Duration: 11 Days
Dates: June 5, 2023 to June 15, 2023
Departure City: Charlotte, North Carolina (CLT)

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Detailed Itinerary

Day - 1 MON (05JUN): Leave on an international flight to Tel Aviv.
After much prayer and preparation, we will depart to Tel Aviv. Please arrive at least three hours early for our international check-in and departure.

Day 2 – TUE (06JUN): Arrive in 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 walk with God. Check into our hotel on the coastal plains of the Mediterranean Sea. Dinner included. (D)

Day 3 – WED (07JUN) – Caesarea Maritima – Mount Carmel – Megiddo – Nazareth
After breakfast, we travel 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 converts 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 (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. 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) then visit Nazareth Village (entrance included) to view a reconstruction of the village from 2000 years ago. We check into our hotel on the Sea of Galilee for the next three nights and enjoy another dinner together. (B, D)

Day 4 – THU (08JUN): Caesarea Philippi – Mt. Hermon – Golan Heights – Mt. of Beatitudes – Boat ride
After a buffet breakfast, we will drive to Caesarea Philippi (entrance included), where we will visit the ruins of the pagan altars and consider the confession of Peter in Matthew 16 (“Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 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. We Drive to Mt. Hermon. *During our break you will have the opportunity to try St. Peter’s fish, commonly eaten by people in Jesus’ day. We 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 end our day with a visit to the Mount of Beatitudes and discuss the Sermon on the Mount. We return to our hotel. Dinner included. (B, D)

Day 5 – FRI (09JUN): Kursi – Bethsaida – Capernaum – Primacy of St. Peter – Magdala
After breakfast, we visit Kursi (Entrance Included), We then travel to Bethsaida (included), the hometown of Peter, Andrew, and Philip, this is one of three cities that make up the Gospel Triangle and the location where Jesus spent two of His three years of public ministry. 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” and the Church of the Primacy of Peter, situated on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, where after His resurrection Jesus met with his disciples and told Peter “feed my lambs; feed my sheep ‘ we will also visit Magdala (included) (the hometown of Mary Magdalene) with its 1st century synagogue. We return to our hotel. Dinner included. (B, D)

DAY 6 – SAT (10JUN): Ein Harod – Beth Shean – Nablus – Samaria – Jerusalem – Mt. Scopus
After a buffet breakfast, then we will continue our way to Ein Harod (included), this place was founded by the pioneers of Third Aliyah. We leave the area of Galilee, following the Jordan Valley Road to Beth Shean 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 (Entrance Included). We make our way than to Shechem in Nablus also to visit the 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. Dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Day 7 – SUN (11JUN): Western Wall Tunnels (entrance included) – Masada – Ein Gedi – Jericho – Bet Arabah – Qumran – Jerusalem
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. Continue to visit 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. We will then continue traveling to the actual location where John the Baptist was baptizing in the Jordan River. Jericho will be our next stop, where we will visit the Tel of Jericho (included) with its ancient ruins, pointing out what possibly could be the foundations of the ramparts that Joshua and the Israelites brought down. we visit Qumran (Entrance Included) * the location where the Dead Sea Scrolls were 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)

Day 8 – MON (12JUN): Hebron – Bethlehem – Israel Museum
After a buffet breakfast, we travel to Hebron to visit the Cave of the Patriarchs. 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 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 pay special attention to those items that relate to Bible history. We return to our hotel. Dinner included. (B, D)

Day 9 – TUE (13JUN): Temple Institute – Temple Mt. – St. Anne and pool of Bethesda – Antonia Fortress
After a buffet breakfast, we will visit the Temple Institute (entrance included) and view the project aimed at rebuilding the Temple. We will then 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 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 will also visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Jesus’ tomb. 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.

Day 10 – WED (14JUN): Mt of Olives – Caiaphas House – Garden Tomb
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 walk down the Palm Sunday Procession Road to the Garden of Gethsemane, where the passion of Jesus began. Each of us will be given some personal time in a private section of the Garden. We will visit the Upper Room, the place of the Last Supper and also the home of the High Priest, Caiaphas (Entrance Included). We end our day with a visit to the Garden Tomb (entrance included). Back to our hotel for our last dinner and overnight in Jerusalem. (B,

Day 11 – THU (15JUN): Departure to Tel Aviv – Arrive USA