Senior Tours of Israel

Authentic Israel

• Authentic Israel partners with community groups and designs an itinerary that meets their "unique vision" of the trip. For seniors 55 and older, trips are offered through the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. The 10-day tour has an option of two hotels in Jerusalem and the Galilee. Visitors will enjoy speakers, cultural experiences and Shabbat in Jerusalem. Tours are limited to 40 people. Travelers depart from Newark Liberty International Airport or Miami and arrive in Tel Aviv. An Israeli escort guides the group through Jerusalem's old city, and tourists will visit the Knesset, Israel's parliament. Other highlights include Yad VaShem, the Holocaust Memorial, the Caesarea amphitheater, Tsfat (birthplace of the mystical Kabbalah movement) and a wine-tasting tour in the Golan Heights. Two kosher group meals per day are included, along with a deluxe touring bus, all entrance fees and an English-speaking Israeli guide. Authentic Israel trips welcome people of all backgrounds.

  Authentic Israel
  800-600-5194
  authenticisrael.com

ITAS (Israel Travel Advisory Service)

• ITAS has been around for almost 40 years and is the original tour company providing bar and bat mitzvah tours. The 11-day adult tour offers a "renewal of wedding vows" option. Visitors land in Tel Aviv and then drive directly to Jerusalem, where they honor their Jewish religious heritage by reciting a blessing. Upon entering the Jaffa Gate, the tour proceeds along narrow paths through the Christian, Moslem and Armenian quarters and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Other stops in Jerusalem are the Tower of David and the Rabbinical Tunnel near the Western Wall. The tour then visits the Dead Sea, Massada and Ein Gedi (an oasis in the Judean desert), passing the site of the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Other highlights include the Chagall windows at Hadassah Hospital and an overnight stay at a kibbutz.

  ITAS (Israel Travel Advisory Service)
  215 Millburn Avenue
  Millburn, NJ 07041
  800-326-4827
  Itastours.com

Accessible Journeys

• For seniors with special needs, Accessible Journeys organizes group and independent tours with wheelchair-accessible attractions. Tourists begin the Israel trip in Tel Aviv and continue on to Haifa, Tel Dan Nature Reserve, Beit Shean, Jerusalem, Massada and the Dead Sea. This 10-day tour provides an English-speaking guide, porter service and wheelchair-accessible hotels with a private bath. Tourists have an opportunity for worship, and tree planting and a visit to the Holocaust museum are on the itinerary. For those who prefer independent tours, there is a choice of van rentals with a GPS system, chauffer-driven vans and chauffeured private cars. Accessible Journeys offers personal-care attendants if required.

  Accessible Journeys
  35 Ridley Park, PA 19078
  800-846-4537
  disablilitytravel.com