Welcome to Israel!
3:00 pm Hotel check-in begins; arrival is at your convenience
Meet the ToI and Routes teams in the lobby to receive a welcome package and check in to the hotel.
5:20 pm Group will convene at the hotel lobby and depart to the opening dinner
6:00 pm Cocktail reception and opening Private Dinner at Cheder Prati with David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
David Horovitz is the founding editor of The Times of Israel. He is the author of “Still Life with Bombers” (2004) and “A Little Too Close to God” (2000), and co-author of “Shalom Friend: The Life and Legacy of Yitzhak Rabin” (1996). He previously edited The Jerusalem Post (2004-2011) and The Jerusalem Report (1998-2004)
9:30 pm Return to the hotel
Overnight: Crown Plaza Beach Hotel , Tel Aviv
Breakfast at the hotel
9:00 am Cultural Program with ToI Culture Editor Jessica Steinberg
12:00 pm Drive to Levinsky Market
12:30 pm Tasting Tour Lunch in the Levinsky Market with Harry Rubenstein
Return to the hotel
4:00 pm Meeting with ToI political correspondent Tal Schneider: ‘Inside Israel’s Power
Game: The Knesset, Coalitions, and Public Opinion’.
5:30 pm Meeting with Miri Eisin (TBC)
6:00 pm Free evening and dinner on your own in Tel Aviv
Overnight: Crown Plaza Beach Hotel , Tel Aviv
Geopolitics and minorities in the north with ToI diplomatic reporter Lazar Berman
Breakfast at the hotel and Check Out
8:30 am Depart for Northern Israel
10:00 am Opening and meeting with ToI diplomatic reporter Lazar Berman at The Memorial Monument to the Bedouin Warriors ; The contributions of the bedouin community
12:00 pm Lunch at Ein Camonim
Drive north
2:00 pm Overview from Misgav Am with Lazar Berman
Israel’s complex ties with Lebanon
3:00 pm Drive to an overview of Syria
4:00 pm Overview from Mt. Bental with Lazar Berman: Bitter foe, potential partner?
4:45 pm Drive to Majdel Shams
5:15 pm Visit Majdel Shams and meet Naela Eldin, who lost her daughter during the Hezbollah attack on the soccer field in July 2024
6:00 pm Drive to Yesod Hama’ala for dinner
8:00 pm Home Hospitality Dinner in Yesod Ha’Maaleh
10:00 pm Drive to the hotel and check in
Overnight: Edmond, Rosh Pina
A day along the Lebanese border with ToI reporter Diana Bletter
Breakfast at the hotel and Check Out
9:00 am Depart hotel
9:30 am Introduction to community rebuilding of the northern communities from Mt. Adir and with ToI reporter Diana Bletter
11:00 pm Visit the ‘Talking walls’ at Shtula followed by home hospitality lunch hosted by Ora Hatan, torchbearer at the Independence Day ceremony on Mount Herzl 2026
1:30 pm Meeting at Liman nursery
Drive to Jerusalem
6:30 pm Check in to the Cassia hotel
Dinner on your own in Jerusalem
Overnight: Cassia, Jerusalem
Breakfast at the hotel
9:00 am Visit The City of David and walk the Pilgrim road
Walk in the footsteps of ancient pilgrims along the newly opened Pilgrimage Road in the City of David, a remarkable Second Temple-period street uncovered through years of archaeological excavation. Stretching from the Pool of Siloam toward the Temple Mount, this historic route offers a unique opportunity to experience Jerusalem as it was nearly 2,000 years ago.
Walking tour of the Old City – Four Quarters/Three Religions/One City
1:00 pm Hummus lunch in the Old City
3:00 pm Return to the hotel and prepare for Shabbat
Drive to the Old City
(Shabbat begins at 4:02 pm)
Shabbat experience at the Kotel
7:00 pm Private Shabbat Dinner at the Jerusalem House of Quality
Return to the hotel
Overnight: Cassia, Jerusalem
Breakfast at the hotel
Option 1: Day at leisure
Option 2: Morning tour at the Israel Museum visiting The Shrine of the Book and the second temple model
Lunch on own
4:00 pm Meeting with Author Matti Friedman at the hotel (TBC)
Matti Friedman, a Canadian‑Israeli journalist and award‑winning author known for his New York Times, Times of Israel and Tablet magazine contributions, is a former AP correspondent stationed across the Middle East and beyond. He now lives in Jerusalem and writes deeply nuanced works on Israeli history and conflict.
Havdala
Evening at leisure
Overnight: Cassia, Jerusalem
A day in the south with ToI Political Correspondent Tal Schneider and ToI Military Correspondent Mannie (Emanuel) Fabian for a military overview, honoring the Oct. 7 victims, and a look at community rebuilding.
Breakfast at the hotel
7:45 am Depart to the Gaza Envelope
9:45 am Meet ToI military reporter Mannie (Emanuel) Fabian for a military overview of the Gaza envelope from Black Arrow viewpoint
11:15 am Visit one of the Gaza envelope communities affected by October 7th
1:30 pm Lunch at a local foodtruck
Travel time
2:45 pm Women’s courage on October 7th: visit the Nachal Oz Observers memorial monument
3:30 pm Drive to the Nova festival massacre site
4:00 pm Visit the site of the Nova Music Festival Massacre site and meet Shalev Biton, Nova Festival Massacre survivor, and Younis Algrenawi, who risked his life to save those fleeing from Hamas terrorists
5:15 pm Drive to Jerusalem
Dinner on your own in Jerusalem
Overnight: Cassia, Jerusalem
Breakfast at the hotel and Check Out (load luggage on the bus)
9:00 am Meeting with Dr. Tal Becker (TBC)
Former Legal Adviser of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs; senior member of Israeli peace negotiation teams in successive rounds of peace negotiations; represented Israel before the International Court of Justice; Times of Israel op-ed contributor
10:30 pm Meeting and discussion with ToI Deputy Editor Amanda Borschel-Dan
12:00 pm Free time and lunch on own in Jerusalem
4:00 pm Program Summary with ToI Founding Editor David Horovitz at the hotel
David Horovitz is the founding editor of The Times of Israel. He is the author of “Still Life with Bombers” (2004) and “A Little Too Close to God” (2000), and co-author of “Shalom Friend: The Life and Legacy of Yitzhak Rabin” (1996). He previously edited The Jerusalem Post (2004-2011) and The Jerusalem Report (1998-2004)
5:15 pm Drive to final dinner
6:00 pm Private Farewell Dinner at Sea Dolphin restaurant
8:30 pm Group transfer from dinner to the Ben Gurion Airport
9:30 pm Arrive at Ben Gurion Airport for departure flights
!שלום ולהתראות
Shalom U’lehitraot!
Please note that the below rates are based on a minimum of 20 Tour participants. In the event the number of registered participants is less than 20 on October 14, 2026, the Operator will consult with the Tour Sponsor with a view to exploring if there is a solution to operate the Tour with less than 20 participants or alternatively at a later date. However, Operator reserves the right and at Operator’s sole discretion to cancel the Tour and refund amounts received from each participant.
Price per person in double occupancy room
Single Supplement for those rooming alone
Payment policy:
The total cost of the Times of Israel December Program is $8,185 per person sharing a double room. The supplement for a guest rooming on their own is $1,400.
Please note that the second and third payments will be automatically charged to the same credit card used for the deposit. An email will be sent to you regarding these charges before being processed.
Cancellation policy:
All cancellations must be made in writing and addressed to Sapir: orly@routestravel.com. The cancellation fee depends on the date when Operator receives written notification of Customer’s request to cancel Customer’s booking.
Cancellation in Exceptional Situations:
Notwithstanding the cancellation terms detailed in Section 8 above, in the event that the cancellation of the entire group unavoidably results from Force Majeure or Acts of God, there will be no personal penalty for customers, and all payments will be refunded.
More than ever, Travel Insurance is a vitally important feature of any planned travel and safeguards against unexpected developments
Travel protection offers many great benefits and peace of mind when traveling. One of the many benefits is, to insure the travelers trip cost, in the event a traveler needs to cancel the trip, due to unforeseen medical illness of the insured or of an immediate family member.
The other key benefit included here is medical expense coverage, given that the majority of our health insurance plans, lack coverage for accidents/illness occurring outside of the US.
In addition to trip cancellation and medical expense coverage, other benefits protecting the travelers during their journey are , trip delay , trip interruption, lost or delayed luggage upon arrival in destination, medical evacuation, 24/7 emergency assistance and much more.
To receive a quote and for any travel insurance questions you may have, please reach out to Liana DiCurzio at Traveland. Her email is Liana@traveland.net please be sure to mention that you are traveling with ToI/Routes Trips
We highly recommend reaching out for an insurance quote, as soon as possible after making the very first initial payment, as some benefits and plans such as the Cancel For Any Reason plan (CFAR), are time sensitive, and are only available for purchase within 13 days of the very first trip payment
Israeli VAT not applicable to non-Israeli tourists for a variety of services and is therefore not included in our prices. In this connection, please note the following:
If the trip is oversubscribed at the time of your registration, please fill in your information on the registration form, and you will be added to the program waiting list