Latest Travel News From Israel

THE LATEST TRAVEL NEWS FROM ISRAEL  ISRAEL GOVERNMENT TOURIST OFFICE NORTH AMERICA  www.goisrael.com #VisitIsrael

GROUPON LAUNCHES ISRAEL VACATIONS STARTING AT  $999 INCLUSIVE Groupon has launched an exclusive series of eight-day trips to Israel, priced from $999* including airfare, and available for travel through early 2016. The tour includes visits to Tel Aviv, Galilee, Jerusalem and more. "We've been working with Groupon on this exciting project for four months," says Uri Steinberg, Israel Tourism Commissioner, North America, "and the entrance into the Israel tour market by so iconic an online portal as Groupon is a dramatic vote of confidence in tourism to Israel." 2015 is already turning out to be the best year ever for American tourism to Israel since the state's founding in 1948.      Find more information here.  LIVE ON THE GROUND A glimpse into the daily lives of travelers exploring Israel: View the clip here.  AUTUMN IN TEL AVIV:  IN THREE MINUTES The sights and sounds of bustling Tel Aviv, captured in three minutes:     View the clip here. ENRIQUE IGLESIAS SET TO PERFORM IN ISRAEL Enrique Iglesias will perform at the Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv as part of his 'Sex and Love' Tour on December 16, 2015. Iglesias last performed in Israel in June 2011. The tour will include some of his greatest hits, including "Tonight (I'm Lovin' You)," "I Like How it Feels," "No me digas que no," "Bailamos," "Cuando Me Enamoro" and "Finally Found You." TEL AVIV AND BERLIN PARTNER TO PROMOTE INNOVATION  Marking 50 years of the official ties between Germany and Israel, the two countries are launching a new startup exchange program. As Tel Aviv and Berlin have become such important startup hubs, this new collaboration marks a great new development between the two countries. As part of this partnership, startups setting up shop in Tel Aviv and Berlin will have the opportunity to get free co-working spaces, advice on regulations and legal issues on starting new companies, as well as one-on-one mentoring assistance.  Find more information here.  WATCH THE WESTERN WALL LIVE Those missing Israel can now watch the Western Wall live viaEarthCam. EarthCam is the global leader in delivering webcam content, technology and services. Founded in 1996, EarthCam provides live streaming video and time-lapse construction cameras for corporate, tourism and government clients in major cities around the world. Other popular tourism cams include Times Square, World Trade Center, Las Vegas Strip, Bourbon Street, Eiffel Tower, Andy Warhol's gravesite, Hollywood Boulevard, Miami Beach, and Abbey Road Crossing in London. TEL AVIV HOSTS INTERNATIONAL LIVE MUSIC INDUSTRY CONFERENCE Israel's international live music industry conference and event, Tune in Tel Aviv, will take place throughout the city from November 11-15, 2015. The event is recognized as the most important industry event in the Middle East, connecting the Israeli music community to the international scene. The main event, Israel's International Music Conference, will take place at the Tachana (the Old Jaffa Train Station) on Friday, November 13th from 9am-5pm, during which musicians and industry professionals will be invited to come together to discuss issues critical to the music industry. More than 70 Israeli music acts will be performing during the five-day event.   Find more information here.  THE 19TH INTERNATIONAL  HARP CONTEST The 19th International Harp Contest in Israel will commence on November 23, 2015. This year, the contest will be hosted in the magnificent Knights' Halls in Old Acre, a city declared by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Harpist Anais Gaudemard, who won the contest in 2012, will perform at the opening night concert. Acre has become home to many cultural and music events such as the Israeli Opera Festival and the Acre International Fringe Theater. The International Harp Contest is the first competition in the world dedicated to the harp, and has been held every three years since it was first founded in 1959.    Mai Fukui    Find more information here.

Travelore News: Everything You Need To Know For Planning Your Trip To Israel

LADA GAGA IN ISRAEL World-renowned pop star Lady Gaga arrived in Israel this month for her third performance in Tel Aviv, which took place at Hayarkon Park before a crowd of more than 20,000 fans. The concert included a surprise duet with Tony Bennett and follows concerts by the Rolling Stones and Justin Timberlake in Israel this past summer. JERUSALEM TOPS NEW LISTS OF MUST-SEE AND "BUCKET-LIST" TRAVEL DESTINATIONS Jerusalem was recently included in a list of "The Top 50 Cities to See in Your Lifetime," by the website, the Huffington Post. In addition, The Telegraph (UK) included touring the holy sites of Jerusalem in "The Ultimate Travel Bucket List of 25 Things to Do Before You Die," alongside visiting the Antarctic, seeing the wildlife in Namibia, walking the Great Wall of China and visiting the gardens and temples in Kyoto. HOOPING IT UP IN TEL AVIV A group of local Tel Aviv residents recently formed the Hula Group, a collective of hula hoop-spinning adventure enthusiasts who perform in ad hoc street performances across the city on a regular basis. Below is a video and interview detailing the inspiration behind the group. http://www.hooping.org/2014/08/hooping-it-up-in-tel-aviv/   FORMULA 1 RACING RETURNS TO JERUSALEM THIS OCTOBER Jerusalem will host the second annual Formula Peace Road Show, featuring a citywide race with the world's fastest racecar drivers whizzing past major city sites, including Montefiore's Windmill, the King David Hotel, the new Waldorf Astoria, Mamilla Mall, the Liberty Bell Park and the Old Train Station, October 7-8, 2014. The event will also include a showcase compound in the First Station Complex where racing cars and memorabilia will be on display, as well as racecar-driving simulators open to the public. www.itraveljerusalem.com/events/formula-1-race/ 15TH ANNUAL TAMAR MUSIC FESTIVAL ON THE DEAD SEA SHORE, OCTOBER 11-15, 2014 One of Israel's largest annual music festivals, the Tamar Festival, will feature performances by international and Israeli artists in the Dead Sea region, October 11-15. Taking place at three breathtaking outdoor venues, including Masada National Park, the botanical gardens at Ein Gedi and the Kikar Sdom village, the festival will include performances by Shlomo Artzi, Balkan Beat Box, Ehud Banai, Mosh Ben Ari, Aviv Geffen, Beit Habubot, Hadag Nahash, Avraham Tal, Amir Lev, Moki, Shlomi Shaban, Shlomi Shabat, and Barry Sakharof among others.In addition to musical performances, there will be workshops, children's activities, hikes and tours showcasing the natural beauty of the area. www.tamarfestival.com/tamar-festival INNOVATIVE INDUSTRIAL DESIGNERS TO DISPLAY NEW WORKS AT ANNUAL FURNITURE EXHIBITION 2014 IN TEL AVIV The 37th annual Furniture Exhibition will feature the latest collections and one-off designs by leading Israeli and international furniture designers at the Tel Aviv Exhibition Center, October 11-17. The exhibition will include more than 120 leading furniture designers, including Betili, Hollandia, Ziv Kitchens, Natuzzi, Nicoletti, Dr. Gav, Aeroflex, Ultima, Simmons, Night Sleep, Etzmaleh, House Inn, Zaga, as well as a platform for companies specializing in home styling, accessories and interior design. TEL AVIV HOSTS THE ICON FESTIVAL FOR SCIENCE FICTION, FANTASY AND ROLE-PLAYING, OCTOBER 12-14  The annual Icon Festival for Science Fiction, Fantasy and Role-Playing will feature more than 200 events, including lectures, panel discussions, contests, professional workshops, comical and musical shows, as well as comics and anime events, taking place at Tel Aviv's Eshkol Pais exhibition center, October 12-14. The festival will include events focusing on literature, television, film, comics and popular science, and will feature world-renowned authors, directors and actors, including this year's guest speakers, American author Walter John Williams and Canadian author Kelley Armstrong. http://2014.iconfestival.org.il/about-icon/ "WIKI LOVES MONUMENTS ISRAEL" PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST, THROUGH OCTOBER 24, 2014 Amateur and professional travel photographers from around the world will have the chance to take part in "Wiki Loves Monuments Israel," a new photography contest initiated by Wikimedia Israel.Photographers can submit images of historic monuments in Israel through October 24, 2014 for a chance to win one of three cash prizes and a feature in an upcoming photography exhibition in Tel Aviv. http://www.wlm.org.il/english/ TRANS ISRAEL ROAD CYCLING CHALLENGE, OCTOBER 16-19, 2014 The first-ever Trans Israel Road Cycling Challenge will bring participants through Israel's incredible natural wonders, historic sites and breathtaking landscapes, October 16-19. The four-day, 372-kilometer cycling trip will begin in Rosh Hanikra in the north and travel past the Sea of Galilee and Safed, the Jordan Valley, the Dead Sea, Masada, Mitzpe Ramon, and end in Eilat in the south. www.znook.co.il/R/GeneralPage3.aspx?ID=lm09Bqbfy%2bA%3d "BROKEN GARDEN" EXHIBITION AT THE JERUSALEM BOTANICAL GARDENS THROUGH OCTOBER 18, 2014 The "Broken Garden" exhibition at the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens will run though October 18, 2014, and will display sculptured glass flowers floating on the central lake. All sculptures are produced using recycled materials and artists' inspiration is drawn from the lake and gardens. http://en.botanic.co.il/ DEAD SEA RAVE - 424, AN ELECTRONIC MUSIC FESTIVAL AT THE LOWEST POINT ON EARTH, OCTOBER 23, 2014 The DEAD SEA RAVE - 424 will feature a dynamic lineup of DJs and musical artists from Israel and around the world performing in an open-air setting near Masada and the Dead Sea on October 23rd. This year's production will include performances by Dash Berlin, W&W, Sander Van Doorn and Deep Dish, as well as an exclusive set by Paul Oakenfold, a pioneer of electronic dance music, among others.www.minus424.com  NEW "PROJECTING ART" VIDEO EXHIBITION ON DISPLAY AT THE ILANA GOOR MUSEUM IN TEL AVIV-JAFFA THROUGH OCTOBER 25 The Ilana Goor Museum is hosting a new exhibition showcasing video projections of works by prominent and emerging Israeli video artists focusing on personal, social, cultural, and gender identity themes through October 25, 2014. The exhibition includes visual works and videos projected onto the exterior wall of the museum's historic old building facing the Mediterranean Sea every evening for two hours, including new pieces by Joseph Dadoune, Michal Heiman, Belu-Simion Făinaru, Gili Avissar, Michal Cole, Rivka Potchebutzky, Lee Yanor, Yoav Raban, Ela Goldman and Liron Shalev. www.ilanagoormuseum.org/eng/Projecting-Art/Projecting-Art-ar/ TRAVELERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD TO ARRIVE IN ISRAEL FOR THE FIFTH ANNUAL YOGA ARAVA FESTIVAL, NOVEMBER 6-8 The fifth annual Yoga Arava Festival will feature a weekend of expert-guided yoga classes, workshops, lectures and events in breathtaking locations across Israel's Arava Desert, November 6-8. In addition to the selection of Iyengar, Vinyasa, Ashtanga, Vijnana, Shivananda, Vinny Yoga, Anusara, Dharma Yoga, Kundalini Yoga, Power Yoga, Yoga and the Ayurveda feminine, funky Yoga, and Acro Yoga practices offered throughout the weekend, the festival will also feature The Night of Unity, a sunset yoga practice at the foot of Solomon's Pillars in the Timna National Park accompanied by live music and followed by a communal dinner, on Friday, November 6.    www.yogaarava.co.il/travel-to-israel/genesis-tours THE FOURTH INTERNATIONAL HULA VALLEY BIRD FESTIVAL NOVEMBER 16-23, 2014 Thousands of bird enthusiasts from around the world will arrive in Israel's Hula Valley to experience the fourth annual Hula Valley International Birding Festival, November 16-23. The festival will include tours led by leading birding guides, ringing demonstrations, and the opportunity fortravelers to witness the massive migration of tens of thousands of common cranes and pelicans, rare species such as the greater spotted eagle, eastern imperial eagle and pallid harrier, and more than 25 species of raptors. www.hulabirdfestival.org NEW EXHIBITION SHOWCASING THE WORKS OF MICHAËL BORREMANS ON DISPLAY AT THE TEL AVIV MUSEUM OF ART THROUGH JANUARY 2014 A new exhibition showcasing the works of legendary Belgian artist Michaël Borremans, the artist's first comprehensive exhibition in Israel, is now on display at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art through January 31, 2015. The exhibition showcases more than 100 of the artist's highly evocative paintings, drawings and films created over the last 14 years, focusing on sober-looking characters portrayed in seemingly mundane, yet mysterious and indecipherable environments and situations.   http://www.tamuseum.org.il/about-the-exhibition/michael-borremans NEW EXHIBITION SHOWCASING BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY OF 1980'S TEL AVIV CLUB CULTURE ON DISPLAY AT ERETZ ISRAEL MUSEUM THROUGH FEBRUARY 15, 2015 A new exhibition showcasing rare film photography depicting 1980s nightlife and club culture in Tel Aviv, entitled "ROCK 'N' BLACK," is on display at the Eretz Israel Museum in Tel Aviv though February 15, 2015. The exhibition includes 70 photographs taken by fashion photographer Miri Davidowitch and shows the atmosphere and spirit of Tel Aviv while focusing on two of the city's landmark clubs: Penguin and Cinema Dan.http://www.eretzmuseum.org.il/e/313/

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