13 DAYS / 12 NIGHTS
SUGGESTED HOLY LAND AND SINAI TOUR
Day 1: Arrival at Ben Gurion airport. Transfer to Beersheba or Arad. Dinner and night.
Day 2: Drive through the Negev to Sde Boker, visit Ben Gurions tomb. Proceed to Avdat, visit the ruins of this Nabatean city. Continue via Mitzpe Ramon, the famous Big Canyon “Makhtesh Gadol” to Eilat. Rest of the day at leisure. Optional visit to the Underwater Sea Aquarium. Dinner and overnight.
Day 3: Drive to the border crossing point at “Taba”, cross into Egypt. Continue along the Gulf of Eilat and Nuweiba to the Monastery of Saint Catherine. Climb Mount Moses for an impressive view of the sunset. Descend. Dinner and overnight in the area.
Day 4: Visit the chapel of the “Burning Bush” and the Monastery of Saint Catherine with its valuable icons and manuscripts. Drive to Nuweiba and stop for a swim in the Red Sea. Late in the afternoon, drive back to Eilat. Dinner and overnight.
Day 5: Drive to Timna, visit Solomon’s Pillars and the copper mines. Proceed via the Arava Valley to Massada, the stronghold of the Jewish revolt against the Romans. Take the cable car to the summit, visit the fortress and descend. Continue to Qumran, visit the site where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. Stop at the Dead Sea for a swim and proceed to Jericho. Dinner and overnight.
Day 6: Jericho: Visit the excavations of the oldest city in history, Elisha's Fountain where the water was sweetened by a hand-full of salt; view the Mount of Temptation or ride the cable car to its summit. Lunch break.
Proceed via the Jordan valley to Beit Shean, one of the cities of the Decapolis. Visit itts ruins and continue to the Jordan River, stop at the traditional “baptismal site” befor arriving in Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee. Dinner and overnight.
Day 7: Start the day by sailing across the Sea of Galilee. Visit Capernaum the home town of Jesus, Tabgha, site of the feeding of the loaves and fish as well as the site of the Primacy, then to the Mount of Beatitudes, place of the Sermon on the Mount. Lunch break.
Drive to the Upper Galilee, visit Banias (one of the sources of the Jordan River), site of Caesarea Philippi Through the Golan Heights drive back to Tiberias.
Dinner and overnight.
Day 8: Leave Tiberias to Nazareth, visit the Church of the Annunciation, the Virgin's Well and the Chapel of St. Joseph the Carpenter. Continue to Haifa and Mount Carmel. Visit Stella Maris and the Persian Gardens. Lunch break.
Proceed along the coastal road to Caesarea on the sea, visit its ruins and through Tel Aviv to Jaffa, visit the church of St. Peter and the House of Simon the Tanner. Proceed to Jerusalem. Dinner and overnight.
Day 9: Start the day by a visit to Bethlehem, the Basilica of the Nativity: the Grotto and the Manger. Stop at the Shepherds’ Field. Lunch break. Time for shopping. Proceed to Ein Karem, the valley of the Visitation, the Magnificat and the birthplace of John the Baptist. Panoramic drive through the new city of Jerusalem, view the Valley of the Cross, the Monastery of the Cross, the Knesset building and the Menorah. Return to hotel. Dinner and overnight.
Day 10: Start the day from the top of the Mount of Olives with a breathtaking panoramic view of the old city. Visit the Chapels of Pater Noster, the Ascension, Dominus Flevit and the Church of All Nations in the Garden of Gethsemane. Lunch break.
In the afternoon, visit Mount Zion, St. Peter in Gallicantu (House of Caiphas), the Room of the Last Supper (Cenacle) and the Tomb of King David.
Day 11: All day walking tour in the old city of Jerusalem: From Dung Gate walk to visit the Wailing Wall, the holiest site of Judaism; the Mosques of Al Aksa and the Dome of the Rock, Holy Islamic presence in the Holy City; the Crusader Church of St. Anne, the Pool of Bethesda and Ecce Homo Arch. Lunch break.
From the chapels of the Flagellation and Lithostrotos, follow the 14 stations of the Cross along the way of the Cross (Via Dolorosa) through the old city to Calvary and the Holy Sepulchre in the basilica of the Resurrection.
Day 12: After breakfast, drive to Bethany home town of Mary and Martha, stop at Lazarus Tomb, and at the Good Samaritan’s Inn.
Afternoon at leisure for personal visits. Suggest a visit to the Shrine of the Book where the Dead Sea scrolls are displayed.
Dinner and overnight.
Day 13: After breakfast, transfer to Tel Aviv airport for departure.
Arrival and Departure depends on flight timings. The above suggested program can be customized according to the customer’s requirements and flight schedule