When my wife and I decide upon traveling to a foreign destination, Condé Nast is our first choice in researching a travel agency partner.Thus, with Israel as our destination, we were lead to Susan Weissberg of Wyllys Professional Travel in Coral Gables, Florida.First impressions are important and Susan did not disappoint.She responded to my initial e-mail promptly.Within a day or two we talked on the phone for quite some time.
Travel goals and plans are always unique. Thus, a custom plan is helpful. Our situation involved working our ‘tour’ around a family wedding in Jerusalem, with the wedding party staying at a pre-arranged hotel in Tel-Aviv (The Sheraton Tel-Aviv). We could not plan a ‘guided’ tour during our five and one-half day stay in Tel-Aviv due to the uncertainty with the timing of family events. “This is not a problem”, Susan stated, and she was correct. First Susan obtained a premium room at the Sheraton Tel-Aviv for us. This was followed with a ‘laundry list’, if you will, of recommended places to visit, restaurants to dine at, etc. She also provided us with the local tour agency’s contact number, in case any additional inquiries were necessary. We created our ‘own’ tour schedule around family events. My wife and I would suggest that the Yitzhak Rabin Center in Tel-Aviv and the Machon Alyalon underground bullet factory located on Kibbutz Hill in Rehovot (40 minute cab ride from Tel-Aviv) should not be missed. Also, relax riding a bicycle around Hayarkon Park.
Our six-day ‘guided’ tour with Elad began from Tel-Aviv. We wound our way up the western coast to Haifa before ending up in Tiberias for a few days. We then spent seven days with Jerusalem as our ‘base camp’. However, I would not consider the King David Hotel a ‘camping site’!!. Many of the wonderful sights visited were mentioned in other reviews of Susan’s fine services. Repetition is not necessary. One thing that was not stressed enough in other reviews, in my opinion, are the guides that Susan has pre-screened for her clients. Elad, our main guide throughout our six-day tour (the final day was on our own), and Ilan, our jeep tour guide in the Golan Heights, the Merom Golan Kibbutz, were knowledgeable and passionate about their beloved country. This passion is a nationalistic passion, not a religious one. Thus, the complicated political, educational, agricultural and religious situations in Israel were explained thoroughly and explicitly.
Israel’s complexity, diversity, history and beauty are something that should be seen and experienced by all – Jew, Christian, Muslim, or non-affiliated. Susan and her team enhanced this experience with proper planning of our holiday, followed by flawless execution of that plan.
Travel goals and plans are always unique. Thus, a custom plan is helpful. Our situation involved working our ‘tour’ around a family wedding in Jerusalem, with the wedding party staying at a pre-arranged hotel in Tel-Aviv (The Sheraton Tel-Aviv). We could not plan a ‘guided’ tour during our five and one-half day stay in Tel-Aviv due to the uncertainty with the timing of family events. “This is not a problem”, Susan stated, and she was correct. First Susan obtained a premium room at the Sheraton Tel-Aviv for us. This was followed with a ‘laundry list’, if you will, of recommended places to visit, restaurants to dine at, etc. She also provided us with the local tour agency’s contact number, in case any additional inquiries were necessary. We created our ‘own’ tour schedule around family events. My wife and I would suggest that the Yitzhak Rabin Center in Tel-Aviv and the Machon Alyalon underground bullet factory located on Kibbutz Hill in Rehovot (40 minute cab ride from Tel-Aviv) should not be missed. Also, relax riding a bicycle around Hayarkon Park.
Our six-day ‘guided’ tour with Elad began from Tel-Aviv. We wound our way up the western coast to Haifa before ending up in Tiberias for a few days. We then spent seven days with Jerusalem as our ‘base camp’. However, I would not consider the King David Hotel a ‘camping site’!!. Many of the wonderful sights visited were mentioned in other reviews of Susan’s fine services. Repetition is not necessary. One thing that was not stressed enough in other reviews, in my opinion, are the guides that Susan has pre-screened for her clients. Elad, our main guide throughout our six-day tour (the final day was on our own), and Ilan, our jeep tour guide in the Golan Heights, the Merom Golan Kibbutz, were knowledgeable and passionate about their beloved country. This passion is a nationalistic passion, not a religious one. Thus, the complicated political, educational, agricultural and religious situations in Israel were explained thoroughly and explicitly.
Israel’s complexity, diversity, history and beauty are something that should be seen and experienced by all – Jew, Christian, Muslim, or non-affiliated. Susan and her team enhanced this experience with proper planning of our holiday, followed by flawless execution of that plan.
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