ICE
ICE is the best way to see the world while exploring your Jewish heritage and reconnecting with your Jewish soul. Participants visit Spain, Gibraltar and finally, journey to Israel to visit Safed, Eilat, Tiberius and many more cities and sites. The trip reviews and renews Jewish history by tracking the life of the Rambam and Spanish Jewry while touring the country’s most popular attractions.
Quite literally a life changer, ICE, led by amazing staff who give teens the summer of their lives, provides memories and inspiration for a lifetime.
· Tour the Royal Palace and enjoy a picnic-style lunch in
Plaza Espana
· Experience Seville under the stars on a river cruise
· Spend Shabbat with the Jewish community in the majestic
city of Gibraltar
· Explore the land of Israel from top to bottom
On ICE, you can experience all this and more while taking part in meaningful community service projects and learning from the top educators NCSY has to offer.
ICE Sample Itinerary
Spain
DAY #1
Depart from New York in afternoon
DAY #2
- Arrive to Madrid in morning
- Spain's National Museum -- El Prado
- Picnic-style lunch in Plaza Espana
- Tour of the Royal Palace
- Overnight: Toledo
DAY #3
- Alcazar of Toledo
- Synagogue El Transito
- Synagogue of Santa Maria el Blanca
- Museum of El Greco
- Travel to Cordoba
- Overnight: Cordoba
DAY #4
- Tour of Mezquita
- Rambam monument
- Travel to Seville
- Evening: River cruise
- Overnight: Seville
DAY #5
- Giralda Tower
- Alcazar of Seville and hedge maze
- Travel to Gibraltar in afternoon
- Prepare for Shabbat
- Overnight: Gibraltar
DAY #6
- Shabbat with local community
- Walking tour of Old Towne
- Overnight: Gibraltar
DAY #7
- Cable car to Gibraltar highlands
Military caves, stalagmite caves, and apes den
- Begin travel to Granada
- Visit to Malaga en route
- Overnight: Granada
DAY #8
- Tour of Alhambra and Generalife Gardens
- Visit to old Moorish Hammam
- View of region from the Sierra Nevada Mountains
- Overnight: Granada
Israel
DAY #9/ Along the Mediterranean Coast
- Arrive to Israel at 2:15am and travel up the coast
- Flight to Israel
- Early check-in Kibbutz Nir Etzion and sleep-in!
- Tzippori – Former seat of the Sanhedrin
- Kfar Kedem - Pita baking, donkey riding and dinner feast
- Overnight: Kibbutz Nir Etzion Guest House, Carmel Mountains
DAY #10 / Western Galilee
- Take gondolas down to the Rosh Hanikrah ocean caves
- Rappelling down Keshet Arch
- Tour of Acco’s Irgun Prison, Tunisian Synagogue, Crusader-era castle, and old seaport
- Surf school on the Mediterranean Ocean!
- Overnight: Nir Etzion Guest House, Carmel Mountains
DAY #11 / Footsteps of the Sages
- Hike the Pisga Trail on Mount Meiron
- Visit to Kever Rashbi on Mount Meiron
- Meet with the Druze community of Peki’in and visit Rashbi’s Cave
- Walking tour of Tsfat and shopping in the artists quarter
- Overnight: Nir Etzion Guest House, Carmel Mountains
DAY #12 / The Kinneret
- Hike down Mount Arbel overlooking the Kinneret
- Visit to Kvarim of Rabbi Akiva and Rambam in Tiveria
- Swimming in the Kinneret and raft-building activity
- Return to Tsfat and prepare for Shabbat (HaAri Mikvah for boys)
- Kabbalat Shabbat at local shuls in Tsfat
- Overnight: Hotel Ron, Tsfat
DAY #13 / Shabbat in Tsfat
- Shabbat davening and lunch in Tsfat
- Motzei Shabbat: Cruise on the Kinneret
- Overnight: Hotel Ron, Tsfat
DAY #14 / YOM NCSY
- Activity with Ethiopian children at an absorption center in Tsfat
- Ascend to Jerusalem – Shecheyanu at the Haas Promenade overlooking the Old City
- Afternoon: City of David and Hezekiah’s Tunnels
- Evening: YOM NCSY EVENT!
- Overnight: Jerusalem Gates Hotel
DAY #15 /The Old City of Jerusalem
- Walk the Rampart Walls of the Old City from Jaffa Gate to Zion Gate
- Enter the Old City and wind through the Jewish Quarter’s alleyways and rooftops
- Reflections at the Kotel – The Western Wall
- Shopping and lunch in the Jewish Quarter
- Southern Wall Excavations & Davidson Center
- Evening: Bowling night in Jerusalem
- Overnight: Jerusalem Gates Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY #16 / 17th OF TAMUZ
- Yad VaShem Holocaust Memorial
- Begin travel northwards to the Golan Heights
- Evening: Bonfire party under the stars on the Golan
- Overnight: Hispin Guest House, Golan
DAY #17 / Water, Water, Water!
- View of the region from Nimrod’s Castle at the base of Mount Hermon
- Tour of the Tel Dan archeological complex
- Water walk in the Hatzbani River – A source of the Jordan River
- Relaxed rafting down the upper Jordan River
- Overnight: Hispin Guest House, Golan
DAY #18 / The Golan Heights
- Hike down the Jilaboun canyon on the Golan Heights
- View of the region from Mt. Ben Tal and crawl through former Syrian bunkers
- Emek HaBakhah – The Golan and the Yom Kippur War
- Tour of the ancient Golan synagogue at Katzrin
- Evening: Mifgash with student-soldiers at Hispin’s Hesder Yeshiva
- Overnight: Hispin Guest House, Golan
DAY #19 / The Old City
- Old Gesher – Frontier pioneering
- Hike in the Gilboa Mountains
- Return to Jerusalem in the afternoon and prepare for Shabbat
- Kabbalat Shabbat at the Kotel and Shabbat dinner at the OU Center
- Overnight: Prima Palace Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY #20 / Shabbat in Yerushalayim
- Shabbat davening at local shuls in Nachlaot
- Shabbat lunch at hotel
- Relaxed picnic-style afternoon at Gan Saker
- Evening: Group night out on Ben Yehuda Street
- Overnight: Prima Palace Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY #21 /Destruction and Exile
- Participate in an archeological excavation at Tzurim Valley in Jerusalem
- Depart Jerusalem and head south for the Negev Desert
- View the Valley of Ellah from Tel Azeka – The David & Goliath Battle
- Crawl through the caves of the Bar Kochba Rebellion at Hirbet Midras
- Bedouin-style hafla dinner feast and bonfire party in the desert
- Overnight: Chan HaShayarot Bedouin Tent, Negev Desert
DAY #22 / Adventures in the Negev Desert
- Camel trekking expedition in the desert
- Hike to the hidden desert oasis at Ein Avdat canyon
- Stand at the edge of the massive Ramon Crater
- Off-road jeeping adventure on the floor of the Ramon Crater
- Arrive to Eilat in the evening – night out along the Eilat promenade
- Overnight: ANA Eilat Guest House, Red Sea
DAY #23 / The Red Sea
- Sunrise hike to Mt. Zephachot – View of Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the Red Sea
- Relaxed time at the Red Sea’s Coral Beach
- Water sports activities in the Red Sea
- Tour of Eilat’s Underwater Observatory
- Overnight: ANA Eilat Guest House, Red Sea
DAY #24 / BaMidbar Wilderness Experience
- Travel northwards via the Arava Valley to the Dead Sea
- Relaxed floating at the Dead Sea’s Ein Bokek beach
- Nature walk to the Ein Gedi desert waterfalls
- Overnight: ANA Masada Guest House, Judean Desert
DAY #25/ Jewish Roots in the Desert
- Sunrise ascent to Masada via the Snake Path
- Tour of Masada – The mountain top desert fortress
- Walk down the Roman Ramp and continue back into the Negev Desert
- Explore a real open-air Bedouin market in Beer Sheva
- Tel Beer Sheva & Abraham’s Well – Jewish wandering in the desert
- Overnight: ANA Masada Guest House, Judean Desert
DAY #26 - 27 / Friends & Family Free Shabbat
DAY #28 / Celebrating Independence
- Machon Ayalon – The Palmach and the modern struggle to be free
- Independence Hall – Celebrating the founding of the Jewish State in 1948
- Walking tour of old Jaffa seaport and shopping in the flea market
- Evening: Dialogue in the Dark experience at the Holon Museum
- Overnight: Kibbutz Chafetz Chaim, Gush Dan
DAY #29 / Chesed Day
- Leket – Harvesting crops for the hungry at an Israeli farm
- Save-a-Child’s Heart – Bikur Cholim activity at an innovative center
- Solidarity visit to Sderot – Tour of an underground playground
- Overnight: Kibbutz Chafetz Chaim, Gush Dan
DAY #30 / To the Future
- Weitzman Institute and the Garden of Science – Israel’s leading science academy
- Test drive electrical cars at “Better Place” – an Israeli green technology company
- Nahalat Binyamin – Shopping at the famous Tel Aviv street festival
- Dinner at Azriel Towers Mall
- Overnight: Kibbutz Chafetz Chaim, Gush Dan
DAY #31 / Gush Etzion
- Travel to Hevron (via Beit Guvrin)
- Guided tour of the Maarat Hamachpela
- Visit to Gush Etzion Museum and Kever Rachel
- Ride the zip-lining course at Kfar Etzion deer park
- Overnight: Bayit Vagan Guest House, Jerusalem
DAY #32 / Exploring Jewish Sovereignty
- Tour of an IDF Army Base
- Guided tour of the Knesset – Israel’s parliament
- Geo-political tour of Jerusalem with Ateret Kohanim – The seam, the wall, the future
- Shopping in the Mea Shearim neighborhood
- Overnight: Bayit Vagan Guest House, Jerusalem
DAY #33 / Oh Jerusalem!
- Latrun – The struggle for Jerusalem in 1948
- Hike along the “Burma Road” trail – The secret lifeline to Jerusalem
- Lunch at the Kosher McDonalds in Mevaseret
- Ammunition Hill – Celebrate the unification of Jerusalem in 1967
- Pre-Shabbat shopping at Mahane Yehuda marketplace
- Check-in to accommodations in the Old City and prepare for Shabbat in the Rova
- Overnight: Sephardic Center, Jerusalem
DAY #34 / Shabbat in the Rova
- Shabbat davening options in the Old City and “New City”
- Walking tour of Jerusalem’s Yemin Moshe neighborhood
- Picnic-style afternoon at Gan HaAtzmaut
- Motzei Shabbat: Kotel Tunnel Tour
- Overnight: Sephardic Center, Jerusalem
DAY #35 / Shalom U’Lhitraot
- Return to airport for 5:10am flight to New York
- Arrive back to JFK Airport at 2:00
Q: How do I apply for an NCSY Summer Program?
A: The application will be open late October, please continue to check back on our website for updates.
Q: What forms do I need to fill out before I can be accepted?
A: Acceptance decisions will not be made without a completed application, recommendation letters, and medical waivers. ** Please note, most programs require a telephone interview before an acceptance decision is made.**
Q: I have applied, now what?
A: Upon completion of your online application, you will receive a confirmation email. Most NCSY Summer Programs also require a brief telephone interview as part of the application process. In the unlikely event that you do not receive a phone call to schedule your interview within three weeks of submitting your online application, kindly send an email to Summer@ncsy.org or call us at 1-888-TOUR-4-YOU.
Q: Until when can I apply for the programs?
A: All programs work under a rolling admission system which means that there is no final date to apply to the program. Once the program reaches capacity, we will stop accepting applications for that program. Most programs fill to capacity sooner rather then later so applying early is always recommended.
Q: Are scholarships available for NCSY Summer Programs?
A: Yes! The financial aid application is part of the online registration process. Scholarship decisions are based on need and are made after an applicant has been accepted on a first-come first-served basis. Please note, many outside organizations offer scholarships for summer programs. You might consider calling your local Federation, ZOA, JCC, Synagogue or local NCSY office for scholarship assistance.
Q: What forms do I need to send to NCSY before I can go on a program?
A: After being accepted, you must submit a packet of legal forms and medical forms. All forms will be sent to you in a confirmation email upon completion of the online registration process.
Q: When will I know if I have been accepted?
A: All programs will be accepting applicants on a rolling basis. You can expect to have an answer about three weeks after interviews have been conducted. If more than three weeks have passed since your interview and you have not been contacted regarding your participation, kindly send an email to Summer@ncsy.org or call us at 1-888-TOUR-4-YOU.
Q: When can I expect to receive an information packet for my program?
A: Packets will be mailed out before Passover. These packets will include packing lists, itineraries, flight information, specific program codes of conduct and other VERY IMPORTANT information. It is crucial that you read through the entire packet and mail in all appropriate forms. If you need this information prior to Passover, kindly send an email to Summer@ncsy.org or call us at 1-888-TOUR-4-YOU. Please note, most of this information will also be available on our website (http://www.NCSYsummer.com) around Passover time.
Q: Can I extend my stay in Israel?
A: Yes. To extend a ticket, you will need to contact the Summer Programs Associate assisgned to your program. He or she will give you the direct email address for our travel agent who will make the accommodations. Program Associates cannot arrange flights. Note: Any additional fees associated with the change are the responsibility of the program participant.
Q: Once the program has departed, how can I be in touch with my child? Summer@ncsy.org
A: For domestic programs, numbers will be provided. For the overseas programs there will be cell phone rental service required through a third party. There will also be an emergency number available. Some programs will also have access to fax machines and emails.
Q: Once the program has started, whom do I contact with problems or questions?
A: If you have a question regarding billing, flights or any other matter concerning your program, please contact the NCSY Summer Programs Associate assigned to your program at 1-888-TOUR-4-YOU. If your specific questions were not answered in the FAQs above, please feel free to call 1-888-TOUR-4-YOU, or email your inquiry to
If your specific questions were not answered in the FAQs above, please feel free to call 1-888-TOUR-4-YOU, or email your inquiry to.
