DAY 1 -- Tuesday, February 16, 2010 - DETROIT / ATLANTA / TEL AVIV

Tour members are welcomed at Detroit Metro airport for our flight to Atlanta. This evening we board our flight to

Tel Aviv via widebody aircraft arriving the next day.  Meals are served on board.

 

DAY 2 -- Wednesday, February 17 - TEL AVIV / TIBERIAS

Upon arrival in Tel Aviv, we are met by our guide who will be with us for the entire time we are in the Holy Land. We board our bus and travel through Israel on its new toll road through the center of the country. We continue to Tiberias to check into our hotel for dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 3 -- Thursday, February 18 - TIBERIAS / UPPER GALILEE

This morning we leave Tiberias and head north via Magdala into the valley of Gennesareth to Ginossar to view the New Testament boat found below the sea and to visit the kibbutz then on to Chorazin through the Hula Valley to Hazor, ruins of the powerful Canaanite city destroyed by Joshua and rebuilt by Solomon.

 

We continue to the northern limits of Jesus' travel as we cross the River Hatzbani to Dan and Banias (Caesarea Philippi), dedicated to Pan, Greek god of pastures, flocks and shepherds; here Peter made his great profession of faith.  Driving to the foot of Mount Hermon, we ascend onto

the Golan Plateau for a magnificent view of upper Israel.  We return to the hotel for dinner and overnight. Our midweek service will be on the shore of the Sea of Galilee.

 

DAY 4 -- Friday, February 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. We return back to the Sea of Galilee and enjoy a St. Peter’s fish lunch.

 

In the afternoon we enjoy a relaxing boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. We will visit Capernaum then 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 5 -- Saturday, February 20 - TIBERIAS / NAZARETH / CAESAREA / JERUSALEM

We leave Tiberias for Jerusalem. On the way we pass through Cana, where Jesus performed His first miracle, visiting Nazareth, the boyhood home of Jesus. We will

stop at the Nazareth Village and see how the city was at the time of Jesus. We proceed across the Plain of Jezreel to Megiddo to visit the excavations of over 20 different civilizations.  We 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).  We will proceed by way of the Aijalon Valley to Jerusalem for check-in and dinner at our hotel.

 

DAY 6 -- Sunday, February 21 - 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).  We will go to the First Baptist Bible Church for their morning worship service. This will be a highlight as we worship with a local church in Jerusalem.

Proceed to the Shrine of the Book where we see the Dead

Sea Scrolls on display and the Model City. We will view the Knesset (Israeli parliament) building and go to Yad Vashem, a memorial of the Holocaust, time permitting.

 

This afternoon we continue to Bethlehem to visit the Church of the Nativity, the Manger, and Crusader's Cloister. We then visit the cave in the 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 and an evening service.

 

DAY 7 -- Monday, February 22 - JERUSALEM / MASADA / JERICHO

We begin our day with a stop at Bethany, home of Mary and Martha and Lazarus.  We 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. 

 

We continue alongside the Dead Sea, 1300 ft. below sea level -- the lowest spot on earth.  Here we will have a stop at the Dead Sea or walk a path to see a waterfall in the desert at En Gedi where David hid from Saul.

 

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 8 -- Tuesday, February 23 - JERUSALEM / RABBI TUNNEL / SOUTHERN WALL

This morning we will board our bus for our exciting tour to the famous Rabbi Tunnel. Here we will enter by the Western wall and go down to the foundation of the Second Temple. We will see a model that will demonstrate where we are in relation to the time of Christ. We will continue along the tunnel as we proceed to the entry way to the Holy of Holies.  We will continue to the Temple Institute where we will see the making of the instruments for the new temple. We will see how they are following the Bible for exact instructions. We will see a film explaining where the Rabbi believes the Ark of the Covenant is found.

 

This afternoon we will head to the Southern Wall and visit the Mikev pools and the steps that Christ would have used to enter the Temple area and would have taught from. We return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 9 -- Wednesday, February 24 – JERUSALEM / EMMAUS / EIN KAREM /  ELAH / JERUSALEM WALL/ OLD CITY JERUSALEM SHOPPING

This morning we leave Jerusalem to go to the Road to Emmaus and walk where the disciples walked with Jesus.  We will continue on to Ein Karem, birth place of John the Baptist. We will travel to Elah where David fought Goliath.

 

We will return to Jerusalem where we will walk the walls of the Old City.  From the top of the wall we will have the most magnificent view of Calvary. The remainder of the afternoon is for shopping in the old city. The bus will take us back to the hotel, or serious shoppers may elect to stay longer and take a cab back to the hotel for dinner and overnight. (The cost of a cab is approximately $6 per person.)  

 

DAY 10 -- Thursday, February 25 - JERUSALEM / MT. OF OLIVES / GARDEN TOMB / TEL AVIV

 Today we drive to the Mount of Olives for a panoramic view of Jerusalem, visit 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, and then we 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) and end our day in the Garden Tomb. Our last event in the Holy Land will be a gala farewell Bedouin dinner. After dinner we will go to Tel Aviv to check in for our evening flight back to the U. S.

 

DAY 11 -- Friday, February 26 – ATLANTA / DETROIT

Our overnight flight lands us in Atlanta.  Our dreams and hopes of visiting the Holy Lands have now become a reality. Our loved ones will welcome our arrival. We bring gifts, photographs and unforgettable impressions of an in-depth inspirational tour enhanced by our rich fellowship together.  It has been a remarkable tour and made so by our shared interests and individual personalities.