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Friday, Day 1: Arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, transfer to Tel Aviv

Upon arrival to Ben Gurion Airport, you will be met by a representative from SMILE services. You will continue to your hotel in beautiful Tel Aviv for check-in and spend the remainder of the day at your leisure (depending on flight times). Suggested stroll along the beautiful beach front. Overnight at the Dan Panorama Hotel in Tel Aviv.

Saturday, Day 2: Tel Aviv – Shabbat at Leisure

After Shabbat breakfast, enjoy a day at leisure in Tel Aviv. Optional service at one of the many synagogues in Tel Aviv or just relax in the hotel. Jerusalem being within close distance to Tel Aviv making the trek to there and back by the evening is also recommended. In the evening, walk the streets of Tel Aviv (on your own) and enjoy the electric and exciting atmosphere. Overnight at the Dan Panorama in Tel Aviv.

Sunday, Day 3: Caesarea, Haifa, Akko (Acre), Rosh Hanikra

After breakfast, check-out from your hotel and travel north to visit the ancient city of Caesarea, Built by Herod the Great and once the seat of Roman rule. View the excavated Roman amphitheatre, with its acoustic and theatrical sound. It was used for many performances throughout the centuries. Today, it draws major venue attractions, for concerts and festivals. Walk through the excavated fortress and view the aqueduct, once used for conveying water to the city. Proceed to Haifa for a panoramic view from Mt. Carmel and visit the “AF AL PI CHEN” naval museum of the once illegal immigration to Israel during the time of the British mandate. Continue to Akko (Acre) and walk along the old harbor and local market. Continue to the northernmost point of Israel at Rosh Hanikra to where the border meets Lebanon. Descend by cable car to see the limestone Grottos created by the Mediterranean Sea and eventually through to the hills of the Galilee. Overnight at Kibbutz Lavi.

Monday, Day 4: Safed / Tel Facher / Banias / Tel Hai

After breakfast, drive to the Mystical City of Safed, one of the Four Holy Cities according to tradition and its Kabalistic studies. Stroll through the narrow, winding alleys, visit some of the beautiful synagogues, such as the Joseph Caro and the Ha’ Ari synagogues. Browse through the artists’ workshops and galleries found in the flourishing artists’ quarter. Drive to the Golan Heights for a jeep adventure and explore the foot of the Golan Heights on 4 by 4 terrains. You will stop at an observation point over the city of Kuneitra, and the Syrian territory and at Tel Facher, a former Syrian army camp. Proceed north to Banias Springs. Enjoy the waterfalls, which flow from the foot of Mount Hermon to the Jordan River. It is considered to be the largest spring feeding from Mt. Hermon and leading into the Jordan River. Next, a visit to Tel-Hai; See the “Roaring Lion” monument and learn about the heroic battle of Josef Trumpeldor and his comrades in 1920. Overnight at Kibbutz Lavi.

Tuesday, Day 5: Beit Shean, Beit Alpha, Gan Hashlosha to Jerusalem

After breakfast, drive to Tiberias to visit Rambam’s grave. Proceed to Beit Shean, also called “Scythopolis”, and walk through the incredible excavations of the largest ongoing archaeological dig in the land of Israel with its amphitheater, colonnaded Roman streets, mosaics and the Roman bathhouse. You will stop at Beit Alpha to see the beautiful mosaic floor of a Byzantine synagogue. On to Gan Hashlosha, (Sachne), where you will have an opportunity to enjoy the water springs, located at the foot of the Gilboa Mountain, the famous mountain where King Saul was killed in the battle against the Philistines. Continue South through the lush Jordan Valley where the dessert now blooms with flowers and vegetation of every description (Isaiah 35:1-2). Upon arriving in Jerusalem and as you enter the city, you will stop at Mt. Scopus for a Sheyichyanu Blessing (“Bore Pri Hagaphen”). Overnight at Dan Panorama Jerusalem.

Wednesday, Day 6: Old City of Jerusalem

After breakfast, you will travel to Mt. Zion and visit the tomb of King David. You will enter the walled city and proceed to the Jewish Quarter, which was reconstructed after the city was unified at the conclusion of the Six-Day War in 1967. A special point of interest is the “Cardo”, meaning the “heart” of this ancient Byzantine City. you will see the ancient Roman road and visit the four Sephardic synagogues in the Jewish quarter, all beautifully restored after the 1967 war. View the unearthed main Roman thoroughfare and ancient marketplace lined with columns. You will proceed through the broad stone stairway down to the holy Western Wall – the “Kotel” (Beit Hamikdash). In front of the Beit Hamikdash (the Temple Mount), an incredible labyrinth of tunnels, arches, and passageways remained untouched for centuries. Here you will visit the incredible excavation of the “Underground Rabbi Tunnels” of the Western Wall. Continue towards the Southern Wall excavations to see the Davidson Center, one of the most significant archeological sites in the country. Return back via the “Cardo” to the local Arab Bazaar. Walk out of the Old City through Jaffa gate to visit David’s Tower Museum to see the ancient remains of the city beginning with the first Temple period. Overnight at the Dan Panorama Jerusalem.

Thursday, Day 7: New City of Jerusalem

After breakfast, (optional) Celebrate the Bar-Mitzvah ceremonies at the Kotel (Wailing 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, you will visit the Israel Museum, here you will see the Shrine of the Book Museum, where the Dead Sea scrolls are housed and the new Holy Land Model – a miniature replica of Jerusalem as it was during the Second Temple period. Drive to mount Herzl, Israel’s national cemetery where you can visit the gravesites of Israel’s greatest leaders and heroes, including Theodore Herzl, Ze’ev Jabotinski, and Yitzchak Rabin. Proceed to Yad Vashem, considered to be the first and most famous memorial to mankind’s darkest period. Visit the very moving exhibit at the Children’s Pavilion. Continue to Ammunition Hill (Givat-Hatahmoshet), sight of one of the fiercest battles for Jerusalem. Former Jordanian army stronghold that was conquered by the Israeli army in the Six Day War and converted into a national memorial site and museum. Overnight at Dan Panorama Jerusalem Hotel.

Friday, Day 8: Massada and the Dead Sea area

(Remember to bring your hats, swim suits and suntan lotion with you!) After an early breakfast, depart to the Dead Sea area. Travelling south through the Judean Wilderness, you will arrive at the shores of the Dead Sea, as you descend to the lowest point on the surface of the earth at 1305 feet (398m) below sea level. Stop at Qumeran to visit the site where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. Continue south to the legendary mountaintop plateau of Massada where you will ascend by cable car to the ancient synagogue of Massada and explore the ancient fortress. Here, was the last stronghold of the Jewish Zealots in their struggle against the Romans. The Zealots held out for three years against the legions of Flavius Silva and chose to die as free men at their own hands in preference to Roman slavery. From the top of Massada, the outlines of the Roman encampments are still visible below. Descend by cable car and if weather permitting, you will stop at one on the hotels at the Dead Sea resort for lunch, spa and to experience floating in the unsinkable waters of the Dead Sea. You will enjoy the remainder of the afternoon at leisure to put mud on us and to float at the Dead Sea. Overnight at the Dan Panorama Jerusalem.

Saturday (Shabbat), Day 9: Jerusalem at leisure

After Shabbat breakfast, enjoy a day at leisure in Jerusalem. Optional service at one of the many synagogues in Jerusalem or just relax in the hotel. Feel the special atmosphere of Jerusalem on Shabbat. In the evening, walk the streets of Jerusalem, such as Ben Yehuda Street, the many young Jerusalemites gather. Walk along the Midrehov and see the many artists displaying their jewelry and crafts, as well as many sidewalk cafes where you can enjoy dinner (on your own account). Overnight at the Dan Panorama Hotel Jerusalem.

Sunday, Day 10: Departure

After breakfast, you will be transferred to the Bell Hotel in Tel Aviv with everlasting memories of the Land of Israel.

* Jericho, Bethlehem, Jordan Valley and some parts of Jerusalem are all in Occupied Palestine Territory.

Golan Heights, Birkat Ram and the Druze Villages are in Occupied Golan Heights.