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10 Saturday: Johannesburg – Cairo
Evening departure from Johannesburg with Egypt Air. Dinner will be served on board. (D)
11 Sunday: Cairo - Tel Aviv – Jaffa – Netanya
Light breakfast on board prior to landing in Cairo, check in for flight to Tel Aviv. Mid-morning arrival in Tel Aviv. On arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv, you will meet your driver and guide who will be with you for the duration of your tour in the Holy Land. Drive through the modern city of Tel Aviv, founded 100 years ago on the Mediterranean shore.
Next we have a short tour of the ancient port city of Jaffa ("Joppa"), from where the prophet Jonah set sail, and where the "cedars of Lebanon", sent by the Phoenicians, arrived to be used in King Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem. Travel north to your hotel for the night.
Dinner and overnight: Netanya (D)
12 Monday: Caesarea Maritima – Mt. Carmel – Megiddo/Armageddon – Nazareth – Nazareth Village - Cana
Your first Israeli breakfast. Drive north along the fertile coastal plain. Stop in Caesarea Maritima, King Herod’s masterpiece city, built to impress the emperor in Rome as well as the local population. See the ancient theatre, hippodrome for horse and chariot races, and Herod's private palace, as well as the Crusader city. Drive via Mount Carmel where the prophet Elijah defeated the pagan priests of Ba’al, and then through the beautiful and fertile Jezreel Valley ("Valley of Armageddon"). Here we explore the site of Megiddo/Armageddon, and discover why this tel (archaeological mound), which holds 5,000 years of accumulated cities, is viewed as the place for the
“Cataclysm of the End of Days.” See the stables and gateway built by King Solomon nearly 3,000 years ago. Continue to Nazareth, the town where Jesus spent His childhood, where we visit the Church of the Annunciation and also Mary’s Well. Then experience Nazareth Village, a unique reconstruction of what first century Nazareth looked like on an actual ancient agricultural site. Then we see the village of Cana where the first miracle of turning water into wine took place. Finally, arrive at the Sea of Galilee.
Dinner and overnight: Tiberias area. (B,D)
13 Tuesday: Sea of Galilee Boat-Ride - Capernaum – Tabgha – Mt. Beatitudes– Bethsaida – Jordan River Baptismal Site
Breakfast in the hotel. Start the day with a Boat Ride on the Sea of Galilee followed by a visit to Capernaum, home town of St Peter and also Jesus’ headquarters during His ministry in the Galilee. Next stop is at Tabgha, the site of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fishes, and nearby is the place traditionally linked to Jesus telling Peter to become a “Fisher of Men”. Drive to Mount Beatitudes, where the Sermon on the Mount was delivered. Continue to the ancient city of Bethsaida, currently being excavated, which although it was home to at least three of the Disciples and is mentioned in all four Gospels, was only discovered and identified in recent years. Walk along the paths of the first century town where Jesus was also a regular visitor. End this amazing day at the Baptismal Site on the Jordan River, where the river meets the Sea of Galilee. (Baptismal service can be arranged).
Dinner and overnight: Tiberias area. (B,D)
14 Wednesday: Golan Heights – Gamla – Beit Shean – Jordan Valley –Judean Desert
Breakfast in the hotel. Drive up to the Golan Heights for a brief visit to Gamla, a first century town which was destroyed by the Romans 2,000 years ago, and see the synagogue which Jesus probably visited during his Ministry in the Galilee and Golan (ancient Bashan). See the magnificent view of the Sea of Galilee from above and learn about the geopolitical issues in the region.
We leave the Golan Heights and head for the ancient city of Beit Shean, an important centre throughout history, where the Philistines hung the heads of King Saul and his sons from the walls of the city. This city was also the capital of the Roman Decapolis. During the afternoon we drive south along the Jordan River Valley, passing by the modern city of Jericho, with a view also to the Mount of Temptation. From here we begin to "ascend" to the Holy City of Jerusalem, driving through the stark and beautiful Judean Desert. Arrive in Jerusalem.
Dinner and overnight: Jerusalem. (B,D)
15 Thursday: Jerusalem Old City – Southern Wall – Western ("Wailing") Wall – Cardo – Bethesda Pool – Church of St. Anne – Via Dolorosa – Holy Sepulchre – Yad Vashem Holocaust Museumr
Breakfast in the hotel. Today promises to be one of the highlights of our Pilgrimage to Israel. We begin our exploration of ancient Jerusalem by touring the Southern Wall excavations of the Temple Mount, and walking on the stairs where Jesus taught, that led into the Temple. Then we visit the Western Wall, remnant of the foundation of the Second Temple from the time of Jesus, and the holiest site of Judaism. Walk along the Cardo, the main road of Roman/Byzantine Jerusalem, beautifully restored for some modern-day shopping. See Bethesda Pool where Jesus healed the lame man, and the Church of St. Anne. Nearby is the Convent of the Sisters of Zion, with remains of the Antonia Fortress where Jesus was kept in prison. Follow the Via Dolorosa ("Way of the Agonies"), the path Jesus walked to the crucifixion, leading to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the traditional site of Calvary and Burial of Jesus. Walk through the bazaar area. We leave the Old City and continue to Yad Vashem, the National Memorial and Museum of the Holocaust - memorial to the 6 million Jews killed during World War II.
Dinner and overnight: Jerusalem. (B,D)
16 Friday: Dead Sea – Masada – Dead Sea Swim
Breakfast in the hotel. Drive through the Judean desert on your way to the lowest point on earth - the Dead Sea, located some 400 metres below sea level. View the caves at Qumran where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered and talk about their significance. Stop at the Dead Sea and enjoy a “swim” in the salty, mineral rich waters.
We ascend the rock of Masada by cable car, walk through palaces built by Herod the Great and see evidence of the heroic struggle and last stand of the Jews against the Roman 10th Legion nearly 2000 years ago in 73 AD. Return to Jerusalem.
Dinner and overnight: Jerusalem. (B,D)
17 Saturday: Bethlehem – Jerusalem Mt. Olives – Garden of Gethsemane – Garden Tomb – Free time for shopping
Breakfast in your hotel. Start the day’s touring in Bethlehem, where you will see fields with sheep grazing and it is easy to imagine how it must have been 2000 years ago. Visit the Church of the Nativity the traditional place of Jesus' Birth. Return to Jerusalem and walk on the Mount of Olives, overlooking the Old City. Walk through the Garden of Gethsemane and see the Church of All Nations (also called "Church of the Agony"). Last visit today is the Garden Tomb - set in peaceful surroundings –time for peaceful meditation before returning to the hotel. Afternoon free for last minute shopping.
Dinner and overnight: Jerusalem. (B,D)
18 Sunday: Jerusalem - Tel Aviv – Cairo – Pyramids - Sphinx
Breakfast in the hotel. Transfer to the airport for flight to Cairo. Meet your guide and driver, and we head for Giza where we see the Pyramids, the Sphinx and the Valley Temple. We will also stop at a Papyrus factory.
Dinner and overnight: Cairo. (B,D)
19 Monday: Egyptian Museum – Nile Dinner Cruise
Morning at leisure in Cairo. In the afternoon we visit the Egyptian Museum which houses many ancient finds, such as the Tut-Ankh-Amun treasures. Time permitting we will stop at the bustling Khan el Khalili bazaar. We then board a Nile Cruiser for an unforgettable farewell dinner. Cruise the Nile, enjoy traditional food and there will also be a folklore performance. Drive to the airport, check in for your flight. (B,D)
20 Tuesday Johannesburg
Morning arrival in Johannesburg.
Tel: (031) 3037810 OR 0861 ITT MED (0861 488633)
E-Mail: outbound@itt.co.za Website: www.itt.co.za
The sequence of the tour, hotels used and sites visited may be amended due to circumstances beyond our control.
Please contact ITT for a quote.
Please note that all our Pilgrimage Packages have been created for groups of 20 or more passengers and as they do not operate with regular scheduled departures, cannot be booked by individual passengers unless they form part of a pre-arranged group.
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