Day 1 Arrival into Ben Gurion Airport in Israel Tel Aviv. Places that will be visited this day depending on time of the groups time of arrival: Herods Summer Palace in Caesarea. Elijahs Cavein Mount Carmel. Tiberias on the North of Israel Upon arrival the group will be met by representatives of Uncommon Tours and the tour guide who will escort them to the tour bus waiting outside the terminal. From the airport we will make a short visit to Caesarea, a Roman city with many archeological findings such as Roman theater, Public Baths, Roman styled hippodrome, and the city gate. We will then drive to Haifa where we will visit Mount Carmel, where the biblical story of the confrontation between Prophet Elijah and the Ba al prophets took place. This cave, where Elijah hid from Jezebel, overlooks the Jezrael Valley. After leaving the cave we will proceed to the hotel in Tiberias for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 2 Places that will be visited during this day: Nazareth Gospel Trail Sea of Galilee After having breakfast we will start our day in Nazareth, where we will visit the Synagogue, which Jesus attended while living there. This is the place where he announced the beginning of his ministry after reading the scriptures from Isaiah. After spending some time at the synagogue we will continue to the Gospel Trail, located on the Mt of Precipice. The Gospel Trail offers the opportunity to discover the cradle of Christianity by experiencing both physically and spiritually, the same biblical landscapes and sites of the Galilee where Jesus and his disciples once walked. The Gospel road is about 60 kilometers; however we will only walk for about an hour down the mountain, where we will see a wonderful view of Emek Israel. From here we will proceed to the Mount of Beatitudes, where Jesus taught The Sermon on the Mount. We will then visit the Church of Multiplication in Tabaha, where Jesus preformed the miracle of the Loaves and Fishes We will finish our day by spending time in Capernaum, which is the town where Jesus spent much time during his ministry years. We will return to the hotel for dinner and our overnight stay.
Day 3 Places that we will visit during this day: The Sea of Galilee Mount Bental The Golan Heights Our third day will begin with breakfast, followed by a sail on the Sea of Galilee. We will then journey to The Golan Heights where we will visit Mount Bental to experience stunning views of Mount Hermon and the Golan. Mount Bental is 1,170 meters above sea level. The road to the top has recently been repaved and tourist facilities have been renovated and rebuilt. From the overlook point one can see Mount Hermon (3,000 meters above sea level), several Druze villages, as well as a network of old bunkers and trenches from the 1973 war. These bunkers are located East of Mount Bental is Syria, with Damascus lying only 60kms away. In the Yom Kippur War of 1973, Mount Bental was the site of one of the largest tank battles in history. Mount Bental is a key strategic point for Israel, due to its advantageous observation point. Israel knew it could not risk losing this mountain, nor any of the Golan Heights. This will be followed by 4-wheel driving in Jeeps, through the places where Jesus walked along the Golan Heights. At the end of the ride we will have a late lunch. Back to the hotel for Dinner and over night stay DAY 4 Places that we will be visited during this day: Cana Mount Arbel
Synagogue Valley where the 5000 where fed. Our fourth day will begin once again with breakfast, after which we will travel to Kfar Cana. Here we will spend time in the place where Jesus performed his first known miracle, turning water into wine, during a wedding he attended. This will be followed by a visit to a synagogue below Mount Arbel, which Jesus attended during his itinerant ministry in the area. Then we will make a short climb up Mount Arbel, which is the very spot where Jesus spent all night praying before walking on the water to meet the disciples in the Sea of Galilee, in the middle of a storm. After our time at the top of Mt. Arbel we will descend and travel across into the valley where Jesus fed the 5000. Back to the hotel for dinner and over night DAY 5 Places we will visit this day: Jordan Valley Baptism site of Jesus in Jordan River Mount of Olives in Jerusalem After checking out of our hotel in Tiberias, we will head south into and through the Jordan Valley, passing Beth She an where we will stop at Kaser El Yahud, the traditional and real baptismal site where it is believed John baptized Jesus. Here everyone will have a chance to be baptized. This will be followed by a drive to Jerusalem, where we will be stopping on Mount of Olives. This is the very point from which all of Jerusalem (THE CITY OF GOLD) can be seen when the sun sets. From here we will proceed to the Ramada Hotel in Jerusalem where we will have dinner and spend every night while we are in Jerusalem.
DAY 6 Places we will visit this day: Bethlehem Shepherd s Fields Our sixth day will begin with the customary breakfast. This will be followed by a drive to Bethlehem, where we will visit the Church of the Nativity. This is believed to be the birthplace of Christ. We will also visit the Shepherd's field, believed to be the place where an angel announced the upcoming birth of Christ. We will then visit a few sites that shed light in helping us understand the Lord s prophecy about Jerusalem. The afternoon will be free time to rest and relax at the hotel. DAY 7 The places we will visit this day are: DEAD SEA MASADA QUMRAN Our day will begin with breakfast, followed by a drive through the Judea Desert to the Dead Sea. We will continue to Masada, which is situated on an isolated cliff in the desert. This site was declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001.
Instead of walking up as most do. we will ascend by cable car to the fortress, which was the last stronghold of the Jewish Zealots in their war against the Romans. Once there, we will visit the excavations, King Herod s palace, the synagogue, bathhouse and much more. We will be able to enjoy the breathtaking views of the Roman camps and the Dead Sea. En route to the Dead Sea, we will be able to see the site of the Qumran Caves, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. From here we will proceed nearly 1,300 feet below sea level to the Dead Sea, which is the lowest point on the earth s surface. We will have the opportunity to swim and float on the salty, mineral rich, water. We will then return to Jerusalem for our overnight stay. DAY 8 The places we will visit this day are: The Garden of Gethsemane Mary s Tomb Mount Zion The tomb of King David The Upper Room site of the Last Supper Our ninth day will begin with breakfast in the hotel. Afterwards we will visit The Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:39-53) where Jesus was captured, and often prayed with his Disciples. Here we will also visit the tomb of Mary, the mother of Jesus. We will then proceed to visit sites on Mt. Zion: the Gallicantu Church, which was built over the ruins of the Palace of Caiaphas, the High Priest before whom Jesus was brought for trial (Mark 14: 53-65). We will visit the Tomb of King David, followed by visiting and having communion in the Upper Room - the site that commemorates Jesus last meal with his disciples. We will then return to hotel for dinner and overnight. DAY 9 The places we will visit during this day are:
The City of David Hezekiah s water tunnel Pool of Bethesda Place of Jesus trial in front of Pilates Via Dolorosa Jesus place of crucifixion Jesus Tomb Western Wall Our day will begin with an exciting tour to the site where much of the Bible was written, the City of King David. Here archeologists found King Hezekiah's 2,700-year-old water tunnel, one of the wonders of early engineering, and the seal impression of Jeremiah, son of Shaphan, possibly the scribe of King Zedekiah (Jeremiah 36:10). Then we will visit the church of St. Anne and Bethesda where Christ healed the paralyzed man (John 5). Next we proceed to Ecce Homo, believed to be the place where Pilate gave Christ out to the crowds to be judged. From there we will continue our journey through the Via Dolorosa (The Way of the Cross) and finish this part by visiting the site of Christ s crucifixion and burial site, found within the Church of the Holy Sepulcher From here we visit the Jewish Quarters in Jerusalem, where we will explore the Roman Cardo, the Madaba Map, and the Western Wall. Then we will drive to the hotel for dinner and overnight. DAY 10 The places we will visit during this day are: The Holocaust Museum Mamilla Mall in Jerusalem for some shopping
After breakfast we will check out from the hotel and spend time at Yad VaShem the Holocaust Museum. This will be followed by lunch and a walk through the modern mall in Jerusalem called The Mamilla From the mall we will drive to the Airport where we will catch our flight back home.