(Saturday, April 25, 2015
For all those coming from the Americas: please be sure to leave at least a day earlier)
Sunday, April 26, 2015
- Arrival (for foreign travelers) at Ben Gurion Airport, assistance through customs by our airport representative, transfer to Tel Aviv, check in to hotel
- Inaugural dinner at 7:00 PM in the hotel dinning room
Meal provided : Dinner
Overnight : Dan Panorama, Tel Aviv
Monday, April 27, 2015
- Breakfast.
- Orientation meeting with Daniel Pipes, Ron Wexler, the guide, and the Israeli staff.
- Visit the ancient town of Jaffa.
- Visit the West Bank town of Alfei Menashe to get a first-hand feel for the security situation and receive a security briefing that includes the Negev, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem.
- Visit the Palmach Museum, on the history of this remarkable army.
- Dinner followed by a speaker. Topic: The Negev’s geography, demography, history and current events.
Meals provided : Breakfast, Dinner
Overnight: : Dan Panorama, Tel Aviv
Tuesday, April 28, 2015
- Independence Hall, where David Ben-Gurion declared the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.
- Leave for the Negev via Ashdod, Ashkelon, and the Gaza Front.
- Visit a border military installation and the Erez crossing (the border crossing between Gaza and Israel).
- Visit the Bedouin settlements in the Northern Negev, the Beer Sheba-Demona-Arad triangle.
- Arrive Beer Sheba, the capital of the Negev, home of Ben Gurion University, and future site of the first Israeli cyberpark.
- Check in to hotel in Beer Sheba.
- Dinner followed by a speaker. Topic: The security and defense of the Negev, a region bordering Gaza, Egypt, Jordan and (almost) Saudi Arabia.
Evening program: The recent Gaza war expert analysis on Israeli military doctrine, new tactical issues (Iron Dome, drones, tunnels, the closure of Ben-Gurion Airport), and lessons learned.
Meals provided : Breakfast, Dinner
Overnight : Leonardo Hotel, Beer Sheba
Wednesday, April 29, 2015
- Visit Mitzpe Ramon to see IDF installations, including a renowned IDF officers’ school.
- Visit (in open-air jeeps) Maktesh Ramon, the largest of 5 makhteshim (erosion craters) in Israel (only 7 exist in the world), containing remarkable rock formations as well as unique vegetation and flora.
- Visit Kibbutz Sde Boker and see the Tzrif, David Ben Gurion’s humble home, the Ben Gurion archive, the library, and his grave site.
- Visit Midrashat Sde Boker, the Ben Gurion University campus overlooking the Zin Wilderness with a panoramic view of the Zin canyon.
- Dinner followed by a speaker. Topic: Future plans for the Negev (a million Jewish inhabitants by 2020), infrastructures, commerce and the IDF bases relocations.
Meals provided : Breakfast, Dinner
Overnight : Leonardo Hotel, Beer Sheba
Thursday, April 30, 2015
- Visit the town of Yerucham, future home to IDF training installations and bases.
- Visit Maktesh Katan, an unusual 5 km by 7 km geological landform with a dazzling panorama of steep and colored cliffs.
- Visit a Bedouin tribe and experience its way of life, watch a presentation coordinated with Ben Gurion University.
- Visit Dimona, a major desert Bedouin town and Israel’s nuclear center.
- Dinner followed by a speaker. Topic: The Negev Bedouins, the Prawer Report.
Meals provided : Breakfast, Dinner
Overnight : Leonardo Hotel, Beer Sheba
Friday, May 1, 2015
- Visit the ancient Nabatean city of Avdat.
- Follow Route #10 (pending IDF authorization), the winding border patrol road between Israel and Egypt which includes many of the IDF’s southern installations, for a first-hand understanding of the area and its problems.
- Arrive Eilat early afternoon, check in to hotel.
- Afternoon and dinner on your own.
Meals provided : Breakfast
Overnight : Hotel Leonardo, Eilat
Saturday, May 2, 2015
- Free day in Eilat to unwind, swim, or explore.
- Informal meeting with Daniel Pipes and Roni Wexler to discuss the trip, Eilat’s place in Israel, and open discussion.
- Dinner on your own.
Meals provided : Breakfast
Overnight : Hotel Leonardo, Eilat
Sunday, May 3, 2015
- Drive through the Arava Valley.
- Visit Kibbutz Avdat.
- Visit the Arava Insitute at Kibbitz Ketura, a center of cutting edge technologies in eco-agriculture, sustainable energy water recycling, and desalination.
- Visit Sodom and Gomorrah, the notorious Dead Sea cities of antiquity.
- View the Dead Sea industrial area on the south end.
- Drive through the Dead Sea spas and resorts.
- Ascend Masada via the 2-minute funicular, see the last pocket of insurrection in the Jewish rebellion against the Roman Empire, visit King Herod's Palace, the synagogue, and view the sophisticated water and irrigation system.
- Read a newspaper (time permitting) while bathing in the Dead Sea.
- Arrive Jerusalem at around 6:00 pm and check in to hotel.
- Dinner and a free evening in Jerusalem.
Meals provided : Breakfast, Dinner
Overnight : Hotel Inbal, Jerusalem
Monday, May 4, 2015
- Ascend the Mt of Olives, see the view.
- Visit the Temple Mount, visit the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque.
- Visit the Jewish and Christian Quarters in the Old City and see the main sites.
- Visit the Israeli Parliament (Knesset) for a tour and a meeting with Knesset members.
- Visit Yad Vashem, the Holocaust memorial.
- Visit Mt. Herzl, Israel's military cemetery and final resting place of many of Israel's leaders.
- Visit the Herzl Museum (time permitting) to learn about Theodor Herzl.
- Farewell dinner and closing remarks in a private dining room.
Meals provided : Breakfast, Dinner
Overnight : Hotel Inbal, Jerusalem
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Meal provided: : Breakfast