Lehigh Valley Families Trip | June 2024

Activities:

• Bruchim Ha'Baim! - Arrival at Ben Gurion airport. Upon arrival, collect your baggage, and with your group, head to meet your guide and driver.

• Travel to Neot Kedumim and experience sheepherding! (including lunch) - Neot Kedumim, the Biblical Landscape Reserve in Israel, is a unique endeavor to re-create the physical setting of the Bible in all its depth and detail. Try your hand at shepherding a small herd of sheep and goats. Understand why many Biblical leaders, including Moses and David led animals before leading people.

• Shehechiyanu at Haas Promenade - From the Haas Promenade take in a wide view of Jerusalem's Old and New Cities and the surrounding Judean Desert as far as the eye can see. Gather with your guide to meet and say Shehechiyanu to bless the beginning of your journey together in Israel!

• Check in to hotel - And prepare for dinner

• Welcome and Shabbat dinner

• Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Start with the Ramparts Walk - Discover the Old City on the Rampart Walls which were built in the 16th century for patrolling by the Ottomans. Today you can enjoy a bird's-eye view of the Old City and the surroundings.

• Jewish Quarter - The Jewish Quarter is best known for the Western Wall, but there’s a lot more to see and do here. 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.

• Walk through the Muslim and Christian Quarters - Check out the local sweets and many stalls that sell spices, pastries, pottery, sheepskin, embroidered clothes and so much more. Meet store-owners whose stores have been in their family for generations. The Christian Quarter is home to a rich tapestry of Christians of many denominations featuring the historic and impressive Church of the Holy Sepulcher.

• Picnic lunch at Teddy Park - Enjoy a picnic lunch at Teddy Park, named after the late Mayor of Jerusalem, Teddy Kollek. One of the main attractions of Teddy Park is its unique water fountain display. The fountain is composed of hundreds of jets that create patterns and synchronized water movements, accompanied by music and lighting effects.

• Continue on a walking tour in Yemin Moshe - Yemin Moshe, located just outside Jerusalem's Old City, was established in 1891 with the financial support of British Jewish banker Moses Montefiore. It was built as a solution to the overcrowding and unsanitary conditions inside the Old City walls. The original houses were built with a wall around them and a gate that was locked at night. Montefiore left an indelible mark on the Jerusalem landscape by building the landmark Montefiore Windmill in Yemin Moshe. Walk through this special neighborhood.

• Return to hotel to rest

• Usher out Shabbat with Havdalah outside in the rich air of Jerusalem.

• Dinner on your own and night out

• Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem - Inbal Hotel

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Masada National Park - Ascend the mountain from the east to explore Masada, 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.

• Dead Sea Resort for swim and lunch - 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 hotels, have lunch and 'swim' in the Dead Sea.

• Time permitting: short hike at Ein Gedi Nature Reserve - This beautiful nature reserve features Nahal David, a spectacular water hike for all ages. Trails in a range of levels of difficulty take you alongside and through the cool, fresh waters of Nahal David, down waterfalls, along jaw-dropping canyons, and past caves. If you’re both quiet and lucky, you might even glimpse the sure-footed ibex and other local animals.

• Drummer's Circle and Biblical Dinner - Genesis Land is situated in the heart of the Judean desert, on the way to the Dead Sea, 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.

• Return to Jerusalem

• Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast and check out of the hotel

• Travel north for a Druze cooking workshop and lunch - Together with your hosts in their private home, prepare traditional Druze Galilean dishes and then enjoy a dinner of the foods you create. Learn about Druze culture and history from your hosts and from the food you eat.

• Off-Road ATV tour - Explore the Carmel Mountain area with its scenic views, fresh air and excellent routes, and varied terrain . You'll be in the driver's seat!

• Travel to your hotel and check in - Dinner at hotel

• Pastoral Kfar Blum Hotel

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Archeological dig at Umm al-Kanatir - Also known as Ein Keshatot, this site was home to a Jewish village from the Period of the Mishna and Talmud, with a magnificent synagogue in its center. Enter a synagogue that features the original Ark Complex – the most preserved and magnificent ever to be discovered in Israel. The synagogue was excavated and reconstructed with advanced technological methods, and today it stands at a height of one story. The Ein Keshatot site also offers a visit to the village spring, which flows into ancient pools, surrounded by shaded areas.

• Lunch on own and short tour at Zichron Yaakov - Established in December 1882, Zichron Ya'akov was one of the first modern Jewish communities in the country. Due to the massive support of Baron de Rothchild the town was soon named after Rothchild's father (Zichron Yaakov - "in memory of Jacob") and became known for its fine wine cellars, which produce high-quality vintages to this day. The town is also famous as the center of the NILI spy ring, organized by Jews to aid the British in ousting the Turks at the beginning of the 20th century. Tour the town to learn its history and enjoy its charming, shop-lined streets.

• Continue to Tel Aviv and check in to hotel

• Enjoy some downtime by the beach or the hotel's poolside

• Return to hotel - And dinner at hotel

• Tel Aviv

• David Intercontinental, Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Enjoy some downtime by the beach or the hotel's poolside

• Explore Tel Aviv with the guide or on your own, here are some suggested activities:

• Option 1: The White City - Walking tour with your guide - Explore Lev Ha'ir, the Heart of the City, where the first roots of Tel Aviv were planted in 1909. Lev Hair contains some of Tel Aviv’s most beautiful buildings, being at the center of the UNESCO designated “White City” known for its Bauhaus, Eclectic, and International Style architecture. The area is densely populated, rooted in history, and with a glance towards the future with impressive skyscrapers, and a high concentration of start-up companies. Bordered by Habima Theater in the north and Florentin and Neve Tzedek in the south, Lev Ha’ir is a gateway to almost every district in the city. Lev Ha'ir is a cultural hub, filled with galleries, restaurants and parks.

• Option 2: Graffiti Workshop (with extra cost) - 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.

• Option 3: Tel Avivian Shavu'ot Celebration - Options will be advertised closer to the trip's date

• Dinner on your own and night out

• David Intercontinental, Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast and check out of the hotel

• Visit Ayalon Institute - A clandestine ammunitions factory 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.

• Levinsky Market Tasting Tour - The Levinsky Market specializes in spices and Mediterranean delicacies. It is, in many ways, the best market in Tel Aviv, known for its variety, freshness, and special atmosphere. Whether you are looking for a rare Indian spice or some good quality saffron - this is the place. Shops offer a cornucopia of excellent cheeses, smoked fish, wines, and other delicacies. Tour the market and have "tastings" throughout.

• Time at leisure to relax, pack or last shopping

• Farewell dinner in a private room in Tel Aviv

• Farewell! Transfer to Ben Gurion International Airport - Or continue on a South Extension!