JEWISH HERITAGE TOURS SAMUEL TOUR

Wednesday
Arrival to Ben Gurion airport where you will be met by our representative and transferred to your hotel .
Overnight Tel-Aviv.

Thursday
Independence Hall/Latrun /Ayalon Institute
Start the day with a visit to the Independence Hall where the establishment of the State of Israel was declared. Next, drive to the Armored Corps Museum at Latrun, one of the most diverse tank museums in the world. Visit  “Mini-Israel” park including miniature replicas of the most important landmarks and buildings in Israel. Continue to visit Ayalon Institute, an underground ammunition factory run by the Hagana, up until May 1948.
Overnight Tel-Aviv.

Friday
Visit the Diaspora Museum. Drive around the main streets of Tel Aviv, Israel’s center of business and entertainment. Stop at Rabin’s Square, place of assassination of Prime Minister Itzhak Rabin. Continue to Old Jaffa, an 8000 year old port city. Visit the ancient ruins and walk through the restored Artist Quarter.
Visit Neve Tzedek, the first neighborhood of Tel Aviv, built in 1887 and Nahalat Benyamin, the pedestrian mall of the city with its musicians, hand made jewellery and artifacts. Next, stop on Sheinkin, the lively and colorfull street especially known with the unique shops, café life and youthful ambiance.
Overnight Tel-Aviv.

Saturday: at leisure
Overnight Tel-Aviv

Sunday
Drive north to Caesarea, once the Roman capital of the region. See the excavations of the Crusader city, the aqueduct and the amphitheater which has been restored as a concert venue. Proceed to Haifa for a panoramic view from Mt. Carmel and visit the Naval and Clandestine Immigrant Museum relating to the British Mandate.
Drive to Acre. Walk along the old harbour and local market. Continue to the northernmost point of Israel at Rosh Hanikra. Descend by cable into the chalk grottos.
Overnight at a Kibbutz guesthouse.

Monday
Drive to Safed, center of Kabala movement. Visit the Joseph Caro and the Ari synagogues, the most important synagogues in the city; stroll around the the Artist Quarter.
Enjoy a jeep tour to the foot of the Golan.
Continue to the Golan Heights. Stop at an observation point over the city of Kuneitra, and  Syrian territory. Stop at Tel Facher, a former Syrian army camp. Visit the Banias springs.
Next, a visit to Tel-Hai  to view the “Roaring Lion” monument and learn about the heroic battle of Josef Trumpeldor and his comrades in 1920.
Overnight at a kibbutz guesthouse.
Meet with a Kibbutz member and learn about their unique lifestyle.

Tuesday
Drive to Tiberias to visit Rambam’s grave. Proceed to Beit Shean, also called “Scythopolis”, the largest archeological park in Israel with beautiful excavations from Roman and Byzantine periods.
Stop at Beit Alpha to see a beautiful mosaic floor of a Byzantine period synagogue.
Onto Gan Hashlosha, (Sachne) where you will have an opportunity to enjoy in the water springs located at the foots of the Gilboa mountain,  famous as the place upon which King Saul was killed in a battle against the Philistines.
Continue via the Jordan Valley to Jerusalem.  Stop at Mount Scopus for a blessing as you enter the city.
Overnight Jerusalem.

Wednesday
Tour the Old City of Jerusalem.
Start with a visit to King David’s Tomb on Mt. Zion. Walk along the Cardo — the ancient Roman road. Visit the Four Sephardic Synagogues restored after 1967 war in the Jewish quarter.
Tour the Western Wall tunnels. Visit the Davidson Center and walk through the local Arab bazaar. Walk  to the Tower of David Museum near Jaffa Gate to view ancient remains of the city beginning with the First Temple period.
Overnight Jerusalem

Thursday
Enjoy seeing the Bar-Mitzvah ceremonies at the Western Wall.
Continue to Mea Shearim and learn about the unique lifestyle of the ultra-orthodox communities. Drive by the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament and see the menorah with the Biblical emblems. Next visit the Israel Museum,  Shrine of the Book where the Dead Sea Scrolls are housed, and the relocated Holyland model – a scale model of Jerusalem as it was during the Second Temple Period.
Drive to Mount Herzl , the military cemetery and Yad Vashem, the memorial to the Holocaust. Visit the Ammunition Hill, a former Jordanian army stronghold, conquered by the Israeli army in the Six Day War, and converted into a national memorial site and museum.
Overnight Jerusalem.

Friday
Drive through the Judean Desert to the Dead Sea. Stop at Qumran, the site where the Dead Sea scrolls were found. Continue to Masada, ascend by cable car and tour the ancient fortress; visit the remains of the walls, palaces, synagogue, the bathhouses etc. Descend by cable car.
Next stop for lunch and spa facilities in one of the leading hotels in the area.
Overnight Jerusalem.

Saturday – Day at leisure
Overnight Jerusalem.

Sunday
Timna/underwater observatory/Eilat
Travel south through the Negev Desert. Visit Timna and see the copper mines and Solomon’s Pillars and marvel at the huge multi-colored rock formations. Continue to Eilat and stop to visit the Underwater Observatory, one of the largest seaquariums in the world, built into a coral reef.
Overnight Eilat.

Monday
Free day in Eilat or Day In Petra (optional)
After assistance with obtaining your Jordanian visa, cross the border and be driven straight to Petra through desert highways. Your ultimate destination is the astonishing rose-red city of Petra which was built by the Nabateans (an early Arab tribe). Petra is renowned for its massive architecture, pools, dams and water channels. Petra is the legacy of the Nabateans who settled in the South of Jordan more than two-thousand years ago. The visit begins with the possibility of a 700 meter horseback ride until the entrance of the Siq, which is about 1.2 km long (walking distance). There is a possibility to rent a chariot (extra charge) to get onto and than back out to the main entrance of Petra.

Petra is famous for its huge monuments such as the Treasury, Royal Tombs, The Court, Roman Theatrer, Roman Street, Qassier El- Bint (Palace of Pharaoh’s daughter) and many other smaller monuments which fascinate visitors. The city itself is almost 45 square km and is considered to be the second wonder of the world. After the visit, time for lunch in a nice restaurant. After lunch drive back to border via Aqaba where you will have an opportunity to walk around.  Arrive at border around 6:00 pm. and cross into Eilat.

Tuesday
Mitzpe Ramon/Sde Boker /Tel-Aviv
Depart Eilat via Mitzpe Ramon; stop to gaze into the Ramon Crater, a geological wonder. Proceed to Sde Boker and see Ben Gurion’s hut and grave overlooking the magnificent Zin valley.
Stop for a camel ride and a visit to an authentic Bedouin tent. Here learn about Bedouin hospitality and enjoy a light lunch.
Continue to Hatzerim and visit Israel’s airforce museum to view the planes and equipment and to hear the story of this brave fighting force.
Drive back to Tel-Aviv.

Wednesday
Transfer to Ben Gurion airport for departure.