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Taglit-Birthright Israel is a unique partnership between the people of Israel through their government, local Jewish communities (North American Jewish Federations through the United Jewish Communities, Keren Hayesod, and The Jewish Agency for Israel), and the birthright israel Foundation, generously supported by the following Jewish philanthropic partners: S. Daniel Abraham, The Abramson Family Foundation, The AVI CHAI Foundation, Andrea and Charles Bronfman, Edgar M. Bronfman Sr., Circle of Service Foundation, Susie and Michael Gelman, Richard and Rhoda Goldman Foundation, David and Ruth Gottesman, The Harold Grinspoon Foundation, Hadassah - The Women's Zionist Organization of America, Susan and Roger Hertog, The Jim Joseph Foundation, Ronald S. Lauder, The Marcus Foundation- Bernie Marcus, Jane and Daniel Och, The Samberg Family Foundation, Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation, Judy and Michael Steinhardt, The Wasserman Foundation, Leslie and Abigail Wexner and The Wexner Foundation, Karen and Gary Winnick in North America; Marc Rich in Europe. |
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Thanks to Taglit-Birthright Israel, if you are Jewish and between the ages of 18 to 26 and you have never been on a peer educational Israel Experience program, this is your opportunity to receive a free trip. Taglit-Birthright Israel is a unique, historical partnership between the people of Israel through their government, local Jewish Federations and communities (through the United Jewish Communities, Keren Hayesod and The Jewish Agency for Israel), and leading Jewish philanthropists. |
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Eligibility criteria for the program are as follows: You must be Jewish, between the ages of 18 to 26 years old, a high school graduate, and never have been on a peer-educational experience to Israel that lasted longer than five days. In other words, if you have been to Israel with your family, or solely to visit family, you are eligible. However, if you studied in Israel, or visited Israel on a bus tour (with the exception of March of the Living), you are NOT eligible. Taglit-Birthright Israel requires that eligible applicants must be 18 years of age and out of High School by the date of your trip departure. If you were born in Israel, or an Israeli Citizen, you are required to provide documentation proving that you have lived in the USA since the age of 12 in order to be considered eligible. This can be in the form of a Landed Immigrant Visa or a dated entrance letter from the school you attended at the time. Full time students registered in Jewish Studies programs in any institute of higher learning will no longer be eligible for the Taglit-Birthright Israel gift. This includes Jewish Teacher Training Programs, Jewish Studies programs, Rabbinic programs, Yeshivot/Seminaries, Jewish Communal Service programs, etc. ALL APPLICANTS MUST SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETE AN INTERVIEW. |
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Before you can be accepted to the program you must complete the following steps: complete and confirm the online application, submit a deposit check, be interviewed, and submit the required paperwork. After you have finished all of these steps, an Amazing Israel representative will be in contact with you via email letting you know your application status and whether you have been accepted to a trip.
With such a large demand for the Amazing Israel program, we try to accommodate applicants who register early, and who meet all the other eligibility criteria. We also reserve the right to use discretion during the allocation process. For example, an individual who is very close to the upper age limit (25-26 years of age) may be given priority over younger applicants who will have other opportunities to take advantage of this gift. |
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There is no catch, no strings attached. Participants are only responsible for a $250 (US) deposit, fully refundable upon their return home after successfully completing the program. Participants are under no obligation to Taglit-Birthright Israel, which finances the trip, or their Trip Organizer, who implements the trip, for any future activities or financial obligations. Of course, should participants decide to become more involved in the Jewish community, go back to Israel or explore other aspects of Jewish life, we encourage them to regularly check out the rest of the website for resources that may fit their needs. |
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The deposit serves a few purposes. During the application process it acts as one of a few measures designed to reflect the fact that an applicant is serious about the prospect of participating in the program. Once an applicant is accepted to the program it acts as a guarantee that he/she will not withdraw from the program, thereby forfeiting their spot and preventing another person from benefiting from the opportunity to go to Israel for free. Moreover, should a participant withdraw less than approximately 30 days prior to departure (as registration opens you will be notified as to the exact dates), it provides us with revenue to pay the penalties that are incurred from the airlines for last minute cancellations. In Israel, it also serves as a guarantee that each individual will participate in all aspects of the program.
Deposits are paid, handled and refunded through a company called Payoneer. Once you are fully registered, have paid your deposit and are assigned a flight group, you will be issued a Payoneer PrePaid MasterCard®.
Within 30 days after you successfully participate on a trip, your deposit will be loaded onto the Payoneer Pre-Paid MasterCard® for your usage. You will be notified by email when your deposit is loaded on the card. That email may also contain information about how you can voluntarily donate all or part of your deposit in support of future Taglit-Birthright Israel trips. (Note: If you are not assigned a flight group, your deposit will be returned through the original method of payment).
You may contact Payoneer PrePaid MasterCard® Customer Support by phone: USA- 1.888.505.8885
Outside USA- 1.847.461.1436 |
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No, there are no hidden costs on the program. The only expenses that will be incurred by the program participants are supplementary travel insurance (this is mandatory for all participants who have a confirmed departure date), the cost of getting to and from your home, to and from the airport and spending money.
The only other cost that we will ask you to cover (aside from souvenirs) will be the cost of one meal per day. While this meal will most often be lunch, you may be asked to purchase dinner on some days. Should you follow the above guideline of $300, you will have enough money for meals and souvenirs.
Participants are encouraged to offer a gratuity to their Israeli tour guide and bus driver of $60. A gratuity is a standard measure in the Israeli tourism industry that is not a covered expense of the program. |
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We're not strangers. Taglit-Birthright Israel - a planned partnership of philanthropists, Jewish communities through their local Jewish Federation and the Government of Israel- believes in the importance of promoting Jewish peoplehood and Jewish renaissance, and is committed to
providing access to a first peer-group program in Israel as a birthright of every Jew. This initiative is a gift from one generation to the next. The trip is a gift from Taglit-Birthright Israel. |
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All program participants must have a valid passport one month prior to departure in order to participate in any Taglit-Birthright Israel program. A valid passport is one that does not expire before February 2011. As part of your application process, you are required to provide your valid passport number as well as expiration date and country of issue.
If your passport has been issued from countries OTHER than Canada, United States, Great Britain or Israel, please contact Routes Travel for details regarding obtaining a visa to Israel. If you are unsure whether you require a visa, contact us as soon as possible for further information.
Please note: if you do not hold a valid passport prior to your departure, you will not be permitted to join the program. |
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Should you wish to travel on the same bus as a particular individual you may request this from Routes Travel. Please note that you and your friend must be registered and eligible for a Routes Travel trip, and must request to travel with you. While we do our best to accommodate friend requests, there is no guarantee. |
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If your plans change after you receive your final acceptance to the program, we will do our best to find a replacement and return your deposit. The entire deposit is non-refundable should you withdraw after the Cancellation Deadline as noted in the Trip Waiver form and the Refund Policy form. |
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Yes. Please visit our Contact Us web page to obtain contact information. |
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You, the participant, must contact the Routes Travel Office directly to inform us of any such changes. |
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All Taglit-Birthright Israel participants leaving on US departures have the option of extending their ticket to remain in Israel beyond the program (*In RARE situations participants will not be permitted to make extensions. In such cases, your organizer will notify you in advance of ticketing that extensions won't be possible). Extensions on El Al and Israir flights can be made in one of two ways:
For $125 you can make an extension prior to departure from the United States directly through our travel agent, Gil Travel. This is an online process done through their website (http://www.giltravel.com/extensionsinfo.htm). Extending will only be possible once your organizer has notified you that you have been ticketed on a specific flight.
You also have the option of waiting to extend your ticket once you are in Israel. It costs only $50 to do it directly through El Al or $250 through Israir once in Israel. However, as availability can always be an issue, if you know you have to be back home on a certain date, it is highly recommended that you make the extension prior to departure of the trip from the US.
Tickets are only good for 90 days from departure from the US, and will become null and void after this time. Also, understand that our tickets are a certain class of seating. In the case of making an extension through Gil Travel before departure from the US, all efforts will be made to find a seat within the existing class of service for the date you are seeking or surrounding dates. As a last effort Gil Travel may be able to find you a seat in a different class of service. This may come with having to pay a higher fee for the extension. They will alert you to this fact before processing the ticket.
We encourage you to take advantage of being in Israel and to extend your stay after the program. We are happy to assist you with this.
Please know that once the Taglit-Birthright Israel program has concluded, you will no longer be under our supervision or responsibility of Taglit-Birthright Israel. |
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Accommodations on all Taglit-Birthright Israel: Routes Travel programs are based on triple occupancy in 3-4 star hotels, youth hostels and kibbutz guest houses. Linen service will be provided by the accommodations and participants are advised to bring towels from home.
A minimum of two kosher meals will be provided each day while in Israel. The meals will range from buffet breakfasts, to falafel, to North American style fast-food, to boxed lunches, to sit-down dinners. Provided that a participant specifies that they require vegetarian food on their on-line application form, a vegetarian option will always be made available. Participants with specific dietary needs and/or allergies must contact the Routes Travel in advance in order to ensure that they can be accommodated. While we will do our utmost to accommodate specific food allergies, please be aware that Israel does not have the same level of allergy awareness as is common in North America. |
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All Jews, regardless of background, affiliation or practice, are welcome on the program.
The program will provide opportunities for participants to celebrate Jewish life together. It is designed to be completely inclusive. No participant will be forced to join in any organized religious activities. At the same time, kosher food will be served at all tour-sponsored activities and all programming will respect the laws of the Jewish Sabbath. |
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Taglit-Birthright Israel is a trip with no strings attached - there are no obligations or requirements involved in participating. However, we do hope that this experience will inspire you to get involved in your Jewish community upon your return. Israel Experience professionals across the country are ready and willing to assist you in connecting to your local community through a variety of different events, programs and activities. How you choose to involve yourself is entirely up to you - we just provide the resources and opportunities for you to do so. |
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Although there will be no free days on this program, there will be certain evenings that are designated as supervised structured free time. Should free time be granted to the group, the location and time will be at the sole discretion of the Routes Travel office. Participants will receive their specific itinerary in the weeks prior to departure. Routes Travel requests that once you have reviewed your itinerary, you notify your family and/or friends in Israel and let them know that they can visit you on your free evenings. All family/friend meetings must first be approved by your trip staff. The itinerary will include the names and addresses of your accommodations in order to facilitate such visits. |
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Frequently Asked Questions
