Day 1, Sunday, May 21, 2017: BEGIN OUR JOURNEY

• Greeting and accompaniment for those on our recommended overnight flight, with Tour Leader Bill Cartiff
• Depart the United States on our overnight flight to Israel.

Day 2, Monday, May 22, 2017: ARRIVAL IN ISRAEL

• Afternoon arrival in Israel.
• Meet our incredible local guide extraordinaire, B.G. Beifield
• We check into our hotel.
• Welcome dinner this evening at Goshen Restaurant.

O/N Crowne Plaza, Tel Aviv 

Day 3, Tuesday, May 23, 2017: THE BEAUTY OF THE COAST

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• Check out of our hotel.
• Drive north to Caesarea, once the Roman capital of the region. See the excavations of the crusaders' city, the aqueduct and the outdoor Roman Theater that has been restored as a concert venue.
• Next we stop at Akko to see the Crusader fortress & El Jazzar Mosque, Israel's largest mosque outside of Jerusalem and the largest one among the mosques built in Israel during the Turkish period.
• Time permitting; we stop for a panoramic view from Mt. Carmel, including the Bahai Temple and Persian Gardens.
• Continue to our kibbutz in the Galilee.
• Tonight, we visit a Druze Village, where we will enjoy dinner and meet with the remarkable Naseba Keesh Smara as we learn about this unique community.

O/N Kibbutz Hagoshrim, Galilee

Day 4, Wednesday, May 24, 2017: NORTHERN ADVENTURES

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• Take in the views stretching far into Syria from atop Har Bental.
• Re-live the decisive tank battles of the 1973 war at the Oz 77 memorial, including the chance to view the powerful documentary film at nearby Kibbutz El Rom.
• Visit Ancient Katzrin including hands on activities such as an Olive Press demonstration or pita baking.
• Afternoon options:
   o Option 1: Return to our hotel to enjoy some time to relax OR
   o Option 2: We enjoy a rafting adventure along the Jordan River.
• Dinner at our kibbutz
• Later tonight we enjoy a nighttime jeep safari tour of the Golan Heights.

O/N Kibbutz Hagoshrim, Galilee

Day 5, Thursday, May 25, 2017: TO JERUSALEM

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• This morning we visit the mystical city of Safed, where we view the beautiful ancient synagogues and walk through the Artists Quarter.
• Drive south through the Jordan Valley Rift to Jerusalem.
• Visit Har Eitan Farm in the Judean Hills and meet Shai Seltzer. We taste award winning cheeses where his family founded the farm in 1974. Shai has been making goat cheese since 1980 and has participated, won awards and has sat on the panel of judges at international cheese exhibitions - Member of the Italian Academy of Cheese.
• Upon arrival in Jerusalem, we stop atop the Haas Promenade to recite a special “Sh'hekiyanu” blessing as we overlook the City of Gold.
• Dinner on own (“follow the leader” option will be available).
• OPTIONAL: This evening, we make a brief visit to the Western Wall, followed by an underground tour through the Western Wall (Rabbinical) Tunnels.

O/N Dan Panorama, Jerusalem

Day 6, Friday, May 26, 2017: UNDERSTANDING THE PAST

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• This morning we visit Yad Vashem, Israel's memorial to the Holocaust, where we view the many moving exhibitions, including the Hall of Names and the Avenue of the Righteous Among the Nations.
• At Mt. Herzl, we visit the gravesites of Theodore Herzl, Golda Meir and Yitzhak Rabin, and see the military cemetery, Israel's version of Arlington.
• Visit Machane Yehuda, Jerusalem's outdoor marketplace, filled with foods of every variety. Together we'll learn about Middle Eastern spices and tasting various foods as we participate in the “Shuk Bites” tasting experience.
• We greet Shabbat with the people of Jerusalem at the Western Wall.
• Shabbat dinner together this evening.

O/N Dan Panorama, Jerusalem

Day 7, Saturday, May 27, 2017: SHABBAT SHALOM!

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• This morning we invite you to attend services at one of Jerusalem's many synagogues, or…
• We enjoy a walking tour through history in the Old City, exploring the Jewish Quarter, Cardo Market and Christian Quarter.
• Lunch (on own) along the way.
• Free time. We suggest a visit (on own) to the Israel Museum, which recently completed a $100 Million renovation. See the Shrine of the Book, which houses the Dead Sea Scrolls and the miniature model of Jerusalem as it was during the Second Temple period, among other fascinating exhibits.
• Dinner on own (“follow the leader” option will be available).
• Tonight we will attend an Israeli cultural performance (Show and Time TBD)

O/N Dan Panorama, Jerusalem

Day 8, Sunday, May 28, 2017: MASADA & THE DEAD SEA

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• Early morning departure to King Herod's fortresses and castle atop Masada, ascending by cable car or snake path. Visit the remains of the walls, palaces, synagogue, and the bathhouses, learning about the Jewish Zealots last stand against the Roman forces.
• Enjoy lunch and an unsinkable swim in the healing salty waters of the Dead Sea, followed by time to relax at the beautiful Crowne Plaza Resort.
• For an authentic biblical desert experience, we enjoy a camel ride followed by dinner in a biblical desert tent at Kfar Ha Nakodim!
• Return to Jerusalem.

O/N Dan Panorama, Jerusalem

Day 9, Monday, May 29, 2017: TO TEL AVIV

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• Check out of our hotel.
• This morning, we meet former IDF Spokesman Josh Hantman for a political update, followed by a tour of the Knesset, Israel's parliament
• We travel to Beit Guvrin, where we participate in a “hands on” archaeological dig, allowing us the opportunity to unearth remnants from Israel's ancient past.
• Continue to our hotel in Tel Aviv for check in.
• Dinner on own (“follow the leader” option will be available).

O/N Crowne Plaza, Tel Aviv

Day 10, Tuesday, May 30, 2017: VIBRANT TEL AVIV

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• Full Day Option: Begin our day fulfilling the mitzvah of gleaning fruits or vegetables from the fields through Project Leket, an organization dedicated to feeding the needy in Israel. This will be a wonderful chance to give back to this country that has given us so much over these last few days.
• Discover the secret underground ammunition factory that played a pivotal role in Israel's fight for Independence at the Ayalon Institute.
OR
• Half Day Option: Enjoy a free morning to sleep in and relax.
• Afternoon departure to visit the Nachalat Binyamin pedestrian mall, with its restored buildings and sidewalk artists, and then to Shenkin Street, one of Israel's most avant-garde streets.
• Walk along Rothschild Blvd to get a sense of the White City architecture of Tel Aviv.
• Conclude our afternoon with a visit to Independence Hall where the establishment of the state of Israel was declared.
• Free time for dinner on own.
• Post dinner study session with a scholar from the famed Hartman Institute, tying tomorrow's Shavuot holiday to our experience here in Israel

O/N Crowne Plaza, Tel Aviv

Day 11, Wednesday, May 31, 2017: TEL AVIV

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• Full day Option: Enjoy a guided tour and workshop activity at the Israel Museum of Caricature in nearby Holon
• Half Day Option: Enjoy a free morning. This afternoon we stop at Rabin Square on our way to the Palmach Museum, where we “join up” with the paramilitary forces from before the foundation of the state.
• Free time this afternoon for last minute shopping or relaxation before our late afternoon check out.
• Farewell dinner together this evening at Derby Bar Restaurant.
• Transfer to Ben Gurion Airport for our flight back to the United States.

OR O/N Crowne Plaza, Tel Aviv for those continuing on the Eilat/Petra Extension

Day 12, Thursday, June 1, 2017: LAND HOME

• We arrive home, and start packing for our next Best-Day Adventure!

OR Extend your adventure with a trip to Eilat & Petra, Jordan. 
Note extension to Eilat/Petra will only be escorted by a Best-Day Adventures tour leader if over 10 people are registered. Otherwise, you will join a public tour.
 

CONTINUE ON AN
EILAT/PETRA, JORDAN EXTENSION

Day 12, Thursday, June 1, 2017: TO EILAT

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• Transfer to the airport for our flight to Eilat.
• Upon arrival, we are transferred to our hotel in Eilat.
• Enjoy a day of leisure in Eilat.

O/N Eilat

Day 13, Friday, June 2, 2017: PETRA - THE EIGHTH WONDER OF THE WORLD

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• We cross the border into Jordan and begin our full day tour of Petra, the Red Rose City. Explore the Nabatean City (as seen in Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade).
• Walk through the Siq and view the ancient temples.
• Discover the famous Treasury, the Roman Theater, and more at this, the Eighth Wonder of the World.
• Return to Israel and enjoy Shabbat dinner together.

(Jordanian Visa fee & processing in the amount of $69. Note border taxes are due in USD at the border crossing - currently $65 per person)
O/N Eilat

Day 14, Saturday, June 3, 2017: EXPLORE EILAT/DEPARTURE

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• Enjoy the day at leisure in Eilat - Optional on own activity suggestions include visiting the Underwater Aquarium, OR enjoying a barbecue lunch and snorkeling cruise on the Red Sea, OR just relaxing poolside or seaside.
• Night flight to Tel Aviv to connect with our flight back to the United States.

Day 15, Sunday, June 4, 2017: ARRIVE HOME

• We arrive home