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Day 1 - Saturday: Johannesburg
Meet your tourleader and other fellow pilgrims at Johannesburg International Airport. Check in for your flight to Tel Aviv, flying on Israel’s El Al airlines. Dinner will be served on board. (D)
Day 2 - Sunday: Early morning arrival in Israel – Tel Aviv – Jaffa – Caesarea Maritima
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 is 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. 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. Travel north to your hotel for the night.
Dinner and overnight: Haifa area. (D)
Day 3 - Monday: Haifa – Mt. Carmel – View of Bahai Gardens – Muhraqa – Druze village – Megiddo/Armageddon – Nazareth - Nazareth Village – Cana
Your first Israeli breakfast. See the beautiful coastal city of Haifa, and a panoramic view of the magnificent Bahai Gardens. Drive along Mount Carmel to the Carmelite Monastery of Muhraqa, where tradition holds that the prophet Elijah defeated the pagan priests of Ba’al. Stop in a Druze village and learn about these interesting and friendly people, and sample delicious Middle Eastern food. Next travel through the Jezreel Valley to 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, and 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. Finally, see the village of Cana where the first miracle of turning water into wine took place. Arrive at your hotel in the Galilee.
Dinner and overnight: Galilee. (B,D)
Day 4 - Tuesday: Sea of Galilee – Mt. Beatitudes – Tel Dan – Caesarea Phillipi / Banias – Golan Heights – Mount Bental – Yardenit Baptism Site
Breakfast in your hotel. Today and tomorrow explore sites around the lovely scenic Sea of Galilee, and in the northern Galilee and Golan Heights (Biblical “Bashan”) with their extensive archaeological evidence and rich traditions relating to the early part of the Christian era. Begin on Mount Beatitudes, where the Sermon on the Mount was delivered. Then drive north to the unique nature reserve at Tel Dan with its Canaanite city gate from the time of Abraham (3,800 years old) and Israelite city built by King Ahab (only 2,900 years old!), as well as bubbling springs and rivers that are sources of the Jordan River. Next is a brief visit to the fascinating park at Caesarea Philippi/Banias, with its Roman pagan ruins and beautiful pools under Mount Hermon, and the traditional place where Peter confessed his faith in Jesus. Continue up to the Golan Heights to see the extraordinary view from Mt. Bental and learn about the geo-political issues in the area. End this amazing day at the Yardenit Baptismal Site on the Jordan River, where the river meets the Sea of Galilee. (Baptismal service can be arranged).
Dinner and overnight: Galilee. (B,D)
Day 5 - Wednesday: Sea of Galilee Boat Ride – Capernaum – Tabgha – Bethsaida – Jordan River Valley – Jerusalem
Breakfast in the hotel. Start the day with a Boat Ride on the Sea of Galilee followed by a visit to Capernaum, hometown 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 the place traditionally linked to Jesus telling Peter to become a “Fisher of Men”. Continue to the first century town 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 times. Then travel south along the Jordan River Valley, passing by the modern city of Jericho, with a view also to the Mount of Temptation. From here you begin to "ascend" to the Holy City of Jerusalem, driving through the stark and beautiful Judean Desert. Arrive at your hotel in Jerusalem.
Dinner and overnight: Jerusalem. (B,D)
Day 6 - Thursday: Jerusalem – Haas Promenade – Southern Wall Staircase – Western (“Wailing”) Wall – Cardo – Pool of Bethesda – St. Anne's Church – Via Dolorosa – Church of the Holy Sepulchre
Breakfast in your hotel. Begin your exploration of Jerusalem with the unique view from the Haas Promenade. Tour the Southern Wall excavations of the Temple Mount, and walk on the stairs where Jesus taught, that led into the Temple. Then visit the Western Wall, remnant of the foundation of the Second Temple from the time of Jesus, and 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.
Dinner and overnight: Jerusalem. (B,D)
Day 7 - Friday: City of David – Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum – Ein Karem
Breakfast in your hotel. Explore the City of David, the actual city built by King David, and which served as the capital of Israel for over a thousand years from the tenth century BC until the destruction by Rome in 70 AD. See the tunnel cut into the rock mountain by King Hezekiah to protect the spring from the Assyrian invaders. Visit Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum, the national memorial to the six million Jews who were murdered in the Holocaust. Tour the village of Ein Karem near Jerusalem, and see the Church of John the Baptist, traditional site of his birth, and the Church of the Visitation, commemorating the meeting between Elizabeth, mother of John, and Mary, mother of Jesus, before they were born.
Dinner and overnight: Jerusalem. (B,D)
Day 8 - Saturday: Bethlehem – Church of the Nativity – Jerusalem Mount of Olives – Garden of Gethsemane – Mount Zion – 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, and see the Birth Grotto. Return to Jerusalem and walk on the Mount of Olives, overlooking the Old City and the Temple Mount. Walk through the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus hid from the Romans and was arrested. Near the garden, see the Church of All Nations (also called "Church of the Agony"). See Mount Zion, where some traditions place King David's tomb and the Room of the Last Supper. Some extra time will be available for shopping.
Dinner and overnight: Jerusalem. (B,D)
Day 9 - Sunday: Garden Tomb – Judean Desert – Dead Sea – View to Qumran Caves – Masada – “Swim” in Dead Sea
Breakfast in your hotel. This morning have a Communion Service in the peaceful and meditative surroundings of the Garden Tomb, an alternative tradition of the Crucifixion and Burial of Jesus. Then leave Jerusalem, driving 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. 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. Stop at the Dead Sea and enjoy a “swim” in the salty, mineral rich waters.
Dinner and overnight: Hotel on the Dead Sea. (B,D)
Day 10 - Monday: Drive South – Mount Sodom – Arava Valley – Eilat – Red Sea Coast and Port – Underwater Observatory and Museum
Breakfast in your hotel. From the Dead Sea drive south along the border with the Kingdom of Jordan, passing Mount Sodom (of Sodom and Gomorra fame), and following the mountains of Biblical Moab and Edom along the way on the far side of the Jordan River Valley. Continue along the Arava Valley to Eilat, Israel's southernmost city and port (King Solomon's as well), situated on the lovely Red Sea. Drive through this resort town and tour the Underwater Observatory and Museum in Eilat, where you can view the beautiful and exotic Red Sea fish and corals from an observatory built underwater on the reef.
Dinner and overnight: Hotel in Eilat. (B,D)
Day 11 - Tuesday: FREE DAY IN EILAT for swimming, snorkeling or seeing the sites
(Optional Tour to Petra available)
Breakfast in your hotel. Day at leisure in Eilat to relax at the Red Sea resort and enjoy the various water activities. (Optional tour to Petra is available on this day)
Dinner and overnight: Hotel in Eilat. (B,D)
Day 12 - Wednesday: Negev Desert – Ramon Crater – Avdat – Wilderness of Zin – Bedouin Hospitality and Dinner with Camel Rides
Breakfast in your hotel. Drive north from Eilat and the Red Sea coast through the Negev Desert to the lovely Ramon Crater, and marvel at the beautiful natural colors of the valley. Visit the Nabatean/Byzantine city of Avdat, one of the major sites on the ancient spice and silk route between the West and the Far East and Arabia. See the truly unique view from Sde Boker over the “Wilderness of Zin”, where the Israelites, under the leadership of Moses, passed through on their way from Egypt into the Land of Israel. Enjoy a Bedouin “hafla” (festive) dinner and camel rides, and then on to your hotel for the night.
Dinner and overnight: Hotel in Arad. (B,D)
Day 13 - Thursday: Beersheva – Tel Maresha/Beit Guvrin Archaeological Dig and Tour – Elah Valley - Emmaus
Breakfast in the hotel. Drive north through the desert city of Beersheva, “queen city” of the Negev, and site of Abraham's Well, to the national park of Tel Mareshah and Beit Guvrin. Here you will tour fantastic caves, some of which were used as a refuge for Jewish rebels against the Romans, and where tradition holds that the Holy Family hid from the Romans on their way to Egypt. You will also have an opportunity to actually Participate in an Archaeological Excavation. Afterwards, drive through the Valley of Elah, where great battles took place between the Israelites and Philistines (including David and Goliath 3,000 years ago). Your final stop is at the traditional site of Emmaus, where Jesus met the Disciples after the Resurrection. Continue to your hotel for the night.
Dinner and overnight: Tel Aviv. (B,D)
Day 14 - Friday: Tel Aviv - Johannesburg
We hope you have had a wonderful tour in Israel and hope to see you back again soon! Very early morning transfer to Ben Gurion Airport, flight to Johannesburg. (B)
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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