Born in Uruguay, Ariel studied Latin American history in Montevideo and at the Israel School of Tourism in Jerusalem. After six years working as a tour guide in Israel, he moved to the U.S. where he developed and led trips to South America. In 2006 and 2009 he led trips to Tunisia and the Persian Gulf for educational tour operators High Country Passage and World Leaders Travel. In 2007 Ariel founded the Travel Program at the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, where he directed the program until 2017 leading tours throughout Israel, Europe, Latin America, China, India, Africa and the U.S.