Depart the USA to Tel Aviv, Israel

Today you will depart the USA from your home cities and fly overnight to Israel.  You will arrive at Tel Aviv Ben Gurion International Airport. Airport welcome. Transfer to Netanya for dinner and overnight. (Those having chosen the Jordan Optional Pre-tour will also arrive this evening.) 

Netanya - Sea of Galilee

After breakfast, we travel north to Caesarea Maritima archaeological site.  Caesarea, a historic seaport and home to the summer palace of Herod the Great built in 22 BC and later home to Pontius Pilate. We continue north along the Mediterranean coastal plain and then pass through the Carmel mountain pass at Jokneam to Megiddo, the royal city of the Canaanites, fortified by Solomon as a “chariot city”, and the Valley of Armageddon, site of the last great battle before the Second Coming of Christ.  Returning through the Megiddo pass we climb the ridge of Mount Carmel, passing Daliyat Carmel to a unique, local Druze restaurant for lunch.  After lunch, we continue to the Muhkraqa Monastery to view the Holy Land and Jezreel Valley and recount the stories of the prophet Elijah and the priests of Ba’al recorded in 1 Kings 18.  Continuing north along the Carmel ridge we arrive at Haifa and the Haifa Observatory to view the Baha’i Gardens, which mark the world center of the Baha’i faith, and Haifa Bay. Here we will point out locations and discuss LDS dedications of the Holy Land. Going down to the Haifa Port we come to the German Templar Cemetery and burial site of early LDS converts and missionaries dating to 1888.  Our final journey is through the Lower Galilee Hill Country to the Sea of Galilee and our three-night stay at Ein Gev Resort or Nof Ginnosar Resort, perfectly located right on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. 

Mount Tabor- Nazareth - Sea of Galilee

After an early breakfast, we will journey across the Galilean Hills to ascend Mt. Tabor, the site of the Mt. of Transfiguration, and visit the Basilica of the Transfiguration. We proceed across the Jezreel Valley to the 1st century reconstructed Nazareth Village.  We tour the village, built as Jesus would have known it in his lifetime, and enjoy a 1st-century lunch.  Following lunch, we travel through the Nazareth hills past Cana, where the first recorded miracle of Christ took place turning water to wine, and the Horns of Hittin, where the Crusaders suffered their final defeat in 1187.   Our next visit is to the New Testament city of Magdala, home of Mary Magdalene. Here we will stand in a 1st Century synagogue where Jesus and his apostles stood and taught. After visiting the beautiful chapel Duc-in-Altum, we transfer to Kibbutz Nof Ginnosar to view the 1st century AD fishing boat and Yigel Alon Museum. Here we board a fishing boat to cross the Sea of Galilee to Kibbutz Ein Gev. Today is Saturday, the Sabbath in Israel. We will hold a devotional service today. 

Galilee - Capernaum - Mt Of Beatitudes - Tel Dan - Golan Heights

Following breakfast, we travel along the Eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee below the Golan Heights, passing Kursi (Jesus feeds the multitudes), Bethsaida, and the northern Jordan River to Capernaum. In Capernaum, we see the synagogue where Jesus preached and nearby what is believed to be the house of Peter. Not far from here is Primacy of Rock where the resurrected Jesus asks Peter, “Lovest thou me?”, Tabgah, the site of the multiplication of the fishes and loaves, and the Mt. of Beatitudes where Jesus delivered His epic “Sermon on the Mount”. We continue our journey past Chorazin, Hatzor, and the Hula Valley, to the Lebanese border near Tel Dan. Time permitting, we will visit Banias (Caesarea Philippi) at the foot of Mt. Hermon where Peter confessed the Savior’s divinity. On this day we see the northern borders of Israel with Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan. We visit the bunkers in the Golan Heights at Bental, and after return to Ein Gev Resort Village to enjoy an evening swim or just relax.

Galilee - Jericho

We depart the Galilee and drive south along the Jordan River to Beit She’an, inhabited more than 6,000 years ago, and later occupied by the Romans. Here the bodies of King Saul and his sons were hung by the Philistines.  The spectacular remains of the Byzantine city are comparable to the magnificent ruins of Ephesus, Turkey.  After touring the Roman Byzantine city, we continue south along the Jordan River Valley to Jericho.  We visit Tel Jericho, the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world.  And here we see the remains of the Walls of Jericho that came “tumbling down” during Joshua’s siege of the city.  Also, near Jericho, we visit the site recently identified as the baptism site of Jesus on the Israeli side of the border with Jordan called Qasr Al-Yahud.  Our overnight in Jericho is at the Jericho Resort Hotel.

Jericho - Dead Sea - Jerusalem

We depart Jericho and drive south to the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth, and continue along its banks to Masada, a magnificent Herodian mountain fortress once occupied by Jewish zealots under siege by the Romans.  From here we continue to Qumran, the site of the original Dead Sea Scrolls found by shepherds in local caves.  Before we continue to Jerusalem, those who choose will have an opportunity to “float” in the waters of the Dead Sea.  Departing the Dead Sea Rift Valley, we pass through the Judean hills to Jerusalem.  We detour near the Old Roman Road of Jesus’ day to view the Judean wilderness and take a walk to see Kozeba or St. George’s Monastery across Wadi Qelt.  Upon arrival in Jerusalem, we check into our hotel for an early dinner.  We then transfer to West Jerusalem and the Shrine of the Book and the Dead Sea Scrolls at the Israeli Museum.  Here we see a Model City of Jerusalem that is a reconstruction of the Herodian city before its destruction in 70 AD.  A brief stop at the National Menorah and Israeli Knesset, or Parliament building, will end our day.

Old City of Jerusalem - Bethlehem

Today we visit the four quarters of the Old City, including the Moslem, Jewish, Armenian, and Christian quarters. We visit the Temple Mount, the Western or Wailing Wall of Solomon’s Temple, and the site of the Ophel Museum.  We will follow the Via Dolorosa (“Way of the Cross”) and visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. We travel a few miles south of Jerusalem to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus.  We also visit Manger Square, Church of the Nativity, and Shepherd’s Fields.  We return to Jerusalem for overnight.  An optional tour is offered this evening to Ha Kotel excavations along the length of the Western Wall.    

Last Week Of The Saviors Life - Old City of Jerusalem - Bethany - Bethpage

We travel to Bethany this morning to visit the tomb where Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead.  At Bethpage, on the eastern side of the Mt. of Olives, we visit the Church of Mounting, the traditional place of the Triumphal Entry of Jesus during the “Passion Week” or last week of the Savior’s life.  After a panoramic view of Jerusalem from atop the Mt. of Olives, we visit the sacred Garden of Gethsemane to remember the Atonement and Christ’s final hours before His arrest.  In the Orson Hyde Memorial Gardens, we will review the events of Gethsemane, the visit of the Apostle Orson Hyde in 1841, and have a pizza lunch. We visit Mt. Zion and the “Upper Room” of the Last Supper, the traditional House of Caiaphas at St. Peter en Gallicantu, the Pool of Bethesda where Jesus healed the paralyzed man and follow a portion of the Via Dolorosa or “Way of the Cross”, which is the route Jesus took when He carried His cross.  Other sites include King David’s Cenotaph, Lions’ Gate, and the Damascus Gate.  Our day will end at the Garden Tomb where Christ was buried and resurrected with time for instruction and personal thought and reflection.

Jerusalem

This morning we visit have optional tours to West Jerusalem, Yad Vashem (Museum of the Holocaust), and Mt. Hertzl, or for the adventurous a visit to the City of David Excavations, Hezekiah’s Water Tunnel, the Pool of Siloam, and the newly excavated tunnel to the Ophel excavations. The afternoon is free to spend as you wish.  You can return to sacred sites and/or explore new ones.  It’s a great day for shopping in the bazaars and walking the labyrinth of alleyways and side streets throughout the Old City or visiting the “New City” with its many shops, restaurants, and boutiques along Ben Yehuda Street.  This evening a visit to the Western Wall to watch the faithful Jewish community welcome Shabbat (the Sabbath day which begins at sundown) will be hosted.   

Jerusalem - Tel Aviv - Airport for Flights Home

For Latter-day Saints in the Holy Land, this is the Sabbath. From our hotel, we proceed to the Jerusalem Center for Near Eastern Studies (BYU) and participate in the LDS Sacrament meeting.  After church services, we depart the Jerusalem Center and return to our hotel for final packing.  We bid farewell to Jerusalem and travel to the ancient Emmaus (Nicopolis) before going on to Jaffa to visit the Underground Old Jaffa Museum and walk the promenade. It was from Jaffa that Jonah embarked on his fateful ocean voyage, and where Peter had his vision to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles. This evening we join for a farewell dinner in Jaffa-Tel Aviv. Following dinner, we transfer to the Tel Aviv Ben Gurion International Airport for our return flights home. (Depending upon your flight schedule, your return flight may depart Tel Aviv late Saturday night, or just past midnight. 

Arrive Home to the United States and your home towns with memories to last a lifetime