This group paused for a photo while hiking near the Sea of Galilee.

Thank you for trusting Experience Israel Now with the responsibility for arranging a tour of Israel for you! In addition, thank you for carefully reading and understanding this document. A trip to Israel is not only the “trip of a lifetime,” it is also an expensive investment. Your application to travel with EIN is not complete until you indicate you’ve read this document.

This tour has been rescheduled because of the coronavirus pandemic. This trip is set for June 5-15, 2022. 

For travelers signing up in 2022, the price of this trip is $4,950. Our travelers still on board from our postponed 2020 trip are guaranteed their quoted price. Souvenirs, snacks or personal expenses in Israel or airports are not included in this price. A PCR test for COVID-19 is required within 72 hours of our departure and upon arrival at Ben-Gurion Airport ($27). Those costs are also not included. We are paying for the final PCR test, which will be done at our hotel in Jerusalem.

The all-inclusive cost includes:

  • Round-trip airfare from Atlanta to Tel Aviv, via the airline chosen for your particular tour.
  • All transfers abroad and touring by luxury, air conditioned motor coaches.
  • All entrance fees, luggage handling at hotels and airports abroad (tips included).
  • All meals, including breakfast and dinner each day at our places of lodging, and lunches on the road.
  • Taxes and service charges in hotels and restaurants.
  • Services of our professional tour guide, licensed by Israel.
  • Lodging each night in Israel.
  • All tips for tour guide, bus driver, boat crew (on the Sea of Galilee), offering at the Garden Tomb, and the staff at each place we stay. We will not ask you for extra tips at the conclusion of this tour. Our previous travelers have been asked about their additional expenses in our recent, post-trip surveys. You’ll learn a lot by seeing what they have to say!
  • Bottled water on the bus.
  • A basic medical insurance plan through Faith Ventures. This is not trip-cancellation coverage but it does include some reimbursement if a traveler were quarantined because of COVID-19. It covers medical costs associated with any medical issue, including COVID-19, or any accident requiring health care. Typically, health insurance policies you may already have in the United States will not cover medical coverage, evacuation costs or quarantine costs of issues you might face outside of the country. Check with your current health insurance carrier for details.
  • Our final PCR test for COVID-19 at our hotel in Jerusalem. This is required before returning to the USA.

Cost does not include:

  • Optional trip interruption or cancellation insurance. If you would like to review the details of many plans other than the one we’re offering through Faith Ventures, visit insuremytrip.com. Enter the required information and compare “comprehensive” plans. We highly suggest purchasing such a policy under current circumstances.
  • Luggage fees charged by airlines. Typically, airlines allow one large bag (50-pound limit), one carry-on bag, and one “personal” bag, without any charge. If that policy changes, any luggage fees would be the responsibility of each traveler.
  • Any tips needed for personal requests outside normal service. This is very rare. Tips for tour guide and bus driver ARE included. Tips for luggage handling at our places of lodging ARE included. But if you order room service, for instance, you should provide the tip.
  • Your cost to secure a passport, if needed. 
  • Any snacks, drinks or even meals not included in the regular schedule. This would include any such purchases in airports, and during optional free time in Jerusalem or another location. It is OK to carry snacks with you for the trip or food for the flight, though you may have to show security personnel the food you are taking on board an airplane. There will be plenty of food in the regular agenda, with all meals covered by the tour cost.
  • You are required to take (and test negative) for COVID-19 via an accepted PCR test within 72 hours of your trip. This cost is not included in the price of the tour. You will also be required to have a PCR test (and test negative) for COVID-19 upon your arrival in Israel. This cost is $27 and is not included in the price of the trip.

Costs that could change:

  • Our margin for error in pricing these trips is extremely small. Please be aware that there are costs outside of our control that could change.
  • If the tour company changes its price because of radically fluctuating currency rates, the increase will be passed along to the traveler. The odds are very slim that this could happen, and it has never happened before. Nevertheless, the tour company reserves this right.
  • If our airline increases its charged price even after it has given us a quote, that cost will be passed along to the traveler. Examples of such charges could be changes in luggage fees or a “fuel surcharge” that would reflect rising fuel prices. This has happened only twice in the past 23 years.
  • In the unlikely event that this tour does not gather at least 35 paying travelers, the price of the trip could increase. At that point, travelers would also have the opportunity to withdraw from the trip without penalty. If the trip does not have 20 committed travelers six months prior to departure, the trip might be canceled. If that happens, all payments to all travelers would be refunded without penalty.
  • The airport departure taxes have been included in the quoted price. However, these taxes are set by country, and could change before our trip takes place. If the taxes change, up or down, we’ll either issue a refund, or charge an increase.

SINGLE-ROOM SUPPLEMENT

  • If a traveler desires a single room, there will be an additional charge of $918, due no later than May 5, 2022.

ONLY A LIMITED NUMBER OF SEATS ARE GUARANTEED

  • Each tour has a projected number of travelers. Once that number has been reached, we often can find room for more travelers. However, we may be forced, at that time, to use a different airline for the extra travelers. Even if we are able to obtain seats on the same flight, those seats might cost more. This means the price of the tour may increase for the late additions. Every effort will be made to keep the price of the trip the same for additional passengers beyond the guaranteed projection. However, the best way to guarantee getting this trip at this best price is to register with a deposit early.

PASSPORT INFORMATION

  • We must provide your passport information to our agents in Israel before we travel. We prefer having a copy of your passport, either as a photocopy or an electronic copy via e-mail. A simple way to do that is to take a photo of your passport with your phone and e-mail it to us (pastorandycook@gmail.com). Please provide a copy as soon as you can, preferably with the application. The passport must be valid six months beyond our return date, or December 16, 2022. You do not have to wait on a passport to arrive before filling out an application. Indeed, you should not. These trips have been known to fill up very quickly. If you’re going, get an application in quickly!
  • If you do not want us to have a photocopy or digital copy, we must have your name exactly as it appears on your passport, your passport number, your birthday, the date of issue, and the date of expiration. We strongly advise having a high-quality copy of your passport at home, and one you can carry with you in case you lose the real thing.

DEPOSIT AND PAYMENT SCHEDULE

DEPOSIT: A deposit of $500 per person is due with a completed registration form to secure a place on this trip. In the case you cancel after signing up and making a deposit, $100 of this deposit is non-refundable. If you’re new to this trip, contact us for payment options. Final payments must be in no later than May 5, 2022.

SEND PAYMENTS TO:

Experience Israel Now, Inc. (or simply, “EIN”)

164 Old South Way

Fort Valley, GA 31030

If you are making payments for two or more people, you may write only one check for all costs.

CANCELLATIONS AND CANCELLATION FEES:

  • If you have to cancel your trip for any reason, some or even all of the money you’ve invested cannot be returned. For instance, once we purchase airline tickets, we are unlikely to see that money again if you cancel. We cannot return to travelers what is not returned to us.
  • Up to six months prior to departure: $100 is non-refundable.
  • Four to six months prior to scheduled departure: Up to 30% of tour cost is non-refundable, plus any fees charged by the airline.
  • Two to four months prior to scheduled departure: Up to 50% of tour cost is non-refundable, plus any fees charged by the airline.
  • Last two months before scheduled departure: Up to 100% of tour cost is non-refundable, plus any fees charged by the airline.
  • A reminder: Purchasing trip interruption or cancellation insurance is the only way to cover unexpected cancellations, medical emergencies during the trip, or the cost of emergency travel home during the tour. An investment in travel insurance could prove to be very valuable in the case of an emergency. Many policies are available for a reasonable fee. However, be aware that trip cancellation policies usually do not cover trips that have been canceled for non-emergency reasons. Read any policy you’re considering carefully for details of what is and is not covered. Visit insuremytrip.com for a wide range of policy choices.

POSSIBILITY OF DATE CHANGE OR TRIP CANCELLATION BEYOND OUR CONTROL

  • It is conceivable that circumstances in Israel might cause us to change the date of our trip or cancel it outright. EIN promises that it will do everything possible to refund as much money as possible to travelers who are adversely affected by such a change. Our first priority in such a situation would be to reschedule the trip at a later date. Trip insurance does not typically cover things like war, pandemics or travel restrictions imposed by governments. It certainly does not cover the fear that such things could happen.
  • There is an inherent financial risk involved in the possibility of trip schedule changes or cancellation. Experience Israel Now promises to refund a maximum amount of money to travelers who must cancel. However, money given to airlines, hotels and travel agents as deposits or payments is usually not refunded in such cases. In short, if you must cancel your trip, you will not receive a full refund. The closer the cancellation to the actual date of travel, the larger the financial loss is likely to be.

ACCEPTANCE OF APPLICATIONS

  • In rare cases, we might refuse a traveler’s application. If a traveler is not physically able to take part in the tour, we’ll reject the application and refund the deposit. Likewise, other factors could come into play, ranging from emotional stability to spiritual commitment. If such a case becomes obvious before the trip, it could cause EIN to reject an application and return deposits and/or as much money as is possible in each individual case. A biblical study tour is not a vacation trip or even what might be considered a “normal” tour of Israel offered by  other tour companies. This is a challenging trip in every sense of the word. Group unity and individual responsibility are critically important on our tours. Travelers will need to show maturity in all steps of preparation and an awareness that others in the group are affected by the decisions of each individual. Again, this situation is extremely rare, but EIN reserves the right to make such decisions. 

FLIGHT SCHEDULE

All of our trips begin and end in Atlanta.

Our flight schedule for this trip: United Airlines 786 leaves Atlanta (ATL) at 6:46 p.m. on June 5. We connect in Newark (EWR), landing at 9:15 p.m. and departing on UA 090 at 10:55 p.m. We’ll land in Tel Aviv (TLV) at 4:20 p.m. on June 6.

We’ll return on UA 091, leaving June 14 at 11:25 p.m., landing at EWR at 4:10 a.m. on June 15. Our flight from Newark to ATL (UA 312) departs at 7:59 a.m. and lands at 10:20 a.m.

For travelers in the USA, it takes about 24 hours to make a complete journey from your home to our first hotel in Israel.

“LAND-ONLY” PACKAGES

If you would like to make your own flight arrangements, you can. Once in Israel you would also be responsible for your own transportation to our first place of lodging unless you arrive at the airport when our main group of travelers arrives. If you choose this “land-only” option, we promise to help you make the connection with our group as smoothly and as quickly as possible. Many travelers have, indeed, taken this option on past tours. Contact us for details of your particular situation.

UPGRADES

If you would like an upgrade in seating, you’ll want to choose the land-only option and make your own arrangements. We are not able to make upgrades or select seats when purchasing a block of tickets.

QUESTIONS?

There are a myriad of questions when considering a trip to Israel, and we’ve got the answers. After the first of the year, we’ll provide information to each traveler about packing tips, traveling advice and detailed descriptions of what to expect on our trip. Most of that information will be passed along in the final few months of preparation. Some of it can be discovered now by clicking this link. Watching this video will also be very helpful.