Holy land tours

Footsteps of Jesus

Published January 3, 2012 | By Tour Director

Footsteps of Jesus

Day 1: leave and fly to Tel Aviv.

Day 2: Meet & Assist at Ben Gurion airport, transfer to your hotel in Tiberias/Nazareth.

Day 3: Nazareth – Cana – Mt. Tabor
We start our pilgrimage in the city of Nazareth, where our Lord Jesus Christ spent most of his life. It was also here where the Angel Gabriel announced the Birth of Emmanuel the Messiah. We will visit the great Basilica of the Annunciation, built according to the most modern ideas of the Vatican on the remnants of St. Mary’s home. We shall also visit the St. Joseph’s Church, and the Church of the Synagogue, built on the place where Jesus was rejected in his own town. We continue on the footsteps of the Lord to the Village of Cana in Galilee, where Jesus performed his first miracle, turning water into wine at a wedding. The church of Cana is a good place for the married among you to strengthen your bonds of marriage with your spouses. We drive through the hills of Galilee to the majestic Mt. Tabor, to visit the special church built by the Italian architect Berlucci to commemorate the miracle of the transfiguration. O/N Tiberias/Nazareth.

Day 4: Capernaum – Sermon on the Mount – Caesearea Philippi – Jordan Baptism
Today we visit the places where Jesus acted around the Sea of Galilee: Capernaum, with Peters House and the famous Synagogue, enjoy the view from Mt. of the Beatitudes, site of the “Sermon on the Mount” , and the reconstructed church at Tabgha, where tradition puts the miracle of the Bread and The Fish. At the “Church of Primacy” we will see the Rock identified as “Mensa Christi”, where Jesus sat and ate fish with the disciples after his resurrection. We will also sail on the Sea of Galilee in a boat like the one used by Jesus and his disciples. Then we continue to Caesarea Philipii (Baniass) – a well preserved Roman city on one of the sources of the holy Jordan River. It was here that Jesus made Simon into “Petrus” – the rock on which the Lords Church shall be built, and also gave him the keys to Heavens. Before returning to our hotel we will visit Yardenit, the Baptismal Site on the Jordan River, where you can renew your baptismal, or take with you holy water from the Jordan River for Baptism at home. O/N Tiberias / Nazareth

Day 5: Megiddo – Mt. Carmel – Caesarea – Jerusalem
We leave the Galilee, and visit Megiddo, the famous Armaggedon of the Revelations. Here we can still see the excavation of the cities built here by King Salomon and later on King Ahab from the Old Testament. We continue to Mt. Carmel, where Elijah fought the Prophets of the Baal, and visit the Carmelite Stella Marris Convent, were Elijah hid in a cave and saw how God gave rain at will, by a cloud approaching the Carmel. The view from this spot is indeed enormous, and you can see from here wide over the Haifa Bay and sometimes into the Lebanon. We drive to Caesarea Maritima, the magnificent port-city built by King Herod the Great. From here St. Peter went to Rome and started with his first miracles. In Caesarea an inscription of the procurator Pontius Pilate was found. In the afternoon we start our ascent to the Holy City, Jerusalem! O/N Jerusalem.

Day 6: Jerusalem
We start with an introduction to the city from the top of The Mount of Olives, and then walk down to the Garden of Gethsemane. We also visit the “Wailing Wall”, the last remnants of the Temple in Jerusalem. If the current situation allows it, we will try to visit the Temple Mount as well. We continue in the footsteps of Jesus along the Stations of the Via Dolorosa, Jesus’ “Way of Suffering”, and unto the Church of the Holy Sepulcure, where Jesus was crucified and buried. The Via Dolorosa also passes through the Old City’s oriental “Suq” (Bazaar). At the end of the day we visit King David’s Tomb and the “Room of the Last Supper”, the Ceanaculum. O/N Jerusalem.

Day 7: Jerusalem - Bethlehem – Ein Kerem
We drive to Bethlehem, where we first visit the ancient Church of the Nativity, where we can touch the very place where Jesus was born. Built by St. Helena already in the 4th century, it has been an active church and never destroyed ever since! Here St. Heronymus wrote the first Latin translation of the Bible – the “Vulgata”. We shall also visit the “Milk Grotto” and the “Shepherds Fields”. Please note that the tour to Bethlehem can be cancelled without prior notice due to security circumstances. As this area is controlled by the Palestinian Authority, responsibility for your security there is by the Palestinian Authorities. Returning to Jerusalem we drive to the picturesque village Ein Karim, where John the Baptist was born. We will visit the “St. John in the Mountains” church, built on the place where the house of St. John was standing. We will also visit the Church of Visitation, where St. Mary visited Elisabeth out in the vineyard, and prophecized her the birth of St. John. O/N in Jerusalem.

Day 8: Dead Sea – Qumram – Wadi Qelt
We drive down from Jerusalem to the deepest point on earth – The Dead Sea. We stop to visit the Good Samaritan’s Inn on the road to Jericho. We will also visit Qumran, where the famous Dead Sea Scrolls were found, and learn about the beliefs of the Jews at the time of Jesus. We will not miss a float in the healthy and special waters of the Dead Sea. On our way back to Jerusalem we will stop to take a look at the famous St. George Monastery built right into the steep cliff of the canyon of Wadi Qelt. O/N Jerusalem.

Day 9: Emmaus – Jaffa
If flight schedule permits, driving past Emmaus where Jesus was first seen after his resurrection, we arrive at the old city of Jaffa, one of the ancient gateways to the Holy Land: Through it’s port the Cedar trees for Salomon’s Temple were brought, the prophet Jonas tried to flee God, but most important: It was in Jaffa where Christianity began to be spread among the nations. Here St. Peter lived in the house of Simon the Tanner and had the “Vision of the Flesh”, and here he made his first miracle by healing the little girl. Today Jaffa’s renovated alley-ways attract many artists, who have their galleries there. According to the time left before our flight we will leave you free time in the city of Tel Aviv and Jaffa. Evening fly home.

Posted in Holy land tours

Holy Land Tours

Published January 2, 2012 | By admin

Day 1:

Departure from your City.

DAY 2:

Arrive in Israel and transfer to your hotel.

DAY 3: CEASAREA, HAIFA, NAZARETH

We begin our tour of Israel at Caesarea city of Cornelius the Centurion, the first Gentile convert (Acts 10). Here, as we walk among the ruins of many centuries, the events of yesterday seem very near. In a beautiful example of a Roman amphitheater have your group sing and listen to the acoustics of a structure built in the days of Jesus. At Mt. Carmel, see where Elijah held the contest with 450 prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18). Then drive to Haifa, the only natural port in Israel. Continue to Sephoris where a third century city is being excavated and see the best preserved mosaic floors in the country. This is believed to be the birthplace of Mary, Jesus mother. Visit Nazareth, where Jesus spent most of His life, stop at the Church of Mary’s Well. We drive through Cana of Galilee where Jesus performed His first miracle at the wedding feast. At the end of the day drive across the Galilee to our hotel.

DAY 4: THE SEA OF GALILEE – GOLAN HEIGHTS

This morning we will be visiting places where Jesus spent most of his public life. We board a boat for a ride on the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum, where Jesus taught in the synagogue and spent much of His ministry (Matthew 4). Then we will visit the Golan Heights, major scene of the Six Day War, Kuneitra on the Syrian border, and the Damascus Road, where Paul had his vision (Act 9). We will journey to Mt. Hermon, where the miracle of Transfiguration occurred, and on to Banias, one of the headwaters of the Jordan River, the site of Caesarea Philippi. Here Peter confessed Christ’s divinity. We end the day at the Mount of Beatitudes, where Christ preached the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).

DAY 5: MEGIDO – BETH SHEAN – JERUSALEM

Today we leave the Galilee and head toward Jerusalem. Drive by Mt. Tabor to Megido to view the excavations of 21 superimposed cities, the remains from Solomon’s days and walk through the water tunnel dug in the days of king Ahab. Mt. Gilboa, site of Saul’s death (I Samuel 31); and the natural hot springs of Sachne. At Beth Shean explore the latest excavations revealing the remains of the Decapolis Capital, streets, markets, Roman coliseum and amphitheater before heading down the Jordan Valley to Jericho (Joshua 3). Then travel on the same Jericho Road used at the time of Christ (Luke 10) to go up to the Golden City of the Mighty King:JERUSALEM.

DAY 6: MT. OF OLIVES – NEW JERUSALEM

We begin the day at the Mt. of Olives with an overview of Jerusalem, an explanation of its history, and a walk down the Palm Sunday Road, the Garden of Gethsemane, site of Jesus’ betrayal. Next we visit the Model of Jerusalem during the time of Jesus where an excellent perspective o the city can be gained. In the afternoon we will visit Yad Vashem, which the museum for the Holocaust, and at the end of the day the Israel Museum, with the Shrine of the Book, where the Dead Sea Scrolls are housed.

DAY 7: OLD CITY – JEWISH QUARTER – BETHLEHEM

A tour of the old city is on today’s schedule. Starting at the Jaffa Gate we walk through the old Arab Market and bazaars to the Jewish Quarter, visiting the extensive area uncovered by archaeologists, including the Burnt House, the Herodian Quarter where you see the interior of houses from the days of Jesus, the Cardo, Hezekiahs Wall, the Rabbis Tunnel visit the underground archeological digs in Jerusalem, walk along the Western Wall and through the Hasmonen Tunnel from the 2nd century B.C.E., the Ofel excavation walk on the Roman Street from Jesus days and view the destruction of Jerusalem done by Titus in 70AD, also walk on the slops leading to the Temple mount during the 2nd Temple Period. Then we visit the Wailing Wall and the Temple Mount. In the afternoon we visit Bethlehem, the Church of Nativity, and the Shepherds’ Fields, where David raised his sheep and the Good News were received.

DAY 8: DEAD SEA – MASSADA

Today we leave Jerusalem and drive to Massada where a cable car takes us to Herod’s Magnificent fortress, site of Zealots’ stand against Rome. At Ein Gedi we hike through the nature reserve to the waterfall where David cut off Saul’s skirt. Then we stop at the Dead Sea for lunch and swimming before returning to Jerusalem. On the way we visit Qumran site of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

DAY 9: JERUSALEM CHRISTIAN SITES

We begin our tour day in Jerusalem by retracing the steps of Jesus Herod’s Family Tomb see a rolling stone, in its original setting of the kind that was used to seal the tombs in Jesus days. After a time of praise and worship in the Upper Room we walk down the Kidron Valley. Entering St. Stephen’s Gate, we come to the Pool of Bethesda, where Jesus healed the lame man. After a time of praise in St. Anne’s Church, we enter the Antonia Fortress, site of Jesus’ trial. We then follow the Way of the Cross out of the Damascus Gate to Calvary, where we visit the Site of the crucifixion and culminate our tour with communion at the Garden Tomb.

DAY 10: MT. NEBO – MADABAH – PETRA

We depart Jerusalem early on the way to the Allenby bridge continuing to Amman and visiting the capitol of Jordan. Then continue to Mt. Nebo where Moses saw the Promised Land before he died. After the breathtaking view we continue to Madbah to see the famous mosaic floor from the 6th century depicting the Holy Land and the city of Jerusalem. We over night in Petra.

DAY 11: AQABAH – EILAT

This morning we will visit Petra ant the remains of the outstanding Nabatean city and its temples all cut out of the rock. We leave Petra and visit Aqabah. After passing the border formalities we cross to Eilat Israel southern city on the Red Sea.

DAY 12: RED SEA – SINAI

Early in the morning we drive through one of the most majestic deserts in the World until we come to the foot of Mt. Sinai the place were the law was given to Moses. We visit the St. Catherine Monastery with one of the two oldest churches in the world. We return to overnight in Eilat.

DAY 13:

The day is for swimming, resting or shopping. On the late afternoon we take a domestic flight to Tel Aviv airport and departure for home, chasing the sun all the way and arriving with a lifetime of memories.

Posted in Holy land tours

Enter His Gates

Published January 2, 2012 | By admin

Day 1:Airport meeting assistance and transfer to hotel Ramses Hilton

Day 2 – Cairo Pyramids Giza Sphinx Memphis Sakkara.

Day 3 – Egyptian Museum Citadel Mohd. Ali Mosque Ithan El Khalili Bazaars and Queens Valley etc. East Bank Karnak Luxor Temple etc.

Day 4- Arrive in the morning at Luxor. Visit Nile River, West Bank Kings and Queens Yalley etc. East Bank Karnak Luxor Temple etc. Transfer to Luxor Airport, take flight back to Cairo then transfer from Cairo Airport to the Hotel.

Day 5 – Depart early the Hotel in Cairo and through the Suez Canal. Visit Suez Bay of Solomon. Continue to St. Catherine Monastery, visit the Monastery and continue to Nuweiba village Hotel overnight.

Day 6 – Transfer from Nuweiba to Eilat passing through the necessary formalities. Cross to Eilat, visit Eilat. Visit the aquarium.

Day 7 – Take the Glass bottomed boat to watch the marvelous richness of the Red Sea.

Day 8 – Drive to Arad, Massada, Ein Gedi Bead Sea Qumran. End in Jerusalem overnight.

Day 9 -Visit Bethlehem – Drive to Bethlehem, visit en route Rachel’s tomb, Church of Nativity, Caves of St. Jerome. Lunch in Bethlehem. After lunch proceed to Beit Sahour to visit fields of Ruth and Shepherd’s field, back to Hotel in Jerusalem.

Day 10- A.M. – Old city of Jerusalem – Via Dolorosa Drive to St Stephen’s Gate to visit Church of St. Anne (Traditional place where virgin Mary was born) Pool of Bethesda, Antonia Fortress, Citadel of Flagellation, Ecce Homo, Convent of Litrostrotos, Via Dolorosa, Calvary and Holy Sepulchre bach to the Hotel.

PM. – Old City of Jerusalem – The Temple Area. Proceed to Herod’s Gate. Visit Mt. Moria. Mosque of Omar, Mosque of El Aksa, Western Wall (Wailing Wall) back to the hotel.

Day 11 – New City of Jerusalem. Drive to New City of Jerusalem passing by parliament, Hebrew University. Continue to the Israel museum. Visit Shrine of the book where the Dead Sea’s Scrolls are kept. Continue to Ein Karem to visit the church of St. John the Baptist, Back to the Hotel.

Day 12 – Bethany Bethfagi and Mt. Zion Visit church of Mary and Martha and Lazarus’s Tomb. Then proceed to Bethfagi from where Jesus started his triumphal entrance into into Jerusalem. Continue to Mr Zion’s Church of Peter in Gallicantu (Where Peter denied Christ at the Cock Crow). The pool of Siloam where Christ cured the Blind, Church of Dormition, Room of Last Supper and David’s Tomb.

Day 13- A.M. – Mt of Olives Gethsemane. Drive to Mt of Olives to visit the Church of the Ascension Church of Pater Noster, Garden of Gethsemane, Church of the Agony, Virgin’s Tomb. Continue to Emaus to visit the Church constructed over the House of Cleofas. Black to the Hotel. P.M – Free

Day 14 – Day Jericho Nazareth Tiberias. Drive through the Wilderness of Judea towards Jericho. Visit en route the Good Samaritan Inn, arrive at Jericho visit the Old excavations, view of Mont Temptation, Elisha’s Fountain, Tel Jericho continue to Nazareth to visit the chruch of Annunciation, St. Joseph Carpentry Shop, Fountain of the Virgin, then visit Cana of Galilee (The first miracle of Fountain of the Christ where he converted water into wine). Arrive Tiberias overnight.

Day 15. Tiberias and Mt Tabor. Cross Sea of Galilee from Tiberias by boat to Capernaum. Visit the 2nd century Synagogue, then drive to Tabgha to visit the church of the Miracle of the Multiplication of the Loaves and fishes. the mosaic of the floor of the 4th Century, then drive to St. Peter’s Church ( Church of the Primacy). The Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus recited the Sermon of the Mountain, River Jordan, then proceed to Mt Tabor. Ascend and descend by taxis to visit the Church of Transfiguration, visit Nain (the Miracle of Resurrection of the son of the widow). Back to the hotel.

Day 16 – Tiberias Haifa Caesarea Tel Aviv. Drive to Haifa to visit Stella Maris, Persian Gardens, Bahai Temple, Mt Carmel and Panoramic view of Haifa City, then proceed to Jaffa to visit the Artists Colony, St Peter Church and House of Simon the Tanner. Arrival in Hotel in Tel Aviv overnight.

Day 17 – Transfer to Airport for Departure to Athens. Arrive in Athens airport meeting assistance and transfer to Hotel overnight. Athens by night Tour including dinner in a Taverna in Plaka (Old City) with Folk dances.

Day 18 – Full Day Tour to Delphi including visit to the Museum and the Archeological site, lunch. Late return to the hotel.

Day 19 – Half Day sightseeing tour of Athens including visit of the Acropolis. Afternoon Drive to Cape Sounion with the temple of Poseidon.

Day 20 – Full Day tour to the Argolis region including visit and entrance fees for Mycenae and Epidavros with lunch. Day 21 – Transfer to the airport for departure.

Posted in Holy land tours