Desert & Sustainability in Israel and Jordan
WeRIsrael
DAY01: Monday: Airport
Welcome to Israel!
Arrival at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv.
Welcome by a representative of WeRIsrael and drive to Tel Aviv.
Start with a visit to Carmel Market – the open market for the locals. Have a special culinary tour and enjoy the variety of the smells and tastes of the market.
Have a Sunset tour in Old Jaffa, an ancient port city. Walk through the old city, be exposed to it's fascinating history and just enjoy the perfect sea breeze.
Free evening
Overnight: Prima City Hotel, Tel Aviv
DAY02: Tuesday: Cycling tour, Tel Aviv - Jerusalem
Checkout
Start the day with a fun cycling tour along Tel Aviv’s promenade.
Continue to the Old City of Jerusalem. Visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the Christian quarter, walk through the Jewish Quarter to see the Western Wall and the "Cardo Maximus", a Roman street. Arrive to the Oriental bazaar and enjoy the smells of the fresh coffee and spices.
Overnight: Lady Stern Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY03: Wednesday: Masada - Dead sea - Mitzpe Ramon
Checkout early in the morning and drive to the Dead Sea area. Take a hike up to Masada Fortress (or use the cable car). Enjoy a stunning sunrise above the dead sea and then take a tour through the fortress and learn why the site became a symbol of Jewish heroism.
Descend by cable car and continue to the shores of the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth! Have few hours of relaxation & spa and lunch, experience floating on the Dead Sea and if weather permits - cover yourself with healthy mud!
Drive to the Carmey Avdat Desert Estate. Hannah and Eyal Izrael established Carmey Avdat Farm in 1998 as part of the Wine Route Project. The farm is located in a hidden river valley and is built on the remains of an ancient agricultural settlement from the Byzantine period. The farm produces wine from grapes cultivated in their own vineyards. Enjoy a tour in the farm and some wine tasting.
Have dinner at the hotel in Mitzpe Ramon.
When the stars will be out, enjoy a stargazing in Mitzpe Ramon. This place is among the best locations in Israel (and in the world!) for stargazing. Together with a powerful telescope and lots of stories about our universe, your night is going to be full of stars.
Overnight: iBex Hotel, Mitzpe Ramon
DAY04: Thursday: Ramon Crater - Arava
Open your eyes to a lovely and relaxing view of the “midbar” – desert in Hebrew. Checkout and drive south, on our way we’ll pass through Ramon Crater National Park Road, which passes through Ramon Crater in an area that was formerly used for mining minerals. The space has undergone a thorough restoration and has become a fascinating geological park, revealing secrets from the geological past of the crater and revealing beautiful views.
Drive to Negev-Arava R&D visitors center learn and learn about agriculture in the desert in a unique and interactive way.
In the afternoon, we’ll visit a very unique community at Kibbutz Lotan. A kibbutz is a communal way of living that was founded in Israel during the 1920s. The residents of Kibbutz Lotan live under the banner of community and ecology in the desert. Take a tour at The Center for Creative Ecology, where you can see pioneering ecological projects, the latest ecological solutions for combating climate change, and sustainable living in extreme desert conditions, such as building houses with mud!
Dinner at the hotel
Overnight: Desert Inn, Kibbutz Lotan
DAY05: Friday: Timna - Arava border crossing - Aqaba
Checkout and start the day with a visit and hike at Timna Park. The park is outstanding in its variety of scenic, geological and archaeological sites of global significance.
Along the way we’ll eat a light packed lunch.
Depart to Arava border crossing & enter Jordan.
Enjoy a relaxing afternoon in the city of Aqaba and have a chance to swim at the beautiful Red Sea!
Overnight: Marina Plaza Hotel, Aqaba
DAY06: Saturday: Wadi Rum - Petra
Checkout & drive to Wadi Rum for a stunning tour in 4x4 Bedouin jeep in the dessert views of the Wadi!
Along the way we’ll eat a light packed lunch.
Drive to Petra.
Petra is one of the New Seven Wonders of the World and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There is no doubt that it is Jordan’s most valuable treasure and its greatest tourist attraction.
It is a unique city that was carved into a sheer rock face by the Nabataeans, an industrious Arab people who settled here more than 2000 years ago, turning it into an important junction for silk, spice, and other trade routes that linked China, India, and southern Arabia with Egypt, Syria, Greece, and Rome.
To explore the spectacular treasures of the Red Rose city of Petra ("half as old as time", as John William Burgon, the British poem said), enter through the impressive narrow gorge (the Siq) that leads marvelously to the magical monument, see the Treasury on the way, continue on to the Street of Facades, the Royal Tombs, the Cardo, temples, churches, museums, etc.
Overnight: Hayatt Zaman Hotel, Petra
DAY07: Sunday: Mount Nebo - Tel Aviv
Checkout & drive to visit Mt. Nebo. Mount Nebo is one of the most revered holy sites of Jordan and the place where Moses was buried. Visit the small Byzantine church that was built here by early Christians. Stand on the platform in front of the church and admire the view over the Jordan Valley and the Dead Sea. You can see as far as the rooftops of Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and the view is breathtaking.
Drive to Allenby border crossing & enter Israel.
Check-in at your hotel.
Free night – dinner at your own.
Overnight: Setai Hotel, Tel Aviv
DAY08: Monday: Airport
Checkout & transfer to Ben Gurion airport for the return flight.
Lufthansa City Center