10 Day Seventh Day Adventist Church Tour of the Holyland – Arrival Monday

Sunday Day 1 Hometown/Tel Aviv
Sit back and relax on your overnight flight heading to Tel Aviv.

Monday Day 2 Arrival Tel Aviv
Welcome to the Holyland. On arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, you will be met by our local representative. After completing airport formalities we drive to the cosmopolitan city of Tel Aviv. Check-in at your hotel and relax. Later in the day, gather for a welcome dinner at the hotel.  Dinner and Overnight: Tel Aviv. (D)

Tuesday Day 3 Tel Aviv / Caesarea / Nazareth / Tiberias
After breakfast, we check out of the hotel and drive north to Caesarea Maritima. See the world-famous Aqueduct as well as a view of the harbour from the place where Paul was taken to Rome. Proceed to Haifa and stand on Mount Carmel. View Muhraka where Elijah the Prophet brought the fire from the heavens and defeated the false Prophets of Baal. After lunch on your own, proceed to Nazareth Village with its houses, terraced fields and wine and olive presses, all built to resemble those that would have been in a Galilean village during the 1st century. Continue to Cana of Galilee, site of the First Miracle. Married couples can renew their wedding vows in these Biblical surroundings. Proceed to your hotel in Tiberias. Dinner and overnight Tiberias. (B/D)

Wednesday Day 4 Biblical sites around The Sea of Galilee
Following breakfast enjoy a relaxing boat ride on the tranquil Sea of Galilee. Experience first-hand the same landscape that Jesus must have seen with His own eyes. The boat will dock at Nof Ginosar where you will be able to see the ancient wooden boat that was buried in the mud when the waters receded during a drought. The boat on display at the Yigal Alon Center dates back to the time Jesus was discovered by two fishermen brothers in 1986 on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee. From here we drive to the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus is believed to have delivered the Sermon on the Mount. See the Octagonal Church in 1938 built for a Franciscan order of nuns by an Italian architect. Antonio Barluzzi. The eight sides are thought to represent the eight Beatitudes. It is thought to be the place that Jesus gave the moving Sermon on the Mount beginning each statement with “Blessed are the”. We are now on our way to Tabgha to visit the Primacy of Peter where you will walk along the shoreline of the Sea of Galilee in the same area Jesus performed the Miracle of Fish and Loaves. After a Sabbath lunch, we arrive in Capernaum, the town of Jesus where He lived in the house of Peter performing miracles and healing. Driving northwards through the Upper Galilee we come to Banias Springs (Caesarea Philippe, where Peter made his confession of faith). Dinner and overnight Tiberias. (B/D)

Thursday Day 5 Jericho & Bethlehem* / Jerusalem
Check out of the hotel after breakfast and drive through the Jordan Valley River Rift to Jericho, the oldest and lowest inhabited city in the world. A cable car takes us to the top of the Mount of Temptation said to be the hill in the Judean Desert where Jesus was tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:8). Ascend the Judea Mountains to reach the Holy City of Jerusalem. Cross the city and reach Bethlehem about 6 miles southwest of Jerusalem known as the birthplace of Jesus. Here we visit the Church of the Nativity marking the traditional site of Jesus’ birth. Note – pilgrims must stoop low to enter. The entrance was lowered to deter looters from driving in with their carts. The Basilica is the oldest complete church in the Christian world. A stop will be made at Shepherd’s Field where the shepherds watched their flock while an angel announced the impending birth of Jesus. Drive back to Jerusalem, check in and enjoy dinner at the hotel. Overnight: Jerusalem. (B/D)
Visit to Jericho subject to confirmation.

Friday Day 6 Jerusalem the Old City
We ascend the Mount of Olives after breakfast to enjoy a wonderful panoramic view of the Old City of Jerusalem with the Temple Mount occupying the southeast corner of the Old City. The site has connections for all three major religions as the location of Mount Moriah where Abraham prepared to offer his son Isaac. Walk down the Mount of Olives, the location of many Biblical events which took its name from the ancient olive trees that once covered its slopes. Pass the teardrop Church of Dominus Flevit where Jesus wept over the future fate of Jerusalem and proceed to the Garden of Gethsemane at the foot of the Mount of Olives where Jesus went to pray with His Disciples the night before He was crucified. See the ancient olive trees and visit the Basilica of the Agony also known as the Church of All Nations next to the Garden of Gethsemane which enshrines a piece of bedrock where Jesus is said to have prayed before His arrest. Many countries contributed to the cost of its construction, in fact, symbols of the 12 donors are inside the ceiling domes. Following our path, we come to the Mount of Zion, the highest point in ancient Jerusalem. Here we visit the Room of the Last Supper on the second floor. It is important to note that the traditional Tomb of King David, holy to those of the Jewish faith, is located on the first floor. Men and Women enter separately. To enter the tomb one must dress modestly with a head covering.

We now enter the Old City through the Lion’s Gate to visit the Pool of Bethesda (John 5: 1-15) identified as the scene of one of Jesus’ miracles, the healing of the paralyzed man. Bethesda, according to ancient tradition is where Jesus’ maternal grandparents, Anne and Joachim live and where his mother Mary was born.

Walk through the Jewish Quarter to reach the Wailing Wall, also known as the Kotel**** the holiest place for the Jewish people. Proceed through the ancient Roman road, the Cardo, the main street in ancient Roman cities comprised of a central lane for carriages and animals and flanked on each side by colonnaded covered walkways for pedestrians. Excavations have revealed covered stalls and workshops that once stood along the walkway. We are now heading towards the Via Dolorosa, the Way of Grief lined with the 14 Stations of the Cross which have been identified with the suffering of Jesus on His way to the crucifixion. The last Five Stations of the Cross are situated inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. At the beginning of the Via Dolorosa, we find the Ecce Homo arch (“Behold the Man”) believed to be the place where Pontius Pilate displayed Jesus to a hostile crowd. We end the day with a communion service at the Garden Tomb (Gordon’s Calvary). Dinner and Overnight: Jerusalem. (B/D)

Saturday Day 7 Jerusalem – Day at leisure
Enjoy the Sabbath at leisure to attend a service in Church or meet with members of the Seventh Day Adventist community in Israel.  The rest of the day is free. Dinner & Overnight: Jerusalem. (B/D)

Sunday Day 8 Masada & Dead Sea
After an early breakfast at the hotel, we drive to the lowest place on earth – the Dead Sea reaching the isolated mountaintop fortress of Masada. A quick cable car ride whisks us to the top to visit the magnificent ruins of the fortress where 960 zealots chose self-inflicted death rather than surrender to the invading Roman army. Today, the remains of Herod’s buildings, palaces, storehouses, cisterns and a 6th Century Byzantine church are still in view. Afterwards, we drive to Qumran, the city of the Essenes where the Dead Sea scrolls were found in a cave by a Bedouin shepherd in 1947.

There will be time to float in the salty buoyant waters of the Dead Sea known for their rich minerals. For those wanting to cover their body in the mineral-rich mud, packets of mud can be purchased. On your way back to Jerusalem we pass Ein Gedi, a desert oasis where David hid while being pursued by King Saul. After dinner enjoy the spectacular outdoor Sound and Light show at the City of David* (depending on Weather conditions/an outside venue). The history of Jerusalem is portrayed against the walls of the Tower of David accompanied by music. Dinner and Overnight: Jerusalem. (B/D)

Monday Day 9 Jerusalem/ the New City
Our tour today begins with a drive through the new city to Yad Vashem, the national memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. Situated on the western slope of  Mount Herzl, also known as the Mount of Remembrance adjacent to the Jerusalem Forest, Yad Vashem opened to the public in 1957. Divided into nine galleries, the museum tells the story of the Jewish communities prior to the Second World War and ends with the Final Solution. Here you will find photographs, films, documents, personal items and artwork. Here you will find the Hall of Remembrance with its eternal flame, Yad Layered, the moving Children’s Memorial, the Museum of Holocaust Art, the Valley of the Communities and the Avenue of the Righteous Among the Nations and other moving exhibits. Please note that visiting Yad Vashem is an emotional experience.

From here we continue to the Israel Museum to visit the Shrine of the Book and the Holy Land Model, a scale model of Jerusalem as it was during the Second Temple Period. Afterwards, enjoy free time shopping in downtown Jerusalem. In the evening, enjoy a Farewell Dinner at a local restaurant where each person will receive a personalized Pilgrim Certificate signed by the Mayor of Jerusalem. Dinner & Overnight: Jerusalem (B/D)

Tuesday Day 10 Jerusalem/Tel Aviv/Hometown
Your pilgrimage has come to an end as you are transferred to the airport for your return flight home. (B)

NOTE: The above tour may commence on a different day or be extended by
One additional day to coincide with updated airline schedules.

*Site under the Palestinian Authority Jurisdiction – visit subject to situation
**Visit subject to weather conditions
***The sequence of the tour, border crossing point used, hotels used and sites visited may be amended due to circumstances
****Men must cover their head while in the prayer area and women must cover their shoulders and wear long pants or a knee-length skirt. If you forget to bring a covering, guards will provide you with a piece of fabric for that purpose before you enter. The prayer area is separated by gender. If you want to be super respectful follow Jewish custom by never turning your back on the wall.  You will see many people walking away from the wall backwards because it is simply disrespectful to turn away.

B = breakfast    L= lunch   D= dinner