16 DAY KALEIDOSCOPE OF ISRAEL
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Depart USA Thurs, Day 2 Arrive and transfer to your hotel. Balance of the day at leisure (D): TEL AVIV Fri, Day 3 Tour Tel Aviv, driving via Dizengoff Street to Yitzhak Rabin Square. Visit the Diaspora Museum. Continue to ancient Jaffa, ancient port city. Visit the artists' colony, and shop in exclusive boutiques (B, D): TEL AVIV Sat, Day 4 Day at leisure (B, D): TEL AVIV Sun, Day 5 Depart Tel Aviv, driving north to visit the Roman ruins at Caesarea. Continue to the Haifa and visit the Bahai Gardens. Drive around Haifa Bay to Akko and walk through the tunnels of this Crusader City. Continue north to Rosh Hanikra and descend via a short cable car ride to the grottos below. End the day at your kibbutz (B, D): KIBBUTZ Mon, Day 6 Visit Safed the city known as the birthplace of the Cabbalistic movement. Tour the ancient synagogues and artists' colony. Drive through the Galilee to the Golan Heights. Stop for lunch at Kfar Charuv and enjoy the hospitality of the residents as you tour the kibbutz. An exciting jeep ride will give you insight into the strategic importance of the Golan today. Visit the former Syrian fortifications at Mizpe Gadot. Continue for a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee (B, L, D): KIBBUTZ Tue, Day 7 Drive south via Nazareth and visit the Church of the Annunciation, and explore the nearby bazaars. Proceed to Beit Shean to see the recent excavation of the Roman theater. Visit Beit Alpha and see the zodiac mosaic. Continue along the Jordan Valley to the Dead Sea (B, D): DEAD SEA Wed, Day 8 Visit Massada. Ascend by cable car to visit the palace built by Herod and the last stand of the Jewish Zealots against the Roman Legions. Descend by cable car, and proceed to Ein Gedi to see the green fields and kaleidoscope flower nurseries of the kibbutz. After lunch, balance of the day at leisure to enjoy a "swim" in the waters of the Dead Sea (B, L, D): DEAD SEA Thurs, Day 9 This morning, drive to Jerusalem. Enter the Old City at the Jaffa Gate and visit the Museum of the History of Jerusalem at David's Citadel. Explore the Jewish Quarter and the recent excavations of the Herodian Houses. Visit the Western Wall. Walk along the Cardo and the bazaars. See the Broad Wall and the Israelite House. Walk along the the Via Dolorosa and visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Walk to Mt. Zion and visit King David's Tomb and the Room of the Last Supper (B, D): JERUSALEM Fri, Day 10 Drive to Mt. Scopus and Mt. Olives for a breathtaking view of the city. Drive to Hadassah hospital to view the famous Chagall stained-glass windows. Continue to Yad Vashem, the Memorial Museum to the Holocaust. Visit Mt. Herzl, Israel's military cemetery and the final resting place of Yitzhak Rabin. Drive to the Model of Jerusalem. Visit the Shrine of the Book at the Israel Museum to view the Dead Sea Scrolls (B, D): JERUSALEM Sat, Day 11 Day at leisure (B, D): JERUSALEM Sun, Day 12 Drive to Nebi Samwil where according to tradition, the Prophet Samuel is buried. Continue to Sanhedria Park and Ammunition Hill. View the trenches and fortifications remaining from the Six Day War. Proceed to the Tombs of the Kings. Drive to Montefiore's windmill at Yemin Moshe. End the day at Jerusalem's open-air market, Machene Yehuda (B, D): JERUSALEM Mon, Day 13 Drive south to Beersheva. Pass by the University of the Negev (Ben Gurion). Continue to Sde Boker and visit Ben Gurion's Hut. Drive through the Negev to Mitzpe Ramon to view the crater and rock formations. Proceed to Eilat (B, D): EILAT Tues, Day 14 Tour the city of Eilat, including the Marine Museum and Underwater Observatory. Drive to Taba for a view of the Egyptian border (B, D): EILAT Wed, Day 15 Day at leisure. Optional tour to Petra ($139). Water sports or a swim with the dolphins can be arranged locally (B, D): EILAT Thurs, Day 16 Transfer to Eilat Airport for a short flight to Tel Aviv. Upon arrival in Tel Aviv, transfer to your hotel. Balance of the day at leisure (B, D):TEL AVIV Fri, Day 17 Transfer to the airport for your departure flight (B). |
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