THE TAPESTRY OF (JEWISH) SPAIN:
Past and Present
Trip to Spain
September 24 - October 6, 2026
For generations, more than 90 percent of European Jews lived in Spain, in communities that produced unparalleled works of literature, poetry and philosophy. They laid the foundations of medicine, opened trade routes across Europe and thrived…until they were forced to convert, flee or face death at the hands of the Inquisition.
This journey across Spain will trace the history of that once-vibrant community, as we walk ancient cobblestone streets, visit synagogues converted into churches and discover the origin of Sephardic traditions that today still thrive in Israel and the Americas.
Highlights
Celebrating Sukkot with the Jewish community in Barcelona
Visiting the iconic La Sagrada Familia Basilica designed by Gaudi
Wandering the medieval streets of Girona, home to the first European Kabbalists
Discovering Jewish art at Madrid’s Prado Museum
Exploring Toledo, long considered the “Jerusalem of the West”
Marveling at the Moorish UNESCO World Heritage site, the Alhambra in Granada
Touring Lucena, "the Pearl of Sepharad," once a Jewish majority town and center of Talmudic studies
Enjoying an electrifying performance of authentic Flamenco in Sevilla
Dancing with a Torah at the Plaza de la Concha in Córdoba for Simchat Torah
Accommodations
Barcelona
Majestic Hotel & Spa Barcelona
3 Nights
Madrid
Mandarin Oriental Ritz
3 Nights
Granada
2 Nights
Córdoba
2 Nights
Sevilla
Itinerary
Day 1
Thursday, September 24
Bienvenidos a Barcelona
- Private pick up from Barcelona airport to hotel
- Hotel check in at 3:00PM. Program begins at 5:00PM at the lobby of the hotel with welcome drinks and opening lecture: The Spanish-Jewish Experience.
- Dinner at El Xalet de Montjuic Restaurant, with sweeping views of the city
★ Overnight: Majestic Hotel, Barcelona
Day 2
Friday, September 25
Sukkot A La Gaudi
- Breakfast at hotel
- Morning guided tour of the city, including Gaudi’s iconic Sagrada Familia Basicilia and Park Güell
- Stroll along the Rambla and lunch on-the-go on your own from stalls at La Boquería
- Visit the El Call, the medieval Jewish quarter with its old synagogue, believed to be from 3rd century
- Enjoy a glass of local Vermut at Casa Adret, the Jewish cultural center located in one of the oldest houses in the city, with amazing views of the old Jewish quarter from its rooftop terrace
- Ushpizin (inviting symbolic spiritual guests into the Sukkah) with Rabbi Haim, including a discussion of ancient Inquisition era documents
- Kabbalat Shabbat service at Congregation ATID, led by Spain’s first female rabbi
- Dinner with Rabbi Irene Muzás Calpe at Antigua restaurants
★ Overnight: Majestic Hotel, Barcelona
Day 3
Saturday, September 26
Mazal Tov by the Gate
- Breakfast at hotel
- Day trip to Girona, with the best-preserved Jewish quarter in the country. It was the hometown of the sage Nachmanides (nicknamed mazal tov by the gate), who was key to the re-establishment of Jerusalem’s Jewish community after its destruction by the Crusaders in 1099
- Tour of the Salvador Dali Museum in Figueres
- Lunch at Dalicatessen in Figueres
- Stop in Besalu to see the remains of the only Romanesque mikvah in Spain
- Return to Barcelona
- Wine and snacks on a sunset cruise
- Dinner
★ Overnight: Majestic Hotel, Barcelona
Day 4
Sunday, September 27
Madrid Today
- Breakfast at hotel
- High speed train to Madrid (2:30hr)
- Check into hotel
- Light lunch and a tour of the city, including the Plaza de la Villa, Plaza Mayor and Royal Palace
- Dinner at Saint James, famous for array of paellas and other rice dishes
- Late night drinks in the literary quarter, once home to great writers like Cervantes and Lope de Vega
★ Overnight: Mandarin Oriental Ritz, Madrid
Day 5
Monday, September 28
The Capital's Hidden Legacy
- Breakfast at hotel
- Guided tour of Jewish Madrid
- Falafeleria lunch
- Explore the Prado Museum with a specialist in its Jewish art
- Chocolate and churros
- Free time to explore
- Dinner at Ramsés, located next to city’s triumphal arch
★ Overnight: Mandarin Oriental Ritz, Madrid
Day 6
Tuesday, September 29
Jerusalem of the West
- Breakfast at hotel
- Day trip to Toledo, once the wealthiest and largest Jewish city in Spain, to visit the Jewish quarter, Shumuel La-Levi synagogue (now a church) and the former Grand Synagogue and the Jewish museum
- Lunch
- Choose one of these afternoon activities:
- Marzipan making
- Tour of El Greco Museum
- Return to Madrid
- Dinner: Lhardy, an iconic restaurant operating since 1838 and considered one of the best in Spain
★ Overnight: Mandarin Oriental Ritz, Madrid
Day 7
Wednesday, September 30
The Last Moors of Spain, The Last Jews of Granada
- Breakfast at hotel
- Train to Granada (3:15hr), the old Moorish capital, long a symbol of the co-existence of three religions
- Lunch
- Visit to the old Jewish quarter with its statue of Ibn Tibbon, who first translated Maimonides, and to Albaicin, the old Moorish neighborhood
- Pre-dinner drink and discussion about the daily lives of Andalusian Jews gleaned from documents in the Cairo Gueniza with Professor Jose Martinez Delgado, Department of Semitic Studies at the University of Granada
- Dinner with panoramic views of the Alhambra at Carmen De Aben Humeya
★ Overnight: Palacio de Santa Paula, Granada
Day 8
Thursday, October 1
The Lions of Alhambra
- Breakfast at hotel
- Tour the Alhambra, a sprawling palace and fortress complex with intricate Islamic architecture, where Rabbi Isaac Abravenel pleaded with Ferdinand and Isabel to rescind the order of expulsion of the Jews…and failed.
- Lunch
- Choose one of these afternoon activities:
- Guided tour of Royal Chapel of Granada (burial place of Isabella and Ferdinand)
- Nazari/Arabic cooking class
- Visit to the warm, candlelit waters of Hammam Al Ándalus
- Perfume making workshop at Patio de los Perfumes (make your own scent)
- Free time to wander a city of hidden plazas, tiny shops, cobblestone stone alleys
- Tapas Crawl dinner
★ Overnight: Palacio de Santa Paula, Granada
Day 9
Friday, October 2
Dancing with the Torah in Ancient Córdoba
- Breakfast at hotel
- Bus drive to Lucena, “the Pearl of the Sepharad,” to explore the Jewish cemetery and museum in what was once an almost exclusively Jewish city
- Continue on toward Córdoba, stopping en route at a local family winery for wine and olive oil tasting, lunch and ladino music
- Check in to hotel in Córdoba
- Simchat Torah Interfaith service at Plaza de la Concha
- Dinner: Bodegas Campos, a century-old iconic Córdoban restaurant
★ Overnight: Hospes Palacio de Bailio, Córdoba
Day 10
Saturday, October 3
At Home With The Rambam
- Breakfast at hotel
- Shabbat morning meditation
- Guided tour of the Jewish quarter of the old Moorish capital of Al Andalusia, including the Plaza de Tiberiades, statue of Maimonides, Yehuda Halevi Square, Maimonides synagogue and Casa Sefarad
- Lunch
- Explore the Mosque Cathedral, dating from 785 AD, with its 1,000 colored columns
- Free time to wander the restored city heart, one of the largest medieval quarters in Europe
- Dinner at Restaurante Los Berengueles, serving traditional Andalusian food Havdallah
★ Overnight: Hospes Palacio de Bailio, Córdoba
Day 11
Sunday, October 4
Peeling Back Hidden History
- Breakfast at hotel
- Drive to Sevilla with a stop in Palma del Rio at an old aristocratic home with a citrus orchard for an orange tasting
- Lunch at San Francisco Monastery
- Check in at hotel in Sevilla
- Tour the artistic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain, created by Romans in 563 BCE, conquered by the Moors, who allowed Jews great freedom and then reconquered by the Catholics, who launched the Inquisition
- Dinner at Alfarería in Tirana, across river, traveling by horse-drawn carriage
- After dinner drinks by the Guadalquivir River
★ Overnight: Hotel Alfonso XIII, Sevilla
Day 12
Monday, October 5
A Royal Send-Off
- Breakfast at hotel
- Explore the Alcázar Palace, a World Heritage Site, followed by visits to the Cathedral and La Giralda, a 12th-century bell tower that became a symbol of the city
- Light lunch at bar/restaurant with a 700-year-old mikvah in its basement
- Free time
- Visit to Maria Luisa Gardens, Plaza de España and Jewish quarter, the Santa Cruz neighborhood, with its winding alleyways and remnants of Jewish life
- Visit the Cano y Cuento street cemetery
- Flamenco at Casa de la Memoria
- Dinner at Taberna del Alabardero
★ Overnight: Hotel Alfonso XIII, Sevilla
Day 13
Tuesday, October 6
A Ladino Farewell
- Breakfast at hotel
- Private ride to airport
Dates & Pricing
September 24 - October 6, 2026
Pricing:
- $11,750 per person (double occupancy)
- $4,750 single occupancy supplement
- $750 nonmember fee (per nonmember traveling)
Includes:
- All accommodations (12 nights)
- Private pick-up and drop off at Spanish airports
- Private, licensed tour guides
- All special activities, sights, admission fees and programs as per itinerary
- Luxurious, WiFi-equipped transportation for the entire trip
- All breakfasts, lunches and dinners, alcohol included
- All tips and gratuities
Not included:
- Airfare to/from Spain
- Travel insurance (highly recommended)
Important dates:
- A non-refundable deposit of $1,000 per person is due upon registration with the balance due by May 4, 2026.
- Refunds of all fees, minus $1000 deposit per person, can be requested until June 3, 2026. No refunds after that date.
Notes:
- Some activities rely on local hosts, suppliers or sites and are subject to change.
- Trip is limited to 30 adults. Minimum age for participation is 21.
- This is not a kosher trip and there will be travel on Shabbat.