High Flying Israel:
A Pole Retreat
Tel Aviv
June 12-17, 2022
Join Brenna Bradbury of High Flying Retreats and Alexandra Baackes of Wander Women Retreats on a pole art and fitness adventure through Israel where we’ll tap into the pole and dance communities of seaside Tel Aviv.
Get ready to dive into workshops in pole, movement and twerking in one of the hottest city in the Middle East. Explore each day with speciality crafted workshops and end it sampling Tel Aviv’s best restaurants and epic nightlife.
Where better to practice pole than one of the sexiest cities in the world? Israel is filled with incredible history, yes, but modern Tel Aviv is a gem home to vibrant art and culture, stunning beaches, and beautiful people. Brace yourself for six days of the perfect summer heat, hummus, and happy hours!
Want more? Extend your stay and arrive early to join us for our Pride Party Extension, including a wild seaside parade one day, and an epic day rave in Yarkon Park the next. Still can’t get enough? Stick around for a whirl around some of the top sights of Israel, from ancient Old City of Jerusalem to the infamously salty Dead Sea on our Jerusalem + West Bank Extension.
A fabulous photographer will be behind the lens every step of the way, ensuring everyone leaves with profile-picture worthy shots of themselves on the pole and on epic adventures.
Exciting news — this retreat is open to all levels of pole queens and kings! While we recommend as many classes as possible pre-retreat to get the most out of the experience, there will be both a beginner and advanced track depending on the final composition of the group. Feel free to contact Brenna or Alex to discuss your situation.
The Details
The retreat will be held from June 12-17th, 2022, and starts at $2,750.
What’s Included in the Retreat
• Five nights accommodation at a chic design hotel in Tel Aviv
• Daily breakfast and an opening and closing dinner
• Three pole workshops with local pole-lebrities
• A professionally produced beach pole shoot
• Two classes with local dance goddesses, including a Middle Eastern fusion class and a twerkshop
• One flex class with our very own queen Brenna Bradbury
• One walking tour with a local tour guide extraordinaire
• One nude beach day trip
• A custom welcome bag
• All tips for tour guides and drivers
• Professional photos of the trip
• Additional meals, alcohol or activities not specific in the itinerary
• Mandatory travel insurance
The Itinerary
Subject to change, and expect surprises, but here’s the general idea. Joining our wild Pride Party Extension? The fun starts there!
Day 1: Let’s get retreating! We’ll gather for a welcome Middle Eastern fusion dance class with Mor Geffen at a beautiful local studio designed to loosen us up and set the tone for the days ahead. Next, we’ll head over to dinner at a seaside rooftop restaurant to get to know your fellow pole artists.
Day 2: Kick off the morning with a traditional Israeli breakfast before heading around the corner (literally!) to one of our pole studios for the first of our daily werkshops with fabulous + famous local instructor Jose Rodrigues. After lunch at a colorful cafe nearby, opt between hitting the beach or heading into Jaffa, Tel Aviv’s famous Old City. Later, we’ll convene for one of Brenna’s famous flex classes in a waterfront park before dinner at a bohemian beach restaurant.
Day 3: Today, we’re heading deeper into Tel Aviv for a pole workshop at Niv Gradus‘s sleek modern studio. After, we’re hopping a private bus north of the city for a change of scenery — one of Israel’s nude beaches. Packing a cooler of arak and stripping down to your pasties — or less — is optional, admiring the beautiful red beach cliffs is not! In the evening, we’ll turn the heat up with a rooftop twerkshop with Nicolle Twerk, before dinner at a buzzy spot known for creative cocktails.
Day 4: Start your day with another pole workshop with Jose! After lunch at an iconic Arabic restaurant in Levinsky Market, stroll the stalls and tightly packed streets of this hidden gem market. Finally, pack away your pole heels — we’re off on a street art walking tour of Florentine, Tel Aviv’s answer to Bushwick. In the evening, we’ll reconvene for dinner and drinks at a wine bar stocked from local vineyards.
Day 5: Get ready to slay! We’re heading to the beach with Niv, his x-pole, and a professional photographer for an epic photoshoot to capture a trip you’ll never forget. We did it! Time to head to our favorite beach bar and toast to a high flying week with sunset drinks followed by a lively dinner and an insider’s nightlife tour of Tel Aviv.
Day 6: We’ll send off those heading home today with a final goodbye breakfast, and lots of hugs! Not ready to say shalom? Join Brenna and Alex for two more days of fun!
Sticking around for the Jerusalem + West Bank Extension? We can’t wait to show you another side of Israel!
Where We’ll Stay + What We’ll Eat
For the retreat, we’ll stay at Brown Seaside, a chic oceanside boutique hotel in North Tel Aviv! Private rooms have one bed while shared rooms feature two twin beds unless otherwise requested. While you can of course room with a friend, if you’re traveling solo, fear not, so are many of our guests! We’ll do our best to pair you with someone we think you’ll click with — and we’ll all be one big pole fam by the end anyway.
The location is perfect — just around the corner from one of our pole studios, across the street from the beach, and centrally located to enjoy Tel Aviv’s best nightlife and restaurants.
Breakfast is included every day, as well as an opening and closing dinner. For the non-included meal of the day, we’ll bring you to a favorite spot where you can order at your own expense, or branch off and do your own thing. Israeli cuisine is perfect for our high activity level — it’s not only delicious, but also healthy and well balanced.
Of course, there will be plenty of hummus along the way (and bonus — learn to make your own one day, if you join the extension tour!).
Travel With Us
On this trip you’ll be traveling with Wander Women Retreats founder Alexandra Baackes and High Flying Retreats founder Brenna Bradbury as your hosts, and learning from local Israeli pole and dance celebrity instructors like Niv Gradus, Jose Rodrigues, Nicolle Twerk, and Mor Geffen! You’ll be learning from the best — Niv Gradus is the owner of Fit Pole Studio in Tel Aviv, a star of Israel’s Got Talent, and current sweetheart of Israel’s pole community, while Jose Rodrigues is the owner of JR Pole in Tel Aviv, and a silver medalist with the Pole Sports & Arts World Federation.
Alexandra Baackes fell in love with Israel’s hospitality, culture, and adventures immediately upon her first trip in 2018 and loved it so much she hasn’t been able to stay away since! She is a RYT 200 Registered Yoga Teacher, an Aerial Vinyasa and Aerial Yin instructor, a Buti Bands and Sculpt instructor, and is an enthusiastic aerial arts student.
Brenna Bradbury has performed as an aerialist and dancer with an assortment of entertainment companies in New York City, and as a speciality artist at venues such as The Box, The Slipper Room, The Diamond Horseshoe, Galapagos Art Space, and House of Yes. Off-Broadway, she performed aerial moon in “Speakeasy Dollhouse: Midnight Frolic” at the Liberty Theater. Brenna won 2nd place in the 2015 U.S. Aerial Championships, Silks Division, and was selected as a finalist in the 2016 U.S. Aerial Championships, Lyra Division. She has her 200 hour Vinyasa TT from Atmananda Yoga Studio, her 50 hour Aerial Yoga TT from OM Factory, and her 25 hour Flexibility TT from Elevated Education, through Body & Pole.
Health + Safety
Israel has some of the world’s most stringent COVID arrival procedures — allowing us to relax and enjoy a full travel experience upon arrival!
Israel requires visitors to be fully vaccinated, which they define as vaccinated with two vaccine doses (or a single dose of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine) more than 14 days before arrival in Israel (and no more than 180 days later than the departure from Israel). If more than 180 have passed since the last dose in the series, they must also receive a booster shot at least 14 days prior to entry. You can find more information here.
Additionally, you must take a PCR test no more than 72 hours before your flight or a lab rapid test taken no more than 48 hours before your flight. According to current guidelines, you will also be required to take a PCR test at the airport on arrival. This costs $25USD, and you will be able to proceed to our accommodation and relax until the results are texted to you and you are free to continue with our amazing itinerary! On average, this takes a few hours, however, many anticipate this requirement will be lifted before summer.
We will assist you in arranging all tests required to travel home from Israel.
Getting There and Away
Most international flights to Israel arrive and depart from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV).
Upon arrival, you can take a private taxi, Uber, or Gett (Israel’s own, much more affordable Uber!) to and from Ben Gurion airport. We will send additional information on airport transfer upgrades once you’ve booked, but don’t worry — the options are safe and simple!
Adventure Longer in Israel
Want the full Israeli experience? Before we hit the poles, join us for the wildest party in the Middle East — Pride! Join us for our Pride Party Extension to experience Tel Aviv’s epic beachside Pride Parade, followed by a day rave in Yarkon Park, Tel Aviv’s answer to New York’s Central Park.
Post-retreat, join us for our Jerusalem + West Bank Extension for a much fuller picture of what Israel is all about! You can book the extensions bundled with your retreat below, or separately via the individual sales pages for each extension.
Join Us
A $500 non-refundable deposit is required to reserve your spot. Can’t make this one? Don’t sweat — sign up for our newsletter to be the first to know when enrollment opens on future retreats.
Once payment is complete, you’ll receive a confirmation email with intake form and an invite to a private Facebook group for your trip. We’ll make sure you know exactly what to pack + expect, and help you with any questions.
Have a ton of questions about Israel and this trip? Schedule a 15 minute Zoom chat with Alex for all of your burning questions! Otherwise, don’t hesitate to email us at retreats@alexinwanderland.com with any and all questions or concerns over if this is the right retreat for you. We’d love to help!
High Flying Israel Pole // June 12-17
$2,750.00 – $3,500.00
F.A.Q.
What is the refund policy?
The $500 deposit to secure your space is non-refundable and remaining invoices are due 90 days before departure. If the trip must be postponed or cancelled due to events beyond our control, you will be offered the choice between a full refund and applying your payment to a future trip.
The reason our deposits are non-refundable is that we start incurring costs from the moment someone presses “book” — from credit card fees to high hourly wages for our team who corresponds with guests, manages trip inventory and our e-commerce platform, analyzes forms to create room assignments, coordinates with our local vendors, and beyond.
There’s nothing we want more than for our guests to take and enjoy the travel they have worked hard and paid for. Thank you so much for your understanding and respect of our need to enforce this policy strictly. We want to be here to travel with you for years to come!
Is this retreat women-only?
No — while Wander Women Retreats are, by definition, for women, our High Flying collaborations are open to aerialists of all genders.
What if I test positive for COVID while abroad?
We understand this is a major concern for many traveling internationally right now.
In the very unlikely event that you contract COVID-19 while traveling with us, we will assist you in confirming your positive test results, finding a location to isolate, and rebooking your travel home. We resumed our trips in May of 2021 and our guests have had a 100% success rate of staying positive and testing negative ever since 
Will I have time to do my own thing?
This is your retreat and we want you to make it exactly what you want! There’s a lot to see and experience, so we’ve tried to design an itinerary that balances the best of activity and downtime. But any time you want to bow out to have some “me-time” or do your own thing, we’re going to cheer you on.
How much money will I need to bring?
Tel Aviv is one of the most expensive cities in the world! You can expect to spend a minimum of 50NIS ($15USD) for lunch or 100NIS ($30USD) for dinner, depending on where you go and what you order.
I want to extend my trip to explore more of Israel. Any suggestions?
Check out our destination page for our posts about the Dead Sea, Eilat, Jerusalem, Negev Desert, Tel Aviv — and feel free to email us for more info and ideas! Alex has traveled Israel extensively. We offer an hour of complimentary consultation on expanding your trip, after which we will offer our hourly consulting at a special retreat guest rate.
Can I do a payment plan and pay in installments?
Absolutely. We want to make this happen for you! Email us at retreats@alexinwanderland.com.
Will I need travel insurance?
Yes, everyone will be required to have travel insurance for the duration of the trip. Our affiliate, World Nomads offers coverage at affordable rates.
Is there an age requirement?
You must be 18 years old or older.
What about visas?
Visas are not required for travel to Israel from the US, Canada, The UK, or many other countries. Traveling to Israel can be slightly intimidating given the more complicated restrictions, but we’re here to help!
As you might have heard, security at the airport can be comprehensive, and many are unclear on implications for their future travel plans. We will provide a wealth of information on the Israeli airport + visa experience and welcome any follow up questions and concerns! Israel no longer stamps passports, but if you have any worries about future travel plans, we have extensive background and knowledge in this area — please email us at retreats@alexinwanderland.com with questions. Please also check with your embassy for current visa information.
Is there a waiting list?
There will be a waiting list on a first-come, first-served basis in case spaces open up. If the retreat is full and you’re still interested, email us at retreats@alexinwanderland.com to be added to the waiting list.
I have questions about the pole portion of this trip. Who do I contact about that?
Awesome! Contact Brenna at highflyingretreats@gmail.com.
I still have questions about Israel, or cute photos of my dog. Who do I contact about that?
Um, us please! Our email is retreats@alexinwanderland.com.
