Congregation Beth Israel
JEWISH CONNECTIONS TOUR
Led by Rabbi Jason and Nicole Nevarez
June 28-July 7, 2026
DAY 1 -– Sunday, June 28 - BRUCHIM HABA’IM - WELCOME to ISRAEL
• Arrival safely at Ben Gurion airport and after claiming luggage transfer to your hotel in Tel Aviv.
• Check into your hotel Dan Panorama Tel Aviv to freshen up.
• 6:30PM – Meet at the lobby. Enjoy a festive welcome dinner and first briefing of the tour.
• Overnight – Dan Panorama hotel, Tel Aviv
DAY 2 - Monday, June 29 – ISRAEL AND ITS EVOLVING NARRATIVE
• Optional: Early morning walk around the Tayelet, the beachside promenade
• Breakfast at the hotel
• Explore the Palmach Museum that relates the story of the young boys and girls who made up the militia that fought in Israel's War of Independence.
• Lunch will be an ethnic tasting tour combined with Graffiti tour, where you'll find a combination of foods and sweets from all over the Mediterranean and hear the unique stories of the local proprietors.
• Visit the ANU Museum, a fascinating journey that portrays the story of the Jewish people through the generations and up to the present time including October 7 events. Discuss the "Global Jewish identity after Oct. 7" with ANU educator.
• Free Evening and Dinner
• Overnight – Tel Aviv
DAY 3 - Tuesday, June 30 – LIFE, RESILIENCE, AND HOPE IN THE NEGEV GATE
• After breakfast at the hotel drive south to Gaza Envelope.
• Visit Sha'ar Hanegev and learn how the events of October 7 affected the residents and what security and social challenges they face today including encounter with survivor.
• Drive to Nir Am, Beth Israel partner Kibbutz and listen to a briefing on the political issues followed by meetings with residents.
• After lunch exposure to the "Healing Heroes" Program - ADI Negev-Nahalat Eran is empowering Israel’s many war-wounded soldiers and civilians at the Rehabilitation Medical Center.
• Return to Tel Aviv and perhaps walk along the Nachlat Binyamin Arts and Crafts Pedestrian Walkway and the Carmel open-air market.
• Overnight: Tel Aviv
DAY 4 – Wednesday, July 1 – INNOVATION and NORTHERN REALITY
• After breakfast at the hotel, check out of hotel
• Meeting with with care-takers at "Natal", an NGO which for 25 years has been offering help to trauma victims and experience demonstration of trauma-tech innovation.
• Drive north along the Mediterranean, stopping at Caesarea, the city built by King Herod the Great, the largest man-made port of his time and a main source to his wealth.
• Visit Galilee Medical Center with a focus on challenges during the war and coexistence
• Time permitting, tour of Akko’s Old City and souk (market) surrounded by Crusader walls
• Check into your hotel.
• Dinner & Overnight: Ayala hotel in the Galilee
DAY 5 – Thursday, July 2 – ALONG ISRAEL’S NORTHERN FRONTIER: COMMUNITY AND COMPLEXITY
• Breakfast at the hotel
• Drive up the Golan Heights and take a short hike at one of the beautiful Nature Reserve.
• Visit Oz 77, site of a major tank battle in the 1973 Yom Kippur War and then an intelligence brief from a military/intelligence expert on the current situation in Syria and Lebanon and the future challenges for the State of Israel. Possibly combine the briefing with a Jeep Ride on the border.
• Enjoy light lunch and taste some of the good Israeli wines at one of the Golan's wineries
• Visit a farmer and hear from first hand his unique story being displaced by northern shelling
• In the evening, farm to table dinner at the Elias residence. Hear from Gadi the amazing story of feeding thousands of soldiers during the war. After dinner, return back to hotel.
• Overnight – Galilee
DAY 6 – Friday, July 3 – ASCEND to JERUSALEM along the JORDAN VALLEY
• Breakfast at the hotel and check-out
• Drive via Tiberius to Beit Shean, the largest archaeological site in Israel where we'll explore this ancient Roman city with its impressive amphitheater and reconstructed streets.
• Continue to the Beit Alfa National Park which boasts the remains of one of the most beautiful synagogue mosaic floors in Israel.
• stop atop of Mt. Scopus for an overview of the Old and New City and to say the traditional Shehechyanu blessing, recited upon entering the city.
• Visit the Kotel to see preparation for Shabbat.
• heck into your hotel.
• In the evening enjoy Kabbalat Shabbat and Shabbat dinner at the hotel.
• Dinner & Overnight: Inbal hotel, Jerusalem
DAY 7 – Shabbat, July 4 – THE LOWEST PLACE ON EARTH
• Breakfast at the hotel
• Drive via the Dead Sea Basin to explore Masada, one of Israel's most exciting sites which relates a story of perseverance and power, faith and surrender, ambition and a tragic end.
• Take a short walk at Ein Gedi, an oasis in the desert and a green Garden of Eden in the wilderness.
• Spend some time by the Dead Sea to enjoy lunch and to experience this unique phenomenon.
• Return to Jerusalem in time for Havdalah at the hotel
• Overnight – Jerusalem
DAY 8 – Sunday, July 5 – JERUSALEM OF FAITH, PROTEST, AND DEMOCRACY
• Optional: Early morning bike with a local guide.
• Breakfast at the hotel.
• "From crisis to victory", meeting with a journalist or politician who will provide an overview of the political, diplomatic and social situation in Israel.
• "Choose Your Lens":
• Option 1: JERUSALEM OF FAITH – visit the city of David, the western Wall tunnels, Temple Mt, Old City rooftops and time for prayer and reflection at the Western Wall.
• Option 2: JERUSALEM of PROTEST & DEMOCRACY – Meet activists and representatives from Israel Religious Action Center and learn about their work OR from Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism
• Overnight – Jerusalem
DAY 9 – Monday, July 6 – VOLUNTEERING and EDUCATION
• Breakfast at the hotel
• Volunteer for half day perhaps with Good Neighbor Association, powerful tool for social change. Task: packing food packages to those in need OR Community Gardens, strengthening the connection between people and their environment. Task: gardening (planting, weeding, composting.) OR at Food Rescuers, cooking the community.
• Visit Machne Yehuda Market with some food tasting as our lunch .
• Experience a fun activity, "Disco street tour" where participants wear wireless headphones and dance through the city's streets to music.
• Overnight: Jerusalem
DAY 10 – Tuesday, July 7 – Meaningful Farewell Upgrade
• Breakfast at the hotel.
• visit Yad Vashem, Israel's main Holocaust Remembrance and Education Center.
• Lay bouquet of flowers at Mt. Herzl military cemetery on one of the latest grave with praying for peace.
• Tree planting
• Visit rehabilitation center for wounded soldiers OR one of the centers dealing with rehabilitating livelihoods
• Farewell dinner
• People flying home will be dropped at the airport. People staying will be dropped in the city
Terms and Conditions:
Tour Price for minimum 15 participants:
$ 7295 per person in double occupancy land only
$ 9285 per person in a single room occupancy land only
$ 6775 per person in a Triple room occupancy land only
* The cost includes: 9 hotel overnights (rich Israeli breakfast included), entrance fees to sites and attractions listed in the itinerary, daily breakfast at hotels, 10 meals (4 lunches + 6 dinners), Luxurious Bus, 9 days with English speaking local guide, gratuities
The price does not include:
• Travel Insurance – Don’t leave home without it!
• International flights
• Personal Expenses
• Meals and sites not included in the itinerary
Terms of Payment:
• $ 400 non-refundable registration fee per person
• $ 3,500 per person by March 15, 2025
• The remainder – by May 15, 2025
Cancellation Policy:
• Registration fee is non-refundable.
• Up until 90 days prior to arrival $1,500 is nonrefundable.
• For cancellation within less than 45 days before arrival $3,000 is nonrefundable.
• For cancellation within less than 7 days is 100% is nonrefundable.
Payment:
The tour is payable by:
• CC (Visa, Master card, AMX)
3% discount for
• Bank Transfer
• Cashier Check
All payments are payable to:
Nitzan Travel Services LTD.
10 Bialik street, Gedera 70700, Israel
Wire transfer instructions:
Bank – Hapoalim
Branch 646
Account # 402633
Account name = NITZAN TRAVEL SERVICE LTD
IBAN
Bank Hapoalim B.M. IL270126460000000402633
SWIFT = POALILIT
BANK ADRESS = Biluim street, Gedera 70700, Israel
PLEASE READ ENTIRE DOCUMENT BEFORE SIGNING
INSURANCE – DON’T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT IT:
TRAVEL INSURANCE IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
You must take out comprehensive insurance coverage before travel for cancellation, medical expenses, loss of personal baggage, and money.
This should be arranged not later than one week after purchasing the ticket.
Travel insurance may be bought in the US through:
TRAVELAND, 878 Bridgeport Ave. Shelton CT 06484, Mr. Eitan Battat, at:
1-800-246-0466 Ext. 223, 1-203-814-3535 – Direct or 203-929-6000 Ext 223
Other Travel Insurance Companies in the U.S:
Access America (804) 285-3300 0r (800) 284-8300, www.AccessAmerica.com
Travel Guard International (800) 826-1300, www.TravelGuard.com
Also check with AAA or American express.
RESPONSIBILITY:
Nitzan Travel Services LTD. or their agents, act only as agents for the passengers in all matters connected with hotel accommodations, sight-seeing tours and transportation, whether by air, cruise, motor coach, motor vehicle, and any other means of conveyance, and shall not be responsible or liable for any injury, loss, accident, delay or irregularity or incident resulting from strikes, pilferage, labor disputes, machinery breakdown, quarantine, weather, government regulation, or any other cause beyond their control; nor shall they be responsible for any damage or loss of luggage for any reason during the course of the trip, or act or omission of any individual or organization providing the transportation, services, or accommodations in connection with these arrangements, nor for any delay or expense incurred due to disruption or revision of schedules, nor for any cause beyond its own control.
The right is reserved to the above to withdraw a tour, or decline to accept or retain any person as a member of a tour at any time should such person’s health or general deportment impede the operation of the tour to the detriment of the other tour passengers, or make changes in the published itinerary whenever in their sole time at their discretion to cancel any tour or the remainder thereof or make any alternation in route, accommodation, price, or other details, and in the event of any tour being rendered impossible, illegal, or inadvisable by weather, avalanches, strike, war, governmental interference, or any other cause whatsoever, the extra expenses incurred as a result, thereof shall be your sole responsibility. All prices are based on tariffs and exchange rates in effect on the day of registration and are subject to change in the event of an adjustment therein.
POSSIBLE CHANGES:
Nitzan Israel Travel Services LTD. thereafter known as the Tour Operators, reserve the right to cancel any tour before departure in which even the entire payment will be refunded without further obligation to the tour members. Infrequently, unexpected and unforeseen local conditions beyond control can prevent the completion of an itinerary or necessitate alterations in the itinerary. Such local conditions include inclement seasonal variations in climate, changing in airline schedules and equipment, government appropriation of hotel space, labor strikes, civil disturbances or political unrest, etc., events that are beyond the Tour Operator control, and will jeopardize the travelers' comfort, safety, health and enjoyment. In these events the Tour Operator reserves the right to alter or curtail the itinerary as is deemed necessary. The Tour Operator will endeavor, in each case to provide comparable substitute or effect refunds. Any savings realized for these changes will be passed to the traveler and any resultant expanses borne by the traveler. Accidents in route may require you to miss part of your return to the U.S. WE STRONGLY ADVISE YOU TO HAVE COMPREHENSIVE TRAVEL INSURANCE (medical, accident, baggage, trip cancellation etc.). As a convenience the Tour Operator or your Travel Agent will supply you with application upon receipt of your reservation. If costs do fluctuate due to circumstances beyond our control, we reserve the right to alter our quoted price to you.
Acceptance of any travel plan shall be deemed to constitute acceptance of this limitation of responsibility.
The person making any booking will, by the making of such booking, warrant that he or she has authority to enter into a contract on behalf of the other person/s included in such a booking and in the event of the failure of any or all of the other person/s so included to make payment, the person making the booking shall by his/her signature thereof assume personal liability for the total price of all bookings made by him/her.
For and in consideration of the tour services by Nitzan Israel Travel Services LTD. (hereafter "Tour Operators"), I hereby release and hold harmless Tour Operators and any of their agents or assigns from any and all claims arising out of their ordinary negligence for any and all risks inherent in the tour and/or inherent in transit to or from the tour destinations described herein.
I/We accept all responsibility for any and all costs arising out of treatment for injuries or damages suffered while taking part in the tour.
Any and all claims or disputes between the parties hereto shall be resolved in the courts of Israel and under Israeli law.
I give Nitzan Travel Services LTD. the right to use any photograph or video recording which includes my image or any audio recording which includes my voice, taken on the trip, unless otherwise indicated by checking this box.
I have read and fully understand the terms and conditions of this agreement.