Duration: 9 Days
Dates: April 29 - May 07, 2024
Departure City: Toronto, Canada

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Detailed Itinerary

Day 1: (MON, APR 29): Departure to Tel Aviv Board our Air Canada direct flight from Toronto to Tel Aviv.

Day 2: (TUE, APR 30): Tel Aviv – Herzliya
Arrive in Tel Aviv where our guide will greet us and give us an orientation of the land as we travel towards Jaffa (Biblical Joppa). After breaking for lunch, consider the vision of Peter (Acts 10) and the sequence of events that lead to the opening of the gates of the early church to Gentiles. Looking at the very place where Jonah ran from the Lord, we will also reflect on our own walk with God. After our time in Jaffa, bus to our hotel on the coastal plains of the Mediterranean Sea. Dinner and overnight in the hotel in Herzliya.

Day 3: (WED, MAY 1): Caesarea Maritima – Mount Carmel – Church of the Annunciation – Tiberias After a buffet breakfast, travel to Caesarea Maritima, site of one of King Herod the Great’s many palaces. Discuss the story of the baptism of Cornelius, the first gentile converts into Christianity (Acts 10), and on the travels of Paul. Continue to Mount Carmel and consider the contest between the Prophet Elijah and the false prophets of Baal (I Kings 18). Travel to Megiddo and explore the Tel (archaeological mound) that goes back in history to 4000 BC, looking at ruins from the times of King Solomon and King Ahab. Overlooking the Armageddon Valley, discuss its significance as a crossroad for empires and the site of the battle described in Re 16:16. Following lunch at a Druze restaurant, visit the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth for guided individual reflection on its amazing artwork. Check into our hotel on the Sea of Galilee for the next two nights and enjoy another dinner together. Dinner and overnight in Tiberias.

Day 4: (THU, MAY 2): Sea of Galilee – Capernaum – Mount of Beatitudes – Peter’s Primacy – Magdala – Tiberias
After breakfast, visit Capernaum, hometown of Jesus and his Galilean ministry base. View the house of Peter’s mother-in-law and the ancient synagogue where many of Jesus’ teachings took place. Traveling on to the Mount of Beatitudes, reflect on Jesus’ teachings of the Sermon on the Mount, share communion and have some individual time for spiritual reflection. Continuing in Galilee, visit the Church of St Peter’s Primacy where Jesus appeared to his disciples the third time after the Resurrection. Enjoy a lunch on the shore of the lake at an excellent restaurant serving St. Peter’s fish (aka tilapia, along with other options). [Lunch not included in trip price] Following lunch, visit Magdala, the hometown of Mary Magdalene to view the oldest Synagogue discovered in Galilee. Spend some time in reflection on the Women in the Bible theme of the Chapel. Dinner and overnight in Tiberias.

Day 5: (FRI, MAY 3): Beit Shean – Bet Arabah – Old Roman Road – Jerusalem
After a buffet breakfast, leave Galilee, following the Jordan Valley Road to Bet Shean, capital of the Decapolis, and site of the death of King Saul. A full Roman city has been excavated at this site and is open to explore. Continue traveling south to the Jordan River baptismal site. Renew your baptismal vows and spend some time engaging with John the Baptist’s message. After lunch, we travel to the Old Roman Road, where we will consider the setting for the Parable of the Good Samaritan. St. George’s monastery sits along the road, an excellent spot for pictures. From there we will go up to Jerusalem and have a “Genesis Welcome” to the Holy City. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.

Day 6: (SAT, MAY 4): Masada – Ein Gedi – Dead Sea – Jerusalem
After breakfast, bus to Masada, the fortress built by King Herod the Great made famous by the Zealots in 73/74 AD in their standoff against the Romans. Continue to Ein Gedi, the oasis in the desert where the meeting between David and King Saul took place (1 Sa 24). A hike up the path leads to a waterfall, and a special opportunity to consider your favorite Psalm. Lunch and souvenir shopping along the way before a short drive to where we can float in the Dead Sea. Return to Jerusalem for dinner.

Day 7: (SUN, MAY 5): Temple Mount – St. Anne’s Church & Pools of Bethesda – Southern Wall Excavations – Wailing Wall, Temple Foundations – Bethlehem – Jerusalem
After breakfast, visit the Temple Mount where the Jewish temple stood until its destruction in 70 A.D. Reflect on Jesus’ ministry at the Temple and view the Dome of the Rock, a possible location of the Holy of Holies. Visit the Church of St. Anne’s (subject to availability), a perfectly intact church from the Crusader period. We may sing a song and enjoy the 1000-year-old acoustics. The church is next door to the Pools of Bethesda where Jesus performed a miraculous healing (Jn 5). Visit the Southern Wall Excavation site. Walk on the very stones where Jesus trod to Herod’s “second temple” and see the place where our Savior taught the Scriptures. Visit the Western Wall, called the Wailing Wall, a section of the Western retaining wall of the Temple Mount, and Judaism’s holiest site. Venture underground to see the massive original foundation stones of Herod’s greatest architectural legacy. Moving to Bethlehem, a short journey by bus, visit the Shepherds’ Field where the angels appeared and announced the birth of Our Lord. These fields are also the setting of the Book of Ruth. Visit the Manger Square and the Church of the Nativity built over the Cave of Christ’s Birth, the traditional location of Jesus’ birth. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.

Day 8: (MON, MAY 6): Mount of Olives – Garden of Gethsemane – St Peter Gallicantu – Garden Tomb - Open Afternoon
After breakfast, visit the Mount of Olives for a breathtaking view of Jerusalem and a panoramic photo opportunity. Walk the Palm Sunday Road, arriving at the Garden of Gethsemane where we will arrange for communion and prayer time in the private garden (subject to confirmation). Visit the house of Caiaphas on which the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu has been erected, where we can see parts of the streets that Our Lord was dragged on by his capturers. Pray in the dungeon where Jesus was kept overnight. Explore the church or pause for contemplation of the triptych of Peter’s denial in the lower chapel. Visit the Garden Tomb, a peaceful spot where we can remember Christ’s crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. Celebrate communion service at the Garden reaching the climax of Pilgrimage at the empty Tomb. Small group or individual exploration in Old Jerusalem. Maps for the Via Dolorosa provided for interested pilgrims. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.

Day 9: (TUE, MAY 7): Departure
Breakfast at the hotel prior to departure by bus to Tel Aviv and the direct return flight to Toronto.