Duration: 9 Days
Dates: February 8, 2023 to February 23, 2023
Departure City: Charlotte, North Carolina (CLT)

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Detailed Itinerary

WED (08FEB) Day 1: Depart to Tel Aviv

THU (09FEB) Day 2: USA to TEL AVIV
Arrive in Tel Aviv and 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. There we will consider the vision of Peter (Acts 10) and start following the sequence of events that lead 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 own walk with God. Check into our hotel on the coastal plains of the Mediterranean Sea. Dinner included. (D)

FRI (10FEB) Day 3: Caesarea Maritima – Mount Carmel – Megiddo – Nazareth – Sea of Galilee
After a buffet breakfast, we depart the hotel on route to Caesarea Maritima (entrance included), where we will visit the 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 will then continue to Mount Carmel (entrance 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. We then travel to Megiddo (entrance included), and explore the Tel that goes back in history to 4000 BC, looking at ruins from the times of King Solomon and King Ahab. Overlooking the Armageddon Valley, we will also discuss the reasons why we believe this will be the setting for the final battle between good and evil mentioned in Revelation 16:16. After a lunch break we travel to Nazareth where we will climb the Mount of Precipice, the brow of the hill on which the city was built (Luke 4).There we will reflect on the rejection of Jesus by his family and friends in Nazareth. In addition to discussing Jesus’ boyhood we will also consider the life and times of Deborah (Judges 4). We check into our hotel on the Sea of Galilee for the next two three nights and enjoy another dinner together. (B,D)

SAT (11FEB) Day 4: Mt. of Beatitudes – Primacy of Peter – Magdala – Capernaum – Boat ride – Baptism 
After a buffet breakfast, we will start on the Mount of Beatitudes and discuss the Sermon on the Mount. We will then visit Capernaum (entrance included), Jesus’ Galilean ministry base. There we will see the house of Peter’s mother in law, in addition to other ruins of the village. We will stand in the ruins of the ancient synagogue where Jesus was confronted by the demoniac. We will then visit the Primacy of Peter, the location where Jesus appeared to the disciples the third time after the Resurrection. We will then visit Magdala (entrance included), the hometown of Mary Magdalene with it’s synagogue and other town remains. We will end our day with a visit to the ancient boat museum (entrance included), containing a recently discovered 2000-year-old fishing boat. We will then sail on the Sea of Galilee on a replica of that boat (included). We conclude our day with a visit to the Baptismal site where you can get baptized in the Jordan River. We return to our hotel. Dinner included (B,D)

SUN (12FEB) Day 5: Beth Shean – Jericho – Jerusalem
After a buffet breakfast, we leave the area of Galilee, following the Jordan Valley Road to Beth Shean (entrance included), the capital of the Decapolis. There 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 Beth Shean. We will then continue traveling south to the actual location where John the Baptist was baptizing on the Jordan River. Jericho will be our next stop, where we will visit the Tel of Jericho (entrance included) with its ancient ruins, pointing out what possibly could be the foundations of the ramparts that Joshua and the Israelites brought down. We will then travel to Jerusalem to enter the Holy City and have an orientation from Mount Scopus. (B,D)

MON (13FEB) Day 6: Masada – Ein Gedi – Qumran – Jerusalem
After a buffet breakfast, we begin our day visiting Masada (entrance & 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. We then continue to Ein Gedi, the oasis in the desert where the meeting between David and King Saul took place (I Samuel 24) and where many of the psalms were written by David. After a self- hosted lunch, we visit Qumran (entrance included), the location where the Dead Sea Scrolls where found by a Bedouin boy back in 1947. There we will see the caves and other buildings that the Essenes, the group of Jews who wrote the scrolls lived. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem. (B,D)

TUE (14FEB) Day 7: Mt. of Olives – Southern Wall Excavations – Bethlehem
After a buffet breakfast, we begin our day with an orientation over the holy city from the Mount of Olives, pointing out important locations within the Old City, connecting them with Biblical stories and prophecies about the return of Jesus. We will then visit the Southern Wall excavations (entrance included) where ruins of the retaining walls of the Temple Mount are still visible. We will then gather at the teaching steps, the main entrance to the Temple where Rabbis met and taught their disciples. After a self -hosted lunch we then travel to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus. We begin with a visit to the Shepherds 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. We will then travel to the Church of the Nativity and view the actual place where Our Lord was born. Time will then be given to shop for olive wood and other items. We return to our hotel. Dinner included. (B,D)

WED (15FEB) Day 8: Western Wall Tunnels – Temple Mt. – St. Anne and pool of Bethesda – Israel Museum
After a buffet breakfast, we begin our day entering the Old City and a visit to the Western Wall, a section of the Western retaining wall of the Temple Mount, and Judaism’s holiest site (entrance to Western Wall Tunnels included). We will ascend the Temple Mount, discussing its connection to both the Old and New Testaments. We will also discuss why it is considered the third holiest site in Islam. Leaving the Temple Mount, we will visit the Church of St. Anne’s (entrance 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). We will also visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Jesus’ tomb. After a self-hosted lunch in the Old City, we travel to the Israel Museum (entrance included) where we will visit the Second Temple Period Model of Jerusalem, a 1:50 scaled model of the city from the year 66 AD. We will also visit the Shrine of the Book where the Dead Sea Scrolls are on exhibit, in addition to the archaeological section where many artifacts are displayed we will play special attention to those items that relate to Bible history. We then return to our hotel. Dinner included. (B,D)
(Please note that, due to security reasons, the only items the visitors can carry into Temple Mount are telephone, small camera, notebook and a bottle of water. Groups are not allowed to enter with professional cameras, iPads, backpacks, purses, any religious symbols such as Bible or crosses as well as Swiss penknives and clippers.)

THU (16FEB) Day 9: Upper Room – Gethsemani – Caiaphas House – Antonia Fortress – Garden tomb
After a buffet breakfast, we will visit the Upper Room where Jesus had His Last Supper. We will then visit the home of the High Priest, Caiaphas, where Jesus was taken after being arrested at the Garden of Gethsemani (entrance included). We will then walk the Via Dolorosa (The Way of Suffering), the actual path that Jesus walked from the Antonia Fortress (entrance included) to the crucifixion site. We end our day with a visit to the Garden Tomb (entrance included), where we will worship together and celebrate communion. We will then have our farewell dinner before we head to the airport for our flight back home with unforgettable memories.

OPTIONAL EXTENSION PETRA & VALLEY OF KINGS

FRI (17FEB): Allenby – Madaba – Nebo – Petra

SAT (18FEB): Petra visit – Amman

SUN (19FEB): Cairo – Pyramids & Sphinx
Fly to Cairo airport. Meet and assist through airport formalities. Visit the Great Pyramids and Sphinx at Giza plateau Transfer to the hotel in Cairo. Dinner and overnight in Cairo.

MON (20FEB): Cairo – board on cruise – Karnak – Luxor
Breakfast at the hotel in Cairo. Fly to Luxor. Embarkation before lunch. Visit Karnak and Luxor temples. Afternoon tea. Dinner on board. Egyptian folkloric show. Overnight on board of the cruise in Luxor.

TUE (21FEB): Valley of Kings & Temple of Queen Hatshepsut – Esna
Breakfast on board. Visit the West Bank (Valley of Kings & the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut at El-Deir El- Bahari and the Colossi of Memnon. Lunch on board. Free time at leisure. Sail to Esna. Dinner on board. Overnight in Esna

WED (22FEB): Edfu – Kom Ombo
Sail to Edfu. Breakfast on board. Visit Horus Temple in Edfu. Sail to Kom Ombo. Visit Kom Ombo temple. Lunch on board. Free time at leisure. Dinner on board. Egyptian Galabeya Party. Overnight in Kom Ombo

THU (23FEB): Aswan
Sail to Aswan. Breakfast on board. Visit the High Dam and the unfinished Obelisk. Visit Philae temple on its famous island using a motor boat. Lunch on board. Afternoon Tea. Dinner on board. Overnight in Aswan.

FRI (24FEB): Disembarkation – Cairos
Disembarkation after breakfast. Fly to Cairo. Visit the Grand Museum which displays the ancient treasures. Dinner and overnight in Cairo.

SAT (25FEB): Departure
Breakfast. Transfer to Cairo airport to catch the flight back home.