Holy Land

Depart via scheduled air service. The destination is Tel Aviv.

Arrive at Ben Gurion Airport. Travel to Jaffa for a panoramic orientation and walking through Jaffa’s picturesque alleyways. Here Peter had a vision that led him to convert Cornelius (Acts 10) and initiate the church’s mission to the Gentiles. Continue through Tel Aviv to Netanya. Late afternoon hotel check-in. Evening Welcome dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. This morning, follow in the Footsteps of Paul by traveling up the Plain of Sharon to Caesarea. Visit the aqueduct, the ancient Herodian harbor, the remains of the seaside palace of Pontius Pilate and the theater. Continue to the altar of Elijah at Muhraka atop Mount Carmel. Lunch, on own. Continue to Megiddo, the ancient Tel and future site of the battle of Har-Megiddo or Armageddon (Revelations 16). See the walls of Solomon and the impressive 8th-Century BC water tunnel. Drive across the Valley of Jezreel and climb to Nazareth, to visit Nazareth Village, a reconstructed first-century village that tells the story of the hometown of Jesus. Continue to the Church of Mary’s Well. Arrive at the Sea of Galilee for evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Drive to the Mount of Beatitudes to reflect on the new commandment Jesus taught here. Then descend the hillside (twenty minutes by foot or by bus) to Tabgha (Heptagon, visiting the Church of Loaves and Fishes as well as the Church of Mensa Christi, where, after the resurrection, Jesus appeared to his disciples on the lakeshore. Lunch, on own. Continue to Capernaum to see the house of Peter and the synagogue where Jesus preached and cast out demons. Visit Golan Heights where we will stop at a former Israeli military outpost to hear about the Yom Kippur War. Continue to the headwaters of the Jordan at Banias – Caesarea Philippi, where Peter acknowledged Jesus as the Christ. Return to the Sea of Galilee and board a wooden boat for Tiberias – sailing in the footsteps of Jesus. Evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Depart the Sea of Galilee and stop at the Jordan River for baptism or renewal of baptismal vows
Then on to Beth Shean, a magnificent Roman town, with its colonnaded streets, bathhouses, and theater with outstanding acoustics. Pass Mount Gilboa, where King Saul and his sons were slain in battle, and head down the Jordan Valley to Jericho, the world’s oldest city, climbing the Tel to view the ancient towers and the Mount of Temptation, marking Jesus’ temptation by Satan in the wilderness. Lunch, on own. Continue to Qumran, the ancient settlement, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were written and hidden until their discovery in 1947. Evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Ascend the Mount of Olives for a breath-taking view of the Old City and descend on the traditional Palm Sunday Road to the Church of Dominus Flevit. Visit the Garden of Gethsemane to marvel at the gnarled olive trees and join in prayer. Lunch, on own. Visit Ophel Ridge to view Herod’s Temple Mount where Jesus and his disciples often trod. Visit Mount Zion to see the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu, where Jesus may have been questioned before Caiaphas. See the Upper Room, the traditional site of the Last Supper. Walk through the underground tunnels to see the remnants of the Temple Mount of Jesus’ day. Evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. This morning, we begin at the Western (Wailing) Wall and continue to the Temple Mount to view the Dome of the Rock. Lunch, on own. Travel to the Shepherds’ Fields to rejoice over the glad tidings of the birth of Jesus. Return to Bethlehem to visit the Church of the Nativity and stop for olive wood and mother-of-pearl crafts that have been produced for centuries. Hear a presentation from a Palestinian Christian spokesman on the struggles of their community to live in dignity and peace. Evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Enter the Old City through Jaffa Gate and the Jewish Quarter. View a scale model of the City of Jerusalem of Jesus’ Day and the Shrine of the Book, where the Dead Sea Scrolls are displayed. Lunch, on own. Visit the Hertzl Museum and the Yad Vashem museum and memorial to the Holocaust. Evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. This morning, we begin at the Pools of Bethesda and visit the adjoining Crusader Church of St. Anne
Proceed up the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Lunch, on own. Celebrate a communion celebration at Golgotha and the Garden Tomb. Afternoon at leisure for shopping or additional sightseeing. Evening Farewell Dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Hotel check-out. Morning at leisure to explore the Old City. Visit Emmaus for a possible worship service attendance at the site of the post-resurrection revelation of Jesus to his disciples. Transfer to the airport for the late night or early morning return flight home.