The Spizer/Costa/Carpiniello Family with six adults and four children (ranging from 8-13) traveled to Israel over the winter break to celebrate a B’nai Mitzvah.  The family described the experience as the most amazing trip of a lifetime!  Jen created a completely custom trip for this multi-generational family from the Philadelphia area.  The trip began with a VIP airport arrival and some time to unwind in Tel Aviv where they toured on their own with a visit to the beach and Old Jaffa and stayed at the apartment hotel, Alexander All-Suites for two nights.  On their third day, their guide and driver picked them up in a spacious bus (with wifi) for an exciting day trip to the Ayalon Institute (known as the bullet factory), to Beit Guvrin for a hands-on archeological dig and then onto Neot Kedumin for tree planting and a lesson from a local scribe.  The next day the group headed north to visit the Roman ruins in Caesarea which now offers a cinematic exhibition and audiovisual experience.  From there they continued onto the once Crusader capital of Akko where they walked on the city walls.  The charming Hotel Hagroshim, their favorite accommodations of the trip, became their Galilee home for the next two nights.  The following day they explored the Dan Nature Reserve with a nature hike and took a jeep tour through the Golan Heights.  They also visited a kibbutz to learn about this communal lifestyle unique to Israel including a meeting with local members.  The day ended with a visit to the Agamon HaHula Nature reserve; a popular resting place for birds migrating from Europe to Africa.  The following day the family headed to the mystical city of Safed and the Biblical-style camp of Kfar Kedem where they tried on traditional Israelite dress and took a donkey ride through the countryside.  Other biblical related activities included fresh pita bread and cheese making.  They also visited Nazareth before heading to Jerusalem with a visit to the Western Wall as the sabbath began.  Their three-night Jerusalem hotel stay was at the Dan Panorama.  The family explored Jerusalem on their own on the sabbath by walking over to the Israel Museum to see the Dead Sea Scrolls.  They found the museum fascinating and also got to see the Knesset.  Their guide picked them up the following day with a tour of the Old City.  The day started with a panoramic view from the Mount of Olives and then to the City of David where an audiovisual 3D movie brought the city’s history to life.  They also saw new discoveries from recent excavations in the area, visited a Canaanite dry tunnel as well as the Western Wall Tunnels.  A visit to the Christian Quarter and its holy sites was followed by a visit to the Jewish Quarter.   The next day the group made a day trip to Masada where they took the cable car to the top and then to a nearby hotel’s private beach for a Dead Sea swim.  Their final day began with a somber visit to Yad Vashem with a private curator. The older children were “twinned” with children who perished in the war and did not have a chance to mark their own Bat Mitzvah.  Their regular guide took the youngest child to the Biblical Zoo as he was too young for the Holocaust experience.  The family really appreciated the forethought in arranging for this; so that everyone could have a special last day in the Holyland.

The family let us know that they were very happy with a mix of interactive experiences combined with the more traditional sight-seeing although their amazing guide still found ways to entertain the children with engaging activities everywhere they went like a race in the hippodrome at Ceasarea and an aluminum foil sword fight as crusaders in Akko! They found their guide to be energetic and knowledgeable and she accommodated each generation so well.  They loved her so much that they all got teary when it was time for good-bye.  Happy tears after a special trip to Israel.