Depart USA

Arrive in Tel Aviv, collect your luggage, and meet your instructor and driver. Continue to your hotel overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Dinner and overnight in Netanya.

Begin this first full day in-country at the ruins and harbor at Caesarea-by-the-Sea, the imperial center for the Roman government in the land and a centerpiece of Christian origins. Climb to the top of Mount Carmel and relive the famous contest between Elijah and the Prophets of Baal. Roll into Galilee and climb to the top of a second viewpoint of the day. From Mount Arbel, take in the glory of Galilee and its famous sea. Dinner and overnight in Tiberias.

Dawn comes early at Magdala, an industrial site on the edge of the Sea of Galilee. View impressive remains that illustrate the fishing industry from the time of Christ. From Magdala, travel to the Mount of Beatitudes, where Jesus delivered a most memorable sermon. Continue to sites associated with the ministry of Jesus, including the Primacy of Peter, Tabgha, and Capernaum. Conclude this relaxing day with a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. Dinner and overnight in Tiberias.

Experience the beauty of the far north. Leave the Sea of Galilee behind and travel to the site of Dan. Here an Israelite “high place,” gate complex, and fortification walls are visible. Continue to the birthplace of the Jordan River at Panias, named after the goat god, Pan. Consider the nearby site of Caesarea Philippi, where Peter declared Jesus to be the Christ. Finally, climb to the heights of Mount Hermon, a snowy peak that marks the highest spot in all the Heartland. From Nimrod’s Fortress, built in the Crusader period, take in an impressive view of the Upper Jordan Valley. Dinner and overnight in Tiberias.

Descend down the Jordan Valley to Qasr el Yahud for a personal experience with the Jordan River. Contemplate how the Israelites crossed this body of water on their way into Canaan. Much later, Jesus was baptized here by John. Travel to the ruins of Jericho, where the walls came tumbling down! Think about the faith put on display in this amazing place. After lunch, peek toward caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered at the site of Qumran. Finally, go for a swim in the Dead Sea before heading uphill to Bethlehem for dinner and overnight.

See the Herodium, a mountain fortress of Herod the Great and the burial place of this first-century king. Continue to the Shepherds’ Field, sing a Christmas carol, and remember that somewhere in these hills, the angels appeared to the frightened shepherds with an announcement of Good News. Travel to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem built over the site honored as the birthplace of Jesus. Finally, return to Bethlehem for dinner and overnight.

Stand on the Mount of Olives for a view of the Old City of Jerusalem. Walk down the Palm Sunday Road to the Garden of Gethsemane. Enter the Old City and walk the path of the Via Dolorosa. Along the way, visit the Pool of Bethesda, the Church of St. Anne, and Ecce Homo. As a triumph of the pilgrim experience, visit the site dubbed the most sacred in all Christianity: the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Here, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus are celebrated. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.

Enter Jerusalem’s gates and consider the role of this famous place as sacred to Jews, Christians, and Muslims. Walk on the Temple Mount where Solomon’s glorious temple once stood and Muslims continue to pray today. Experience the Western Wall, a place of meditation and celebration. Walk up the stairs that Jesus and the Apostles undoubtedly traveled as they visited the temple. Go underground and witness Jerusalem’s earliest remains, including a Canaanite wall, the possible site of David’s palace, and a spectacular water system (conditions permitting) that terminates in the Pool of Siloam. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

Spend this relaxing last day putting it all together at the model of Jerusalem from the time of Jesus. Peruse the Israel Museum, the largest collection of archaeological artifacts in the country. After lunch, travel back to the Old City for some free time of your own drinking coffee, shopping, and sightseeing in Jerusalem’s narrow streets. Clean up, pack, dine, and prepare for evening transfer to the Tel Aviv airport.

Return home with memories to last a lifetime!