PRE-EXTENSION TO PETRA

COST: $574 per person

 

DAY 1 -- Monday: March 15, 2010 - NEW YORK / ISTANBUL

Tour members are welcomed at JFK International Airport for our departing flight to Istanbul via widebody aircraft arriving the next day.  Meals served on board.

 

DAY 2 -- Tuesday: March 16, 2010 - ISTANBUL / AMMAN / PETRA

This morning we will arrive in Istanbul and transfer to our flight to Amman.

 

This afternoon we will arrive in Amman. We will be met and loaded on our motor coach for our drive to Petra. We proceed to Petra for dinner and overnight at our hotel.

 

DAY 3 -- Wednesday: March 17, 2010 - PETRA

This morning we awake and look out at Petra, one of the most scenic places in the world. Proceed by foot into this dream-like, unreal world: the "Rose-Red City" of Petra with its incredibly beautiful temples, carved into solid rock and forgotten for 500 years. This is the Mount Seir and the Selah of the Old Testament. We will view the places of sacrifice, the old tombs dating back to 100 B.C., El Deir Monastery, the Tomb of Aaron and the royal palaces.

 

This afternoon we will board our motorcoach and take a panoramic ride of the outer environs of Petra. This is one of the 8th wonders of the ancient world. Return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 4 -- Thursday: March 18, - PETRA / MT. NEBO / JORDAN RIVER / TIBERIAS

This morning we will go to Madaba one of the ancient maps of the Middle East and then on to Mount Nebo, from which Moses viewed the Promised Land.

 

This afternoon we will head north to the traditional site where John the Baptist baptized Jesus. Continue to King Hussein Crossing where we enter Israel and turn north to Tiberias. Up on arrival we are taken to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

 

ISRAEL BEGINS HERE:

COST: $1,950 from New York

Add $436 from Phoenix

 

DAY 1 -- Wednesday, March 17 - NEW YORK / ISTANBUL

Tour members are welcomed at JFK International Airport for our departing flight to Istanbul via widebody aircraft arriving the next day.  Meals served on board.

 

 

 

DAY 2 -- Thursday, March 18 - ISTANBUL / TEL AVIV / TIBERIAS

This morning we arrive in Istanbul and transfer to our flight to Tel Aviv.

 

Upon arrival in Tel Aviv we are met by our guide who will be with us for the time we are in the Holy Land. Board our bus and travel through Israel on it's new toll road through the center of the country. Continue to Tiberias. Check into our hotel for dinner and  overnight.

 

DAY 3 -- Friday, March 19 - TIBERIAS / BET SHEAN / SEA OF GALILEE / TIBERIAS

This morning we follow the Rift Valley running parallel to the Jordan, along the route Jesus most frequently traveled to Jerusalem.  We visit Bet Shean at the foot of Mt. Gilboa, where King Saul was slain, see the evidences of Egyptian, Roman and Byzantine occupations, and view the ancient tel, Roman Theater and church mosaics.

 

In the afternoon we enjoy a relaxing boat ride on the  Sea of Galilee to Capernaum, then visit Tabgha and the Mount of Beatitudes.  Our last stop today will be at the River Jordan then transfer to the hotel in Tiberias for dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 4 -- Saturday, March 20 - TIBERIAS / NAZARETH / CAESAREA / JERUSALEM

We leave Tiberias for Jerusalem, on the way visiting Nazareth, boyhood home of Jesus.  We pass through Cana, where Jesus performed His first miracle, then proceed across the Plain of Jezreel to Megiddo to visit the excavations of over 20 different civilizations.  Visit  Muhraka on Mount Carmel.

 

In the afternoon we visit Caesarea on the Mediterranean, the Roman aqueduct and port, Crusader's Moat, and the famous Roman Theater.  We pass through Tel Aviv on our way to Jaffa (Joppa), the city of Jonah, where Peter had his housetop experience at the home of Simon the Tanner (Acts 10).  Proceed by way of the Aijalon Valley to Jerusalem for check-in and dinner at our hotel.

 

DAY 5 -- Sunday, March 21 - JERUSALEM / MASADA / JERICHO

We begin our day with a stop at Bethany, home of Mary and Martha and Lazarus.  Drive to Masada and ascend by cable car to the magnificent ruins of the fortress where, from 70 to 73 AD, Jewish defenders made their last stand in the Judean revolt against Rome.  We see the remains of storehouses, cisterns and a sixth-century Byzantine church. 

Continuing alongside the Dead Sea, 1300 ft. below sea level -- the lowest spot on earth -- we proceed to Ein Gedi. Here we will have a stop for lunch and swim in the Dead Sea or walk the path to see the waterfall in the desert.

 

This afternoon we continue to Qumran and the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. We travel to Jericho, the world's oldest city.  From the excavated tel atop the ruins of ancient Jericho we view the lush green Jordan Valley, Elisha's spring and Qarantal, the Mount of Temptation. We will head up to Jerusalem and return to the hotel for dinner.

 

DAY 6 -- Monday, March 22 - JERUSALEM / NEW CITY / BETHLEHEM

This morning we visit the New City of Jerusalem, Mount Zion, the Upper Room, the tomb of King David and Dormition Abbey.  We enter the Jewish Quarter of the Old City to visit the Wohl Archaeological Museum, displaying the newly restored Herodian Quarter.  Remains of this area of  Jerusalem date back to the time of the Herodian Dynasty (37 BC to 70 AD).  Proceed to the Shrine of the Book where we see the Dead Sea Scrolls on display then view the Knesset (Israeli parliament) building. Continue to visit Yad Vashem, a memorial of the Holocaust then visit the Model City.

 

This afternoon  we continue to Bethlehem to visit the Church of the Nativity, the Manger, Crusader's Cloister and the Grotto of St. Jerome.  We then visit the cave in Shepherds' Field and view the Fields of Boaz.  En route to Jerusalem we see the Tomb of Rachel and other antiquities before returning to the hotel for dinner.

 

DAY 7 -- Tuesday, March 23 - JERUSALEM / MT. OF OLIVES / OLD CITY

Today we drive to the Mount of Olives for a panoramic view of Jerusalem, visit the Church of Pater Noster and the Chapel of Ascension, then proceed to the Garden of Gethsemane.  Crossing the Kidron Valley, we pass the tombs of Absalom, Zechariah and St. James, then visit the Pool of Siloam and the Church of St. Peter of Gallicantu (Caiaphas' House).

 

We enter the Old City this afternoon through the Zion Gate and see the Cardo and the remains of Nehemiah's Wall on the way to the Western (Wailing) Wall.  We visit the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount, the Church of St. Anne, the Pool of Bethesda, Pilate's Judgment Hall, the Chapel of Flagellation, Lithostrotos, and the Arch of Ecce Homo ("Behold the Man").  We follow the Via Dolorosa (Way of the Cross) to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and end our day in the Garden Tomb before returning to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 8 -- Wednesday, March 24 - JERUSALEM / NEW YORK

We transfer to the airport for our flight home with unforgettable memories to cherish always. Knowing we have walked in the footsteps of Jesus and the early Christians on such a memorable tour will bring new meaning to our Bible reading.

 

POST EXTENSION TO EGYPT

COST: $574 per person

 

DAY 10 -- Wednesday: March 24 - JERUSALEM / TABA / RAS SADR

Today we leave Jerusalem behind and head south to Solomon’s Quarries. We will see a replica of the tabernacle that housed the Arc of the Covenant. We continue to Eilat on the Red Sea.  This is Old Testament Ezion-geber, where King Solomon had his famous smelting factories that earned the modern nickname “the Pittsburgh of Palestine.”  Today it’s a vacation playground. 

 

After crossing the border at Taba into Egypt and passing through customs formalities, we’ll meet our bus and Egyptian guide who will lead us through the desert Sinai to Ras Sadr. Check in to the hotel for dinner and overnight.  Enjoy the cool desert evening at leisure.

 

DAY 11 -- Thursday: March 25 - RAS SADR / ELIM / VALLEY OF SIN / 40 YEARS / CAIRO

This morning we journey onward to Elim.  This is the site where the Israelites discovered 12 wells of water and 70 palm trees (Exodus 15:27).  Near here God began to provide manna and quail for the hungry Hebrews (Exodus 17:1-18).  We are in the Valley of Sin (Numbers 33:9-11) where the grumbling Israelites wondered for 40 years.  And for you—a special treat.  We’ll take 4 x 4 wheel drive vehicles and challenge the desert ourselves. There will be 6 of us in each vehicle as we see Egyptian mines, desert rock carvings and numerous Sinaitic inscriptions.  I’m thinking you don’t have any friends who have done this! 

 

In the afternoon we will make our way to Marah.  You remember Marah--Israel’s first stop after crossing the Red Sea where the water was bitter and God told Moses to throw a piece of wood into it and the water turned sweet.   This would be a good place to thank God for all the basics of life we take for granted.  Continue to the Suez Canal and on to Cairo, where we check into our hotel for dinner.

 

DAY 12 -- Friday: March 26, 2010 - CAIRO - MUSEUM & PYRAMIDS

This morning we visit the Egyptian Museum with its priceless gems from the tomb of Tutankhamen and other world-famous relics. We tour Old Cairo, including the Coptic church of "El Moallaka", dating from the early fourth century and the Mohamed Ali Mosque. 

 

This afternoon's excursion includes an exciting camel ride to the Pyramids and visit the Sphinx.   Return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 13 -- Saturday: March 27, 2010 - CAIRO / NEW YORK

This morning we will transfer to the airport for our flight home with unforgettable memories to cherish always. Knowing we have walked in the footsteps of Jesus and the early Christians on such a memorable tour will bring new meaning to our Bible reading.