Author Topic: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.  (Read 17621 times)

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Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« on: January 19, 2017, 01:07:22 PM »
Below is what i planned. Let me know if this sounds ok. (very intense)

SUNDAY
7:25PM NEWARK TO RZESZOW POLAND STOPOVER IN WARSAW (8H 30MIN) UNITED 30K POINTS SAVER AWARD + $5.60
MONDAY
10AM ARRIVE AT WARSAW      -https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?msa=0&mid=zhZzyXUv-dV0.kYv6ziQDH_n8
JEWISH CEMETARY OF GUR (SEFAT EMET, CHIDUSHEI HARIM)
JEWISH CEMETARY WARSAW (R’ CHAIM BRISK, BES HALEVI, NETZIV)
4:35PM WARSAW TO RZESZOW (55MIN)
5:30PM ARRIVE AT RZESZOW
DRIVE TO LEZAJSK (30 MIN) NOAM ELIMELECH
DRIVE TO KRAKOW (2 HOURS) SLEEP IN SHERATON GRAND KRAKOW
TUESDAY
THE SHUL OF REMA – (Szeroka 40, 30-001 Kraków, Poland)
DRIVE TO AUSCHWITZ (1 HOUR) (Oświęcimia 20, 32-603 Oświęcim)
DRIVE TO KATOWICE AIRPORT (40 MIN)
3PM KATOWICE TO WARSAW (50 MIN) $15
REST UP AND SLEEP IN WARSAW – THE WESTIN WARSAW
WEDNSDAY
6AM WARSAW TO KIEV (1HR 30MIN) UKRAINE AIR $150
8:30AM ARRIVE IN KIEV
DRIVE TO UMAN – RABI NACHMAN (3 HOURS) (PUSHKINA STREET, UMAN)
DRIVE TO MEDZHIBOZH- BAAL SHEM TOV (3 HOURS) (Besht street in Medzhibozh)
DRIVE TO BERDICHEV-LEVI YITZCHAK OF BERDICHEV (2 HOURS)
DRIVE TO HOTEL (2HR 30MIN)
SLEEP
THURSDAY
6AM IEV TO MSQ (55MIN) BELAVIA $84
DRIVE TO RADUN BELARUS (1HR 45MIN) – CHOFETZ CHAIM
DRIVE TO VILNIUS (1HR) – VINA HAGAON, CHAYE ADOM, R CHAIM OZER & OTHERS (Sudervės Kelias 28)
DRIVE TO KAUNAS (1HR)
3:50PM KAUNAS TO JFK (11HR) STOPOVER IN WARSAW (1HR )
5PM WARSAW TO JFK (9HR)
ARRIVE IN JFK 8:15PM

Online eli1571

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #1 on: January 19, 2017, 01:20:41 PM »
nice itin, driving yourself between airports or taking taxis ?

 Warsaw cemetery has alot more then just r chaim and the netziv, it's one of the biggest in the world.

P.s. Should be merged with http://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=71372.0

Offline shulem92

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #2 on: January 19, 2017, 01:28:34 PM »
nice itin, driving yourself between airports or taking taxis ?

 Warsaw cemetery has alot more then just r chaim and the netziv, it's one of the biggest in the world.

P.s. Should be merged with http://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=71372.0
Why should it be merged? This is his trip planning thread

Online eli1571

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #3 on: January 19, 2017, 01:45:27 PM »
Why should it be merged? This is his trip planning thread
So is that thread, to plan a kevorim trip

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #4 on: January 19, 2017, 01:48:01 PM »
nice itin, driving yourself between airports or taking taxis ?

 Warsaw cemetery has alot more then just r chaim and the netziv, it's one of the biggest in the world.

P.s. Should be merged with http://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=71372.0
We will be having a driver taking us at all points with a sprinter.

Online Alexsei

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #5 on: January 20, 2017, 01:23:49 PM »
Your route+flight combo is well planned,and if you you are paying for it with points it's amazing.

It will definitely be stressful and take in consideration that not everything ends up going as on paper so pack along a lot of patience.

In terms of the places, I assume that is where you want to go and planned around that if so there's nothing to add or remove.

P. S. Check about visa regulations
Jews ≠ Zionists
Palestinians ≠ Hamas
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Offline E-MAN

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #6 on: January 20, 2017, 01:34:35 PM »
When do we leave??

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #7 on: January 20, 2017, 02:18:00 PM »

Offline hvaces42

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #8 on: January 20, 2017, 02:27:49 PM »
These are some observations:

Your drive times are a bit short on the reality. Uman to Berdychiv is 3 hours and Mezhibuzh is 1.5 hours beyond that. Every time ive done that trip its through berdychiv both ways. I believe that is the shortest route.

Berdychiv to Kiev is 3 hours too. You may want to stop in Fastov on the way back from Berdychiv to Kiev. Its about 45 minutes from Kiev slightly out of the way.

Youre not leaving yourself enough time for Auschwitz. Its not realistic even if you leave Krakow at 8am you need to be in KTW at 2 so that means you leave auschwitz at 1.
Fair warning - Any PMs sent in response to forum posts are fair game for ridicule in public.

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #9 on: January 20, 2017, 02:58:01 PM »
These are some observations:

Your drive times are a bit short on the reality. Uman to Berdychiv is 3 hours and Mezhibuzh is 1.5 hours beyond that. Every time ive done that trip its through berdychiv both ways. I believe that is the shortest route.

Berdychiv to Kiev is 3 hours too. You may want to stop in Fastov on the way back from Berdychiv to Kiev. Its about 45 minutes from Kiev slightly out of the way.

Youre not leaving yourself enough time for Auschwitz. Its not realistic even if you leave Krakow at 8am you need to be in KTW at 2 so that means you leave auschwitz at 1.
ok.
Auschwitz is a 3.5 hr guided tour. If we get there at 9am we are good i think.

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #10 on: January 21, 2017, 04:22:48 PM »
Below is what i planned. Let me know if this sounds ok. (very intense)

THURSDAY
6AM IEV TO MSQ (55MIN) BELAVIA $84
DRIVE TO RADUN BELARUS (1HR 45MIN) – CHOFETZ CHAIM
DRIVE TO VILNIUS (1HR) – VINA HAGAON, CHAYE ADOM, R CHAIM OZER & OTHERS (Sudervės Kelias 28)
DRIVE TO KAUNAS (1HR)
3:50PM KAUNAS TO JFK (11HR) STOPOVER IN WARSAW (1HR )
5PM WARSAW TO JFK (9HR)
ARRIVE IN JFK 8:15PM

Your trip schedule is extremely tight. I would suggest you lengthen it by a few days.  From Minsk airport to Radun' it will take closer to 3 hours (237 km). You could stop in Vałožyn on the way. When I did this tour for others, I included many other places such as Mir (former site of Yeshiva and the kever of R' Yeruchum Levovitz zt'l), Navahrudak/Novardok, and Grodno (R' Shimon Shkop & R' Alexander Ziskind z"l ("Yesod Ve'shoresh Ha'avodah").

From Radun' to Vilnius - you also have to budget much more than an hour. Google maps shows the shortest route - 87km - however, as a foreigner you will not be allowed to use the Eišiškės border crossing. Šalčininkų border crossing would be an extra 10km. however you should budget at least 30-45 minutes for the border formalities. (It could be shorter, just be lucky that your itinerary is not the other way around from Vilnius to Belarus, as the queue into Belarus takes hours and hours!)

Once you are in Vilnius, in addition to the cemetery at Sudervės Kelias 28, you should consider visiting the Užupis cemetery, where Boruch Ber Leibowitz is buried. 10km west is the Paneriai forest Memorial where ~70k Jews were killed. 

In Kaunas, there is also much to see. R' Yitzchak Elchonon Spektor is buried in the Aleksotas cemetery.  The old Jewish Žaliakalnis cemetery on Radvilėnų pl. has 5,808 of gravestones still remaining from before the war. Crossing the bridge over the Neris river, is Slabodka (Vilijampolė) - one can see the streets of what used to be the Kovno ghetto and the building that once housed the Slabodka yeshiva.  Also to see in Kaunas, is the 9th Fort, where 30,000 Jews, and notably R' Elchonon Wasserman was killed.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ninth_Fort

Perhaps you can extend your stay and stay over in Vilnius over Shabbes. Many other places to see, e.g. like Keidan, Kelm, Telšiai, etc.
Also two hours from Vilnius, is Daugavpils, Latvia (Dvinsk) where the Ohr Somayach and the Rogatchover are buried.

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #11 on: January 21, 2017, 05:24:30 PM »
Below is what i planned. Let me know if this sounds ok. (very intense)

TUESDAY
THE SHUL OF REMA – (Szeroka 40, 30-001 Kraków, Poland)
DRIVE TO AUSCHWITZ (1 HOUR) (Oświęcimia 20, 32-603 Oświęcim)
DRIVE TO KATOWICE AIRPORT (40 MIN)
3PM KATOWICE TO WARSAW (50 MIN) $15
REST UP AND SLEEP IN WARSAW – THE WESTIN WARSAW

There is also lots more to see in Krakow, in addition to the Rema's shul, there are a few other shuls in the old Jewish quarter. There is also the New Cemetery ul Miodowa 55 (with burials from the 1800s)  Plus, the site of the Plaszow concentration camp, ul Lipowa 4 is the site of Schindler's factory. Sara Schenirer's house at Stanislava 10. Near the Podgórze Jewish Cemetery is the kever of Sara Schenirer.

See: http://www.sztetl.org.pl/en/article/krakow/12,cemeteries/
http://www.sztetl.org.pl/en/article/krakow/11,synagogues-prayer-houses-and-others/
http://www.sztetl.org.pl/en/article/krakow/39,heritage-sites/
http://www.sztetl.org.pl/en/article/krakow/13,sites-of-martyrdom/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Jewish_Cemetery,_Krak%C3%B3w
http://krakow-bestguide.blogspot.com/2015_10_01_archive.html

I would budget more than 40 minutes time to get to Katowice airport.
Wizz Air has flights from Katowice to Kiev departing 3:35pm - arriving 11:25pm in Kiev - (2.5 hour layover in Dortmund, Germany). It's hard to have a good night's sleep when you have a flight at 6am the following morning.

Alternatively, drive back to Krakow - and fly from there -
you have either 6:05pm Krakow to Warsaw - 3h 45m layover, and arrive in Kiev at 01:10am with LOT
or 5:05pm flight from Krakow, arriving 10:35pm in Kiev with Lufthansa (55 min stopover in Munich)

Lufthansa one-way would be expensive, but perhaps you can get it with points with United or Aeroplan programs.

- You can also do Oświęcim first, drive there for the 8am opening time and then go back to Krakow, and tour till your flight. 

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #12 on: January 21, 2017, 05:44:33 PM »
Your route+flight combo is well planned,and if you you are paying for it with points it's amazing.

It will definitely be stressful and take in consideration that not everything ends up going as on paper so pack along a lot of patience.

In terms of the places, I assume that is where you want to go and planned around that if so there's nothing to add or remove.

P. S. Check about visa regulations

Starting February 9th, 2017 Belarus is giving free visa on arrival for up to 5 days if you are flying in to Minsk.
http://president.gov.by/en/news_en/view/belarus-introduces-five-day-visa-free-regime-for-citizens-of-80-states-15344/

Also note for Poland, US driver license holders are technically required to have an International Driver's Permit.

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #13 on: January 21, 2017, 06:23:38 PM »
Below is what i planned. Let me know if this sounds ok. (very intense)

SUNDAY
7:25PM NEWARK TO RZESZOW POLAND STOPOVER IN WARSAW (8H 30MIN) UNITED 30K POINTS SAVER AWARD + $5.60
MONDAY
10AM ARRIVE AT WARSAW      -https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?msa=0&mid=zhZzyXUv-dV0.kYv6ziQDH_n8
JEWISH CEMETARY OF GUR (SEFAT EMET, CHIDUSHEI HARIM)
JEWISH CEMETARY WARSAW (R’ CHAIM BRISK, BES HALEVI, NETZIV)
4:35PM WARSAW TO RZESZOW (55MIN)
5:30PM ARRIVE AT RZESZOW
DRIVE TO LEZAJSK (30 MIN) NOAM ELIMELECH
DRIVE TO KRAKOW (2 HOURS) SLEEP IN SHERATON GRAND KRAKOW

Cemetery of Gur is in Góra Kalwaria, 40km south of Warsaw. Instead of flying to Rzeszow, can I suggest adding Lublin to your itinerary? You can see Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin (which is now part hotel (http://www.hotelilan.pl), old cemetery: kever of Maharshal, Seef of Lublin,  Yehuda Leib Eiger (new cemetery), etc. On the way to Lublin, you can stop in Kock, where the Kotzker rebbe is buried.
Also to note, Dubno Maggid is buried in Zamosc.  Góra Kalwaria to Lublin is 145km.  Lublin to Lezajsk is a further 135km south, and then Krakow would be 210km drive west.

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #14 on: January 21, 2017, 06:28:39 PM »
Cemetery of Gur is in Góra Kalwaria, 40km south of Warsaw. Instead of flying to Rzeszow, can I suggest adding Lublin to your itinerary? You can see Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin (which is now part hotel (http://www.hotelilan.pl), old cemetery: kever of Maharshal, Seef of Lublin,  Yehuda Leib Eiger (new cemetery), etc. On the way to Lublin, you can stop in Kock, where the Kotzker rebbe is buried.
Also to note, Dubno Maggid is buried in Zamosc.  Góra Kalwaria to Lublin is 145km.  Lublin to Lezajsk is a further 135km south, and then Krakow would be 210km drive west.
i think we will be driving too much, thats why we skipped it.

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #15 on: January 21, 2017, 07:09:52 PM »
i think we will be driving too much, thats why we skipped it.

True, but driving back to airport, refueling & returning rental car, checking in at least 30 minutes before departure, ~one hour flight time from gate to gate, waiting to collect luggage, renting rental car, etc. is all very time consuming - time you could be driving instead.

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #16 on: January 21, 2017, 07:13:55 PM »
True, but driving back to airport, refueling & returning rental car, checking in at least 30 minutes before departure, ~one hour flight time from gate to gate, waiting to collect luggage, renting rental car, etc. is all very time consuming - time you could be driving instead.
We will be having a driver with a sprinter at all times waiting for us.

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #17 on: January 21, 2017, 11:33:04 PM »
I'm joining count me in

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #18 on: January 21, 2017, 11:34:06 PM »
Really interesting. Can you say what a sprinter is/does?

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Re: Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania Kevarim itinerary.
« Reply #19 on: January 21, 2017, 11:34:52 PM »
Really interesting. Can you say what a sprinter is/does?
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