Avanti Destinations has started offering custom FIT travel to Israel with six new itineraries, 20 hotels and more than 30 private and shared experiences and sightseeing tours. The company has also added Cappadocia as a destination in Turkey and launched a new 84-page e-brochure, “Essence of North Africa & the Middle East 2021-2022,” describing customizable vacations in Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Morocco, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.
Destinations in Israel that can be visited include Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Bethlehem, Jericho, the Dead Sea, Tiberias/Sea of Galilee, Haifa, Caesarea, Masada, Nazareth and Eilat. Recommended vacations range from 10 to four days. The duration of each vacation, as well as cities visited and activities included, may all be modified.
While Avanti features private transfers throughout the Middle East and North Africa, one of the six new Israel itineraries is the region’s first self-drive vacation (eight-day “Best of Israel”), including self-drive sightseeing tours along the Mediterranean, Sea of Galilee, Dead Sea, and the Judean desert, scene of Jesus’ self-imposed exile.
U.S. travelers do not need to obtain a visa prior to arriving in Israel, Morocco, or the United Arab Emirates. For Turkey, an e-visa is easily obtained online. Visiting Jordan or Egypt requires a visa. Israel is the latest addition to Avanti’s lineup in North Africa and the Middle East. The UAE was launched in 2015 as a stopover destination for travelers flying between the eastern U.S. and Asia on Emirates airline. Morocco was added in 2019, Egypt in 2020 and Jordan earlier this year.
Avanti will host a webinar on North African/Middle Eastern destinations on December 14. To register, visit https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4009152965526052620
Travel advisors can also still qualify for a $25 gift card for each passenger booked for a minimum of two nights valued at $2,500 or more by December 31, 2021 for travel in Jordan taking place by December 31, 2022.
Among the more than 30 private and shared sightseeing tours and experiences Avanti offers in Israel are the private “Beyond Jerusalem, Hiking Along Road 395” tour in the Judean Hills, visiting Mary’s Well, the birthplace of John the Baptist at Ein Kerem, followed by a wine tasting, with time for hiking. The private “Wonders of Masada and Dead Sea” tour visits the famed Dead Sea—so salty that everyone floats—and the ruins of the mountaintop fortress of Herod the Great, with Roman-style bathhouse, and the most complete Roman siege works used to defeat Jewish rebels who had taken over the fortress after the destruction of the Second Temple. The private tour of Caesarea (seat of Roman rule) and Zichron Yaakov (wine-making town founded by Jewish pioneers in 1882), includes wine-tasting; while a private Mediterranean coast tour visits the Crusader port city of Akko (including a tour of the Templar Tunnel), Haifa and its Baha’i gardens, and Caesarea. It also includes a private tour of Jerusalem’s Old City and Bethlehem and a private Tel Aviv tour, visiting scenic Old Jaffa and its flea market, now a trendy entertainment spot, Neve Tzedek (built in 1883, now a hip neighborhood), and the White City (home to 4,000 buildings in the Internationalist style of the 1930s, many are Bauhaus), and providing a Tasting Card for independent sampling of food and drink at the Carmel Market (largest in the city).
Because the country is so small (equivalent in size to New Jersey), distances are relatively short, so most of the excursions are offered from both Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
Two of the six new vacations in Israel are four-day/three-night city stays in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. Examples of the other multi-destination itineraries are:
Discover Israel: A 10 days/nine nights staying in Tel Aviv, Tiberias, the Dead Sea area, Jerusalem. It includes private transfers throughout; private Tel Aviv Highlights tour; private Mediterranean Coast tour and traditional lunch with Arab Druze citizens (an ethnic and religious minority); private Taste of Upper Galilee tour, including visiting the mystical ancient city of Safed, a goat cheese-making workshop, and touring an olive oil mill; private Biblical Landscapes of the Jordan Valley tour; private Negev Desert tour with lunch, including tour of Masada, a stop in an oasis, a camel trek and traditional Hafla meal; private Old City Jerusalem walking tour; private Birth of the Jewish State and Modern Jerusalem tour; private Beyond Jerusalem and Hiking along 395 tour; choice of hotels; daily breakfast.
Best of Israel (self-drive): It's an eight days/seven nights staying in Tel Aviv, Tiberias and Jerusalem and includes private arrival/departure transfers; private Tel Aviv highlights walking tour; four-day car rental; self-drive tours of Mediterranean Coast, Nazareth and Sea of Galilee, Taste of Upper Galilee, and Desert and Dead Sea Landscape; private Old City Jerusalem walking tour; choice of hotels; daily breakfast.
Highlights of Israel: A seven-day/six-night tour with stays in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. It includes private transfers throughout; private Tel Aviv highlights tour; private Jerusalem Old City and Bethlehem tour; private tour of the Wonders of Masada, Qumran (caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered), and the Dead Sea; choice of hotels; daily breakfast.
For additional information on booking unique experiences and custom-built, multi-destination FIT travel 365 days a year to the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, Asia, and Central and South America, visit the travel agent portal https://book.avantidestinations.com or call 1-800-422-5053.
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