Study Tours are designed for current and prospective major donors to see the impact of their support to AJWS in an immersive, meaningful way. It’s our hope that once you see how AJWS’s grantee partners are changing lives in the developing world, you will return a stronger advocate for AJWS’s work—more committed to AJWS’s mission of promoting global justice and more engaged in issues of international human rights.

We stay in four and five-star hotels, when available, or the best hotel in the area.

You will experience a range of dining experiences on the Study Tour, from top restaurants to traditional meals prepared by our grantee partners. We offer kosher-style and vegetarian options at all meals and do our best to accommodate any special dietary requests.

While most of our time is devoted to visiting AJWS grantee partners throughout the country and hearing from guest speakers, we do carve out time for touring in each country. Additionally, on longer trips, we offer the option on Saturday for touring or relaxing at the hotel.

Some of our Study Tours include an optional extension that takes participants to visit another exciting part of the country or region, such as a multi-day safari in Africa or visiting India’s Golden Triangle to see the Taj Mahal. AJWS’s partner travel planners are happy to help you arrange any additional trips or excursions before or after the Study Tour.

We do everything we can to ensure your trip abroad with us is a safe and pleasant one, including conducting scouting trips to countries we have not traveled to before and consulting with private travel safety and security experts. However, travel to the developing world will always have a certain degree of risk not found in travel to Western countries. You should consider your personal level of comfort carefully before choosing to join a Study Tour. We strongly recommend reviewing the US State Department, CIA, and Center for Disease Control’s recommendations for travelers prior to registering for your trip.

US State Department: http://travel.state.gov/travel/travel_1744.html
CIA: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html
Center for Disease Control (CDC): http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/

While trips do not include hiking or prolonged periods of exertion, our days are often quite full. Common activities on a Study Tour include walking tours, at times on uneven or unpaved ground, and bus rides of 1-3 hours. Participants should be able to withstand warm weather and must have prior approval from a physician in order to travel with us.

The health risks vary by country and can be minimized by taking the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) recommended vaccinations and medications for the particular region you will be visiting. Prior to traveling, you should take time to discuss the CDC’s recommendations with your health care provider. Additionally, you will need your physician’s written approval prior to traveling with AJWS.

Your health and safety while abroad is our top priority. Travelers will be reimbursed directly by AJWS’s travel medical insurance provider for basic medical expenses they incur while traveling abroad with AJWS. This includes emergency dental, hospital and doctors’ fees, and drugs prescribed abroad. It does not cover routine medical care. For more information about coverage and reimbursement process, please contact Julie Reyburn at jreyburn@ajws.org or 212-792-2914. Travelers requiring more robust coverage should secure their own travel medical insurance.

Participation is contingent on your ability to be covered under AJWS’s international emergency medical and evacuation insurance policy with Global Rescue. Global Rescue requires all travelers above the age of 75 to submit additional documentation from their health care provider before guaranteeing coverage. Please consult AJWS staff at studytours@ajws.org or 212.792.2800 to confirm your eligibility prior to registering.

Participants typically range in age from 30s to 80s.

There is no age limit for participants. However, participation is contingent on your ability to be covered under AJWS’s international emergency medical and evacuation insurance policy. If you are over the age of 75, please consult AJWS staff to confirm your eligibility prior to registering.

Our standard Study Tours are not geared toward families traveling with young children. If you are interested in traveling as a family (with children ages 15 and above) please reach out to Neely Grobani at ngrobani@ajws.org.

Yes! Please contact Neely Grobani at ngrobani@ajws.org for more information.