sheepskin, embroidered clothes, and so much more. Meet store owners whose stores have been in their family for generations.

• Tour of the Jewish Quarter - See archaeological finds from the First and Second Temple periods, Roman ruins, vibrant synagogues, and learning institutions, all jostling for space in these busy stone streets. Please note: on Shabbat stores and galleries in the Jewish Quarter will be closed.

• Conclude your Old City tour with a magnificent lookout from the Tower of David Museum - Enjoy a bird's-eye view of the Old and New Cities, as an introduction to your day and the places you will be visiting.

• Desert Biblical Experience at Genesis Land - Situated in the heart of the Judean desert, in the land where the Patriarchs lived. A magical place, it enables visitors to experience life as it was in biblical times. Ride by camel to desert hospitality in the style of Abraham and Sarah and enjoy a delicious desert meal.

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel & check-out

• Travel north to the Galilee

• Knafeh Workshop at Havat Rom - Goat cheese and organic farm - A visit to a pastoral organic farm, located on a mountain with a beautiful view of Meron Mountain. This is an agricultural organic farm, where they use ancient knowledge along with modern tools. Here they try to find the balance between humans and nature. Tour the farm, meet the goats, and enjoy a tasty and fun Knafeh workshop.

• Rappelling Adventure - For a real thrill slide down Dalton Cliff while enjoying the views of the Hula Valley.
  for a real thrill slide down Dalton Cliff while enjoying the views of the Hula Valley. Young kids can tandem rappel.

• Check-in to your hotel & have dinner in the dining room - (meal included)

• North - Pastoral Kfar Blum - Boutique Garden Rooms

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• IDF Military Activity - A taste of the life of a soldier. Experience the combat soldiers' training, and connect to the idea of Army of Defense for Israel. You will be challenged and try Krav Maga training, shooting range, infantry combat, building break-ins and more. You will be trained by active reservists combat IDF soldiers from the most elite army units.

• Sweet stop a chocolate boutique factory - A local business in Kibbutz Ein Zivan in the Golan Heights a must-stop visit for chocolate lovers. Established in 2003 by Karina Chaplinski, a 3rd generation of chocolatiers from Argentina, De Karina specializes in hand crafted chocolate delicacies. Taste some of the finest chocolate in Israel and a hot chocolate drink or coffee.

• Picnic lunch - (meal included)

• Fun and interesting Jeep tour including a meeting with IDF soldiers - Take a geo-political tour in Upper Galilee with an expert local guide. A journey behind the scenes, a look at life on the Lebanese border, "living an ordinary life under threat.". You also will have the unique and rare opportunity to meet with IDF combat soldiers, who are guarding the nearby Lebanese border. This unique tour will give you a better understanding of the conflict, the lives of the soldiers protecting our land, and everyday life at the border from an up close and personal perspective. While riding on the jeep, drive through breath-taking panoramic views of the Golan Heights, Hula Valley, and Mount Hermon.

• Family Thanksgiving Dinner - Home hospitality and authentic meal - Meet chef Ali Katib in the only Alawite town in Israel, originally a Syrian village. Entry used to be restricted to residents only or those with special permits, but that changed recently when Israel lifted the restrictions. Hear about the town's complex, yet interesting story, have delicious meal at the home of Ali's mother, and taste the special Alawite cuisine. (Meal is included.)

• North

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel & check-out

• A visit to Central Galilee Partnership - Program TBC.

• Exciting ATV self-driving ride in the pastoral Gilboa Mountain - Explore the Gilboa area with its scenic views, fresh air and excellent routes, and varied terrain . You'll be in the driver's seat!

• Drive to Tel Aviv & check-in to your hotel

• Optional: Guided bike tour along Tel Aviv beach promenade - A bike tour is the greatest way to get an introduction to Tel Aviv, its sights, views, history and contemporary culture. Ride around Tel Aviv's bike paths with a local guide on an electrical or regular bike.(not included)

• Dinner at a local restaurant - We'll be happy to give you restaurant recommendations in Tel Aviv and assist with booking (on your own, meal and transfers are not included)

• Tel Aviv - The David Kempinski - Deluxe Horizon Rooms

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Begin with a visit to the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation - The Peres Center for Peace and Innovation is a leading non-profit and non-governmental organization focused on developing and implementing unique and cutting-edge programs. The center presents the incredible story of Israel, the "innovation nation", and showcases the diverse fields and people behind Israeli innovation.

• Lunch and tastings at the Carmel Market - Shuk HaCarmel, is the largest market in Tel Aviv. Touring the market reveals the taste of the ages of Tel Aviv in the youthful atmosphere felt here. The Polish, the Persian, and the Yemeni...in this case, it is not the opening line of a joke, but the fascinating culinary traditions that mix in this place. Founded over 90 years ago, discover the many secret, stories, and legends of this culinary destination. Enjoy tastes of the market throughout the tour.

• Time to explore Nahalat Binyamin Arts and Crafts Market - An open-air market in the heart of Tel-Aviv that has become synonymous with quality Israeli crafts and folk art. The market is comprised of over 100 stands representing specialty crafts and folk art in virtually every medium imaginable: wood, stone, sand, glass, ceramics, and various metals with most if not all containing materials or themes found only in Israel.

• Suggested: join a local community for a Friday night Kabbalat Shabbat service

• Friday night Shabbat dinner at a local restaurant - (on your own, meal and transfers are not included)

• Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Ayalon Institute Bullet Factory - This clandestine ammunition factory was built in 1945 by the Haganah. In just three weeks, preparations for the factory were completed and it was code-named the Ayalon Institute. Above ground, it appeared to be no more than a kibbutz. However, located eight meters below ground, this was the country's largest bullet factory. It has been said that the bullets manufactured at the Ayalon Institute played a crucial role in the success of the War of Independence.

• Jaffa Flea Market - lunch and shop - Wind your way through the Flea Market which features everything from antiques to hip new clothing and design stores, cafes, restaurants, and bars.

• Tour of the picturesque Old Jaffa - One of the most ancient port cities in Israel and the Mediterranean basin. Today, Jaffa is a mixed city, where Jews and Arabs live alongside each other. Tel Aviv, Jaffa's younger sister, was established centuries later, in the year 1909. Though the two were united into one municipality in 1949, each part has retained its unique feel and atmosphere. Jaffa has been regenerated in recent years with the old narrow streets and courtyards becoming a highly popular part of Tel Aviv’s urban tapestry.

• Conclude your day with a fun Graffiti tour and workshop - Tour the dynamic neighborhood of Florentine, Tel Aviv’s most bohemian and upbeat neighborhood and learn about contemporary Israeli culture through the writing on the wall, graffiti, bumper stickers and even painted garbage bins. In recent years Tel Aviv has become Israel's capital of urban art. Take part in an interactive fun graffiti workshop, where you'll make something on your own and take it with back home.

• Farewell dinner at a local restaurant - (meal and transfer are not included)

• Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel & check-out

• Private transfer from your hotel to Ben Gurion Airport

• Meet your VIP assistant and go through a fast track check-in procedures

• Fly back home - We look forward to hosting you again in our beautiful country!