Israel And Combos / Israel

The Footsteps of Jesus
Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth, Sea of Galilee, Jordan River, Dead Sea and Caesarea Maritima. 10 Days

Day 1 - Canada / Tel Aviv
We depart Canada, bound for the Holy Land.

Day 2 - Tel Aviv
On arrival at Ben Gurion Airport in Israel, we meet our guide and depart for our hotel. Dinner and overnight in Tel Aviv.

Day 3 - Jaffa/Caesarea Maritima / Haifa / Megiddo
We start our tour at Jaffa , the ancient port city just next to Tel Aviv. Here, Peter raised Tabitha from the dead. We visit the place of Simon the Tanner, the clock tower, the artist's quarter and view the Harbour . We drive north to Caesarea Maritima (where Peter met the Roman centurion Cornelius). We visit the amphitheatre and aqueduct built by Herod. Continue North to the port city of Haifa for a visit. Then to Beit She'arim, the 200 AD unofficial Jewish capital, home of the mishna. On to Muhraka (on Mount Carmel, where Elijah challenged the false Gods of Ba'al). Off to Megiddo (the source of our word Armageddon) where we peel off the layers of civilization. We drive to the Galilee, descending to the shores of the lake and its spiritual history. Dinner and overnight in Tiberias.

Day 4 - Jesus Ministry
After a ride to Ginnosar on a boat designed to resemble fishing boats of the time of Jesus, we stop at Magdala (home of Mary Magdalene), Tabgha (miracle of the swine), and the Mount of Beatitudes (Sermon on the Mount). We visit Capernaum, where Jesus centred His Galilean ministry, and stayed in the home of Peter. Lunch is included at a seaside restaurant that features "St. Peter's Fish." We continue to Korazim, Bethsaida and Kursi (miracle of the swine). We drive through the Golan Heights around the Sea of Galilee. We drive to the Dan Nature Reserve to Banias (Caesarea Philippi) where Peter declared that Jesus is the Son of God. We see Mount Hermon, and stop at Nimrod Crusader Castle before returning to Tiberias for dinner and overnight.

Day 5 - Mt. Tabor / Nazareth / Zippori
We drive to Mt. Tabor, traditional site of the transfiguration and where Deborah and Barak commanded the armies of Israel. We study the Jezreel Valley from this spectacular viewpoint. We drive to the home town of the Holy Family. We visit a grotto under a church that is thought to be the home of Joseph and Mary (Annunciation Basilica), we visit Mary's Well at the Orthodox Church, and we visit Precipice Point (Chapel of Fright). Then, on to Cana (place of the first miracle). We stop in Zippori (Sepphorus). Dinner and overnight back in Tiberias.

Day 6 - Belvoir / Jordan River / Beit She'an / Jerusalem
After breakfast, we start another fascinating day at Belvoir. We stop at the Jordan River (Yardenit - to tell the Baptism story and to baptize those pilgrims who wish to be baptized). We drive to Beit She'an (city of the Decapolis). We drive to the oasis of Jericho where we visit the excavation. We see the Wall of Temptation and visit Elisha's Spring. On to Wadi Qelt and the Monastery of St. George ending with a visit to Bethany. We look at the ancient walls that are the remnants of the Inn of the Good Samaritan. In Bethany, we tell the story of Simon the Leper and Lazarus. We catch our first glimpse of the Holy City as we check into our accommodation in Jerusalem for dinner and overnight .

Day 7 - Golden Jerusalem
You are introduced to the old walled city of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. On the Mount of Olives we visit the Chapel of the Ascension and the Church of the Pater Noster (commemorating the teaching of Jesus to his disciples). Walk down the Mount of Olives (after viewing the Old City) toward Gethsemane and the walled city of Jerusalem. On the way down visit the chapel of Dominus Flevit, the traditional spot where Jesus wept over Jerusalem. Continue to Gethsemane and the commemoration of the prayer of Jesus before he was arrested. We enter into the old city through the Lions' Gate. At each site there will be a reading of appropriate biblical passages. We spend time inside the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem. View the Temple Mount, the place where Abraham almost sacrificed Isaac and the Dome of the Rock, a Muslim mosque built on the site of the first and second Temples. Continue to the Western (Wailing) Wall. Continue along the Via Dolorosa (the Sorrowful Way or the Way of the Cross) stopping for a visit at Pilate's Judgment Hall, also called the Antonia Fortress and the Lithostrotos, where Pilate condemned Jesus to death. Continue along the Via Dolorosa to the church of the Holy Sepulchre to commemorate the death and resurrection of Jesus. We visit the Upper Room for the commemoration of the Last Supper and Pentecost. Back to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

Day 8 - Bethlehem / Modern Jerusalem
Drive to Bethlehem to visit the Church of the Nativity to commemorate the birth of Jesus. Visit the Church of St. Catherine under which is the ancient monastery of Jerome and his companions, who lived there in the 4th century. After departing Bethlehem, view the Shepherd’s Fields which commemorate an angel's announcement to the shepherds that a Saviour was born in the City of David. Drive to Ein Karem to see the birthplace of John the Baptist and the visitation site (Mary and Elizabeth). Visit the Israel Museum to see the Shrine of the Book which houses the original manuscripts of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Monastery of the Cross, where tradition holds that the wood for the Crucifix was hewn. We drive past the Knesset and other main sites of modern Jerusalem. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

Day 9 - Qumran / Masada / Dead Sea
Today we descend through the Judean Wilderness to the shores of the Dead Sea, the lowest spot on the Earth. Visit Qumran, where the Essenes lived an austere lifestyle away from the city life of Jerusalem and where a Bedouin boy discovered the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947. Travel along the water's edge to Masada and ascend via the cable car to King Herod's fortress/palace built in the midst of the desert and the last hold out of Jewish resistance to the Romans in 70-73 AD. Continue to Kibbutz Ein Gedi to sample the unique buoyancy of the highly therapeutic Dead Sea waters. Return to Jerusalem for dinner and overnight.

Day 10 - Jerusalem
Free day to explore the city at your leisure. Farewell dinner in the evening, and transfer to the airport.

Day 11 - Canada
Early morning flight home to Canada OR optional extentions to Egypt