English

Yom Ha'Atzmaut: From Dream to Reality
Led by Carol Rosenthal
April 8-18, 2021

Tour Rates & Dates:

There are no Departure Dates available for this Package.
*Please note that all rates displayed are based on standard room double occupancy.
All rates above are in US Dollars, and are based on full payment by credit card unless otherwise noted.
If check payment discount is available for this tour, it can be selected after clicking "BOOK" above.
(Deposit can still be paid by credit card). Upgraded room categories may be available to book later in the booking process.
If Land & Air price is displayed, the air portion includes tax and fuel surcharges, which are subject to change until ticketed.

Super Early Bird Discount:
Save $600 per person if registered by February 8, 2021!
(Discount applied after clicking "book" above)

Group flights coming soon.

Tour Overview:

INCLUDED IN THE MAIN TOUR:

4 nights Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
4 nights Dan Hotel , Tel Aviv
All touring and sightseeing in a deluxe air-conditioned vehicle with an expert English-speaking guide
Breakfast daily
5 dinners, including Shabbat welcome & farewell dinners
Salad trail visit with lunch
Meeting with Jerusalem Post correspondent, Khaled Abu Toameh
Optional Sound and Light show
Geopolitical bus tour of Jerusalem
Meeting with a member of the Knesset
Visit to Hadassah's Meir Shfeya Youth Village
Burma Road jeep tour
Yom Ha'Atzmaut celebration, including air and boat show
Rachel Korazim discussion
Tree planting
Entrance fees as per itinerary
Transfers included if arriving/departing with the main group
Porterage
Bottled water on the bus
Whisper headsets

INCLUDED IN THE CME EXTENSION:

2 nights+ late check out  Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
Breakfast daily
CME programming
Bedouin dinner
Winery tour and dinner
Farewell dinner
Camel ride

NOT INCLUDED:

Roundtrip airfare, departure taxes and fuel surcharges (group flights coming soon)
Border taxes or visa fees
Tips to guide, driver and dining room waiters ($25 per person, per day; pre-collected)
Meals not listed above
Items of a personal nature
Travel insurance (recommended - group policy available)

Tour Itinerary:

Day 1: Thursday, April 8, 2021: DEPARTURE

• We depart the United States on our overnight flights to Israel.

Day 2: Friday, April 9, 2021: WELCOME TO ISRAEL!

• We arrive in Israel, exit the passport control area, and are met by an Ayelet Tours' representative. Welcome home!
• We ascend to Jerusalem, stopping atop Mt. Scopus to say the “Shehecheyanu” as we look out over the City of Gold.
• We check into our hotel and refresh.
• This evening, we welcome Shabbat at the Western Wall, followed by a private Shabbat dinner with Hadassah friends.

Overnight in Jerusalem

Day 3: Saturday, April 10, 2021: SHABBAT SHALOM!

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• Enjoy the morning at leisure relaxing or attending Shabbat services on own.
• This afternoon, we set out on a walking tour to the Mt. Zion Hotel to see the Cable Car Museum used to secretly transport supplies for residents and defenders of the Old City and commemorating Israeli ingenuity during the War of Independence.
• We return to our hotel for Havdallah, marking the end of Shabbat and the beginning of a new week.
• Early this evening, we meet with Jerusalem Post Palestinian Affairs correspondent, Khaled Abu Toameh, for a lecture entitled “A Snapshot of Palestinian Society”.
• Dinner on own tonight. Host will pre-book reservations.
• Optional: We take in the Tower of David Night Spectacular, a sound and light show that transforms the walls of David's Citadel into the living story of Jerusalem.

Overnight in Jerusalem
Day 4: Sunday, April 11, 2021: MODERN JERUSALEM

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• This morning, we take a geopolitical bus tour through Jerusalem and pass by the new American Embassy.
• We continue to Yad Vashem, the memorial to the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Here, we explore some of the newly found materials relating to places, people, and events connected to the Holocaust, including:
o Avenue of the Righteous Among the Nations
o Exhibit of children's drawings
o Children's memorial
• We complete our visit with a group memorial service at the Valley of the Lost Communities.
• At Mt. Herzl, Jerusalem's military cemetery, we pay our respects at the gravesites of Theodore Herzl, Golda Meir, Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres, followed by a stop at the new Remembrance Hall.
• We return to our hotel for time to relax and refresh.
• Later this afternoon, a chef accompanies us to Machane Yehuda for a sensual immersion into the vibrant colors, smells and flavors that make up this bustling marketplace. We wander through the pyramids of spices, brightly colored exotic vegetables, platters of nuts and olives and delicious halva creations. After our introduction to the fundamentals of Israeli cuisine, we prepare dinner together with our purchases.

Overnight in Jerusalem

Day 5: Monday, April 12, 2021: ISRAEL THROUGH THE AGES

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• This morning, we visit Ein Kerem Hadassah Hospital for a tour of the Sarah Wetsman tower, featuring the most modern hospital facilities in the region. We meet with staff and patients and take an in-depth look at this cutting-edge medical facility and how it has adapted to ever-changing needs.
• Next, we visit the Knesset, Israel's parliament building, and meet a member of the Knesset to hear about the current state of affairs in Israeli politics.
• We continue with a visit to the Supreme Court and meet with one of the justices to learn about Israel's judicial system.
• This afternoon, we explore Ir David, the City of David, to view the old and new excavations, followed by a viewing of the 3D movie about the history of ancient Jerusalem.
• We go underground in the Old City for a behind the scenes tour of the Western Wall tunnels, where we discover the archaeological wonders that once remained untouched for centuries, including some of the newest excavations.
• Evening at leisure and dinner on own.

Overnight in Jerusalem

Day 6: Tuesday, April 13, 2021: FROM JERUSALEM TO TEL AVIV

• Breakfast and check out of our hotel.
• Today, we visit Hadassah's Meir Shfeya Youth Village, where we interact with the students and staff and visit the village, including their working farm and winery.
• We continue to the European style village of Zichron Yaakov to visit the Nili Spy Museum.
• We reach Tel Aviv and enjoy lunch on own in the city center.
• We check into our hotel with time to freshen up and relax before the evening's events.
• Tonight, we gather for dinner at our hotel before we join the Jerusalemites in singing their songs at the First Station.

Overnight in Tel Aviv

Day 7: Wednesday, April 14, 2021: EREV YOM HA'ATZMAUT

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• This morning, we set out on a jeep tour along the Burma Road as our guide narrates the struggle for Jerusalem in 1948 and the stories inspired by the views of famous biblical sites along the way.
• Our next stop is at Latrun, Israel's outdoor armored corps museum, where we explore the tanks and artillery used by the Israeli Defense Forces throughout the country's history.
• This afternoon, we come together for a Yom Hazikaron ceremony.
• We continue with a tour of the Rabin Center, where the spiraling exhibits lead us through the modern history of the state and broader world history through the prism of the life of one of Israel's most beloved leaders, Yitzhak Rabin.
• This afternoon, we follow Independence Trail on a walking tour through the Ahuzat Bayit neighborhood, where the city was originally developed. We also watch a movie about the foundation of the state of Israel.
• Tonight, we celebrate the start of Yom Ha'Atzmaut (Independence Day) at a dinner party.

Overnight in Tel Aviv

Day 8: Thursday, April 15, 2021: YOM HA'ATZMAUT

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• We begin our day in Old Jaffa at the home of scholar Rachel Korazim for a discussion.
• We stroll through Neve Tzedek to see the artistic graffiti painted on the walls and buildings and learn how it is an important form of expression in the community.
• At Trumpeldor Cemetery, we see the final resting place of Shoshana Damar, Arik Einstein, Haim Nachman Bialik and others.
• We head to the beach to enjoy the air and boat show in celebration of Yom Ha'Atzmaut.
• Enjoy the remainder of the day relaxing at the beach or exploring Tel Aviv, followed by dinner on own.

Overnight in Tel Aviv

Day 9: Friday, April 16, 2021: EXPLORING ESHKOL

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• We begin our day at the JNF/Hadassah park project, where we plant trees amidst Be'er Sheva's blossoming desert sands.
• Next, we tour the Eshkol border, located just a few miles away from Gaza, and learn how the residents cope with living in this community.
• We continue to the "Salad Trail", where we participate in a unique hands-on agricultural tour and witness how Israeli innovation is literally making the desert bloom with crops grown out of some of the most inhospitable sands imaginable. We will pick and taste fruits and vegetables from the kibbutz's self-picking farm, encounter flying strawberries, tiny orange orchards, racing pigeons and herbal gardens. We complete our visit with a delicious lunch.
• We return to Tel Aviv.
• This evening, we come together for a festive farewell Shabbat dinner, recalling all that we have experienced on our journey together.

Overnight in Tel Aviv

Day 10: Saturday, April 17, 2021: SHABBAT SHALOM!

• Breakfast at our hotel.
• Enjoy Shabbat at leisure and explore this innovative and modern city at our own pace!
• This evening, we check out of our hotel and transfer to the airport for our overnight flights back to the United States, landing tomorrow morning.



THE MEMORIES LAST FOREVER!!
*itinerary subject to change