Duration: 10 Days
Dates: January 17, 2023 to January 26, 2023
Departure City: Charlotee, North Carolina (CLT)

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Detailed Itinerary

Day 1, TUE, JAN 17, 2023: DEPARTURE TO TEL AVIV

Day 2, WED, JAN 18, 2023: ARRIVE IN TEL AVIV – TRANSFER TO HERZLIYA
Welcome to Land of your Bible! We arrive in Tel Aviv, board a new climate-controlled motor coach where our guide will greet us and give us an orientation of the land as we travel towards Jaffa (time permitting). There we will consider the vision of Peter (Acts 10) and start following sequence of the events that led to the opening of the gates of the early church to gentiles. As we look at the very place where Jonah ran from the Lord, we will also reflect on our walk with God. We head towards Herzliya, a city on the coastal plains of the Mediterranean Sea. Check into our hotel. Dinner and overnight in Herzliya. (D)

Day 3, THU, JAN 19, 2023: CAESAREA MARITIMA – MOUNT CARMEL – MEGIDDO – NAZARETH – SEA OF GALILEE
Buffet breakfast. Depart for Caesarea Maritima. Visit Caesarea Maritima (included), a magnificent city with Roman, Byzantine, and Crusader ruins. Here we will elaborate on the story of the baptism of Cornelius, the first gentile convert into Christianity (Acts 10), and on the travels of Paul — those events that led Caesarea Maritima to become the springboard of Christianity to the West. We continue along the coast to Mount Carmel. Visit Mount Carmel, Muhraqa – The Place of Fire (included), and consider the contest between the Prophet Elijah and the false prophets of Baal (I Kings 18), discussing the reasons why the Prophet chose that place for the contest, and the lessons we learn from the story. Lunch on your own. Depart north for Megiddo. Visit Tel Megiddo “Armageddon” (included), reflecting over the future end of days battle between good and evil mentioned in Revelation 16:16 and the return of Christ. Along our visit we would see the Solomon city gate, stables, and palaces from the times of Ahab, high place and the impressive water system dating to the 9th century BC. Drive to Nazareth and visit Mount of Precipice, the brow of the hill on which the city was built, there we will admire great view over the Jezreel Valley and reflect on the rejection of Jesus by his family and friends in Nazareth. before we visit the Church of the Annunciation where the angel appeared to the Virgin Mary and announced the Birth of Jesus (Luke 4). Then we will check into our hotel at the Sea of Galilee. Dinner and overnight at the Sea of Galilee. (B/D)

Day 4, FRI, JAN 20, 2023: CAESAREA PHILIPPI – GOLAN HEIGHTS – ANCIENT BOAT MUSEUM – BOAT RIDE – MOUNT OF BEATITUDES – YARDENIT - SEA OF GALILEE
Buffet breakfast. Depart for Caesarea Philippi. Visit Caesarea Philippi, known also as Banias (included), springs from a source of the Jordan River, where Peter confessed that Jesus is the Son of God. We visit the high place seeing the gates of Hades, Augustus Temple and the High Place where the God Pan was worshiped. We will drive further north to the border with Syria where we will consider the dramatic conversion and life transformation of Saul of Tarsus, the Apostle Paul. Admire the view of Mount Hermon. Lunch on your own. Visit the ancient boat museum in Ginnosar (included), containing a 2000-year old fishing boat which is a good example of how the boats looked like in Jesus’ time. Enjoy a sail on the Sea of Galilee on a replica of a boat from Jesus’ time (included). Visit Mount of Beatitudes where we enjoy its enchanting gardens and reflect over Jesus’ teachings of the Sermon on the Mount. We will end our day at the baptismal site for a chance to renew your baptismal vows. Return to our hotel. Dinner and overnight at the Sea of Galilee. (B/D)

Day 5, SAT, JAN 21, 2023: PEACE VISTA LOOKOUT - CAPERNAUM – PRIMACY OF ST. PETER – MAGDALA - SEA OF GALILEE
Buffet breakfast. Depart for the Peace Vista Lookout for an unobstructed view of the Sea of Galilee. Visit Capernaum (included), where Jesus began His Galilean ministry. Here we explore the synagogue which dates to the time of Christ and see the site of St. Peter’s home. Visit the church with a glass floor constructed over the site, allowing us to look down into the excavated ruins of Peter’s house. Proceed to Tabgha. During our lunch break you will try St. Peter’s fish, commonly eaten by people in Jesus’ day (lunch not included). Our next stop is the Church of the Primacy of St. Peter, where after His resurrection, Jesus met with His disciples and told Peter, “feed my lambs; feed my sheep,” (John 21:9). Depart for Magdala. Visit Magdala (included), hometown of Mary Magdalene to include the 1st century Synagogue, oldest Synagogue discovered on shores of Galilee with a stone carved model of the Temple, including a Menorah carving. After that, we will have the opportunity to hike on the Arbel Cliffs (included). Return to our hotel. Dinner and overnight at the Sea of Galilee. (B/L/D)

Day 6, SUN, JAN 22, 2023: EIN HAROD – BEIT SHEAN – NABLUS – SAMARIA – JERUSALEM (MT. SCOPUS)
Buffet breakfast. Check out of the hotel. We leave the area of Galilee, following the Jordan Valley Road to Beit Shean (included), the capital of the Decapolis. En route stop at Ein Harod (included), named “Spring of Harod” after the nearby fountain. This is the pool where Gideon chose his 300 warriors to battle the Midianites (Judges 7:1-8). In Beit Shean we will see the ruins of the Roman and Byzantine cities. We will also discuss the demise of King Saul and his sons, whose bodies were hanged on the walls of Beit Shean. We leave Beit Shean site and continue traveling south to visit Samaria, which is a name for the mountainous, central region of the ancient Eastern Mediterranean, based on the borders of the biblical Northern Kingdom of Israel. Arriving in Nablus, have lunch on your own. Visit Nablus, a city which encompasses the biblical Shechem, where nearby Jacob dug his well. The well became a setting for a meeting between Jesus and a Samaritan woman. Depart for Jerusalem. Arriving in Jerusalem, stop on Mount Scopus to admire the best views of the city. Check into your hotel and have a Genesis Welcome to the Holy City. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem. (B/D)

Day 7, MON, JAN 23, 2023: TEMPLE MOUNT – TEMPPLE INSTITUTE – ST. ANNE’S CHURCH & POOLS OF BETHESDA – ANTONIA FORTRESS – VIA DOLOROSA – HOLY SEPULCHER
Quick buffet breakfast. Leave the hotel and drive towards the Old City to Temple Mount.
Visit Temple Mount where the Jewish temple stood until it’s destruction in 70 A.D. Here we reflect over Jesus’ ministry at the Temple of Jerusalem, seeing the Dome of the Rock, a possible location of the Holy of Holies. Leave Temple Mount to visit the Temple Institute and learn more about the Temple (included). Visit Church of St. Anne’s (included), a perfectly intact Crusader church. It is a wonderful place to gather and sing a song (sometimes with fellow Christians from all over the world). There, we will also visit the Pools of Bethesda where the healing at the pool took place (John 5). Visit Antonia Fortress (included), site of Pilate’s Palace, where we would have time to pray over at the Lithostratos, probably on the same pavement stones that Jesus stood his Judgment before Pilate. Walk the Via Dolorosa (The Way of Cross) following Christ passion toward the church of the Holy Sepulcher. Visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, known by the locals as the Church of Resurrection. The two sections built over the hill are the focal points on where the Crucifixion took place, called Golgotha or Calvary, and the other, the tomb where Jesus was laid. These sites encompass the continuation of the Via Dolorosa and the final Stations of the Cross. Lunch on your own. Return to our hotel. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem. (B/D)

Day 8, TUE, JAN 24, 2023: BETHLEHEM – SHEPHERD’S FIELDS – ISRAEL MUSEUM – JERUSALEM Buffet breakfast.
Depart for Bethlehem. Visit the Manger Square and the Church of the Nativity built over the Cave of Christ’s Birth, we will view the actual place where Our Lord was born. Depart for Shepherd’s Fields. Visit Shepherd’s Fields where the angels appeared to the shepherds and announced the birth of Our Lord. These fields are also the setting of the Book of Ruth. Lunch ( not included). We proceed to Jerusalem, to visit Israel Museum. Visit the Shrine of the Book (included) housing some of the Dead Sea Scrolls discovered at Qumran and see a Model City of Jerusalem showing the city as it looked in the 1st century A. Return to our hotel. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem. (B/L/D)

Day 9, WED, JAN 25, 2023: WAILING WALL – MASADA – EIN GEDI – QUMRAN – JERICHO – BET ARABAH – JERUSALEM
Buffet breakfast. Start our day with visiting the Western Wall, called the Wailing Wall, a section of the Western retaining wall of the Temple Mount, and Judaism’s holiest site. Depart for Masada. Visit Masada (entrance and cable car included), the fortress built by King Herod the Great and made famous by the Zealots in 73/74 AD with the standoff against the Romans. We visit the fortress and see the ruins that are considered a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO. Lunch on your own. Proceed to Ein Gedi. Visit Ein Gedi, an oasis in the Judean wilderness where David hid from King Saul (I Samuel 24) and where some of the psalms were written by David (Ein Gedi lookout included; entrance fee to the park not included). Proceed to Qumran. In Qumran (included), see the caves where the Dead Sea scrolls were discovered and the buildings that formed the Essenes public center. Drive to Bet Arabah. Visit Bet Arabah (“Qasr el Yahud”), Baptismal Site on the Jordan River, known also as Gilgal, where the Israelites crossed into the promised land, from where Elijah was taken to heaven and where Our Lord was baptized. Proceed to Jericho. Visit Tel Jericho (included), where we will see the location of city from the town of Joshua, view the Mount of Temptation. Then, enjoy panoramic tour of Jericho, seeing the Sycamore Tree reminding us of the encounter between Jesus and Zacchaeus. Return to the hotel for our last dinner provided. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem. (B/D)

Day 10, THU, JAN 26, 2023: MOUNT OF OLIVES – MOUNT ZION – GARDEN TOMB –LATE DEPARTURE
Buffet breakfast. Check-out of the hotel. We visit the Mount of Olives. Enjoy panoramic view of the city of Jerusalem, walk Palm Sunday, stopping at Dominus Flevit from where Jesus wept over the city. Continue towards the Garden of Gethsemane where amid the 2000 years old olive trees we see the Rock of Agony on which Jesus prayed and the nearby Gethsemane cave where Jesus often spent the nights at and where he was arrested at the hands of the High Priest guards. Time for prayers and meditations in private garden will be given (subject to confirmation). We proceed to Mount Zion. Visit House of Caiaphas, the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu (included), where we can see parts of the streets that Our Lord was dragged on by his capturers. We will have a chance to visit and pray at the dungeon where He was kept overnight. Then, visit the Cenacle, that commemorates the Upper Room in which Jesus shared the Last Supper with the disciples. Lunch on your own. Visit Garden Tomb (included), a peaceful spot where we can remember Christ’s crucifixion, burial and resurrection. We see the Calvary and the empty Tomb. Celebrate communion service at the Garden, reaching the climax of Pilgrimage at the empty Tomb. After a farewell dinner, we head to the airport for our flight back home with unforgettable memories.(B/D)