Once again, our professional partners at Ayelet Travel are providing travel services for the NFTY Convention. In order to receive travel reimbursement, you must make arrangements through Ayelet Travel and meet the requirements and deadlines spelled out below. Individuals who will not be seeking travel reimbursement are also invited to use the services of Ayelet Travel.

In order to ensure that no participant be penalized because of high air travel expenses from their hometown, NFTY will cover airline expenses for participants in excess over $475 (including the $35.00 service charge from our Travel Agent). This amount only applies to the cost of the base ticket and does not include any additional fees which you may incur (including baggage).

To receive this reimbursement, you must adhere to the following guidelines:

1. Tickets must be purchased through the NFTY Travel Agent – Ayelet Travel at 1-800-237-1517, Option 7. Ayelet Travel will help determine the lowest fare available from your hometown to Washington D.C. and back. ***If you do not purchase your tickets through our NFTY Travel Agent then you will not be reimbursed.

2. There will be no reimbursement to participants who fly from cities served by the NFTY Train. These include Boston, Providence, New Haven, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, and Wilmington.

3. Tickets must be purchased by January 5, 2009.

4. Reimbursements will be mailed approximately six weeks after the conclusion of the convention.

IMPORTANT:

• If you are a regional board member participating in the NFTY Veida , please be sure to look for Regional Board NFTY Veida in the travel information below for special arrival information.
• If you are planning to participate in NFTY's Regional Songleading Team or NFTY's Teen Orchestra , you will need to visit the Musical Opportunities page for information on how to apply for these special opportunities. You cannot make your travel arrangements until you are accepted, as you will need to arrive earlier in the day on Friday. Please visit our Musical Opportunities page for more details.

Go to information about:
> Travel by Plane
> Travel by Regional Bus
> Travel by Car
> Travel by NFTY Train

Participants in NFTY-MAR, NFTY-NE, NFTY-NAR, and NFTY-GER should check with their NFTY Regional Advisor about charter bus options which may be available for their area. These arrangements will be made through the regional NFTY office and regional buses will only run if enrollment (for each bus) is sufficient. 

Participants may choose to arrive and depart from any one of the three greater Washington area airports. Choose whichever airport is most affordable and convenient for you:

• Reagan National Airport - DCA (25 minutes from hotel)
• Dulles International Airport - IAD (50 minutes from hotel)
• Baltimore-Washington International Airport - BWI (1 hour from hotel)

PLEASE NOTE – NFTY Convention will provide transportation between the airports and the hotel during specific times on opening and closing days of the convention. NFTY representatives will be at the airport during specific times. Please use the arrival and departure guidelines below when making your flight arrangements. If arrival or departure is not within the time frames listed below, the participant will be responsible for his or her own transportation to and from the hotel.

All flights should be scheduled using the following arrival and departure guidelines:

Arrival – Friday, February 13, 2009:

Reagan National Airport - Your flight must arrive by 3:30 pm.
Dulles International Airport - Your flight must arrive by 4:00 pm.
BWI/Baltimore Washington International Airport - Your flight must arrive by 3:00 pm.

Regional Board NFTY Veida ***If you are a Regional Board member who is attending the North American Board Meeting your flight should arrive between 9:00 am and 11:00 am. If you have any questions on whether or not you are attending the meeting please check with your regional advisor.

Departure – Tuesday, February 17, 2009:

Reagan National Airport - Reserve flights home no earlier than 9:00 am.
Dulles International Airport - Reserve flights home no earlier than 10:00am.
BWI/Baltimore Washington International Airport - Reserve flights home no earlier than 10:30am.

NFTY Representatives will be posted at the airports to assist with arrivals and departures at the beginning and end of NFTY Convention. Participants will be greeted by NFTY representatives in all of the baggage claim areas. After deplaning, participants should head directly to the baggage claim area.

For participants flying from the West Coast, there will be NFTY representatives at the airport early in the morning to greet "red-eye" flights. Participants will then be taken to the hotel where there will be a place to put their luggage and a hospitality room for them to relax in until their hotel room is ready.

If participants have any flight delays or cancellations, please call the NFTY Convention Office. The phone number for the NFTY Convention Office will be e-mailed to all participants and their parents/guardians prior to the convention.

We recognize the fact that many participants and their families will find the option of taking Amtrak to and from the event an attractive and cost-effective alternative for transportation.

TRAINS SHOULD ARRIVE AND DEPART FROM NEW CAROLTON, MD

NOTE: TRAIN NUMBERS HAVE CHANGED FROM AS OF 12/10/2008 DUE TO AMTRAK SCHEDULE CHANGES.

We recommend that NFTY Convention participants who chose to travel to Washington, DC by train from points north travel on Amtrak train #95. This is the train on which NFTY staff will travel from Boston South Street Station on Friday, February 13, all the way to Washington, DC. Train #95 stops in:

6:05 AM Departs Boston - South Station
6:10 AM Boston - Back Bay
6:20 AM Westwood - Route 128 Station
6:55 AM Providence
7:16 AM Kingston, RI
7:51 AM New London, CT
8:42 AM New Haven
9:28 AM Stamford
10:25 AM New York Penn
10:52 AM Newark Penn, NJ
11:07 AM Metropark, NJ
11:29 AM Trenton, NJ
11:56 AM Philadelphia - 30^th Street Station, PA
12:21 PM Willmington, DE
1:14 PM Baltimore, MD
1:29 PM BWI – Airport
1:44 PM Arrives New Carolton, MD

We recommend at the conclusion of the convention on February 17, 2009, from New Carolton, MD back to Boston’s South Station on Amtrak train #86, with the same stops along the way:

8:46 AM Departs New Carolton, MD
9:03 AM BWI – Airport, MD
9:19 AM Baltimore, MD
10:04 AM Wilmington, DE
10:27 AM Philadelphia, PA – 30^th Street Station
10:55 AM Trenton, NJ
11:24 AM Metropark, NJ
11:39 AM Newark, NJ – Penn Station
11:57 AM New York, NY – Penn Station
1:16 PM Stamford, CT
2:02 PM New Haven, CT
2:56 PM New London, CT
3:27 PM Kingston, RI
3:53 PM Providence, RI
4:30 PM Boston, MA – Rte 128
4:41 PM Boston, MA – Back Bay
4:46 PM Boston - South Station

NFTY staff members will chaperone the NFTY train on both February 13 and February 17 between Washington DC and Boston.

Participants are responsible for purchasing their own ticket on the train. Tickets for the NFTY Trains (#95 and #86) should reserved online directly with Amtrak, at www.Amtrak.com or on the telephone at 1-800-872-7245.

Regional Board NFTY Veida ***If you are a Regional Board member who is attending the North American Board Meeting your train should arrive between 9:00 am and 11:00 am. If you have any questions on whether or not you are attending the meeting please check with your Regional Advisor.

Participants may arrive at the Convention by car, either to the Gaylor National Hotel, Amtrak New Carolton, MD or to one of the three local airports.

Arrival/Departure from Hotel:
Arrive by 4:00pm on Friday, February 13th and depart between 8:00am and 10:00am on Tuesday, February 17th.

Arrival/Departure from Airport - BWI, Reagan, Dulles:
Arrive by 2:00pm on Friday, February 13th. Pick-up from airports on Tuesday, February 17th at 10:00am.

Arrival/Departure from Amtrak New Carolton, MD
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Remember, participants may not drive themselves to or from the convention.