11D10N ISRAEL & JORDAN

11D10N Israel & Jordan

Day 01 – TEL AVIV INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT – TEL AVIV  [D]

Welcome to Israel.  Upon arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport, you will be brought to your hotel in Tel Aviv.  Free time for the rest of the day.  Dinner included.

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Day 02 – TEL AVIV – CAESAREA – MEGIDDO – HAIFA – AKKO   [B/D]

After a typical Israeli buffet breakfast (which you will enjoy every morning), we depart Tel Aviv, heading north along the coastal plain to Caesarea, capital of Judea under the Romans.  (Caesarea is where the first gentile, Cornelius, a Roman, was converted to Christianity, as recorded in the Bible.)  Once a Phoenician port, Herod the Great transformed it into a beautiful Roman city complete with aqueduct, hippodrome and amphitheatre in addition to a massive harbour and renamed it Caesarea as a dedication to Caesar Augustus.  Visit and enjoy the relics of this ancient city and in particular the spectacular amphitheatre which is today also a performing venue for concerts.  Continue on to Megiddo, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, commonly referred to as Mount Megiddo or Tel Megiddo, and known in Greek as Armageddon.  Archaeologists have uncovered 26 layers of ancient cities at Megiddo; therefore, its raised elevation.  Visit the archaeological sites at Megiddo, including its well-preserved water supply system.  Continue on to the beautiful port city of Haifa, the third largest city in Israel (after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv) that was built in tiers extending from the Mediterranean coast up to the northern slope of Mount Carmel.  At Haifa, enjoy a panoramic view of the beautiful Bahai Gardens, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and Haifa Bay.  From Haifa continue on to Akko (Acre), whose Old City is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and whose legacy includes being the capital of the Crusaders for more than a century.  Take in the sights of this ancient city and its harbour before continuing eastwards across the plains of Galilee to the Kibbutz Lavi Hotel, not far from the Sea of Galilee for dinner with an overnight stay in a kibbutz hotel (a kibbutz is typically a commune where resources are shared among the people). 

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Day 03 – SEA OF GALILEE – CAPERNAUM – CAESAREA PHILLIPI – GOLAN HEIGHTS   [B/D]

After a short tour of the kibbutz grounds, we take a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum (where Jesus lived and performed numerous miracles during his itinerant Galilean ministry years and also where he first met his disciples – Peter, Andrew, James and John).  Visit the remains of the synagogue – a 2nd century synagogue had replaced the original synagogue – where Jesus regularly preached and also performed several miracles.  Continue on to Tabgha, believed to be the site of the “Feeding of the 5,000” where 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish were miraculously multiplied to feed 5,000 people.  Visit the Church of Multiplication and enjoy its 5th century A.D. figurative mosaic floor.  Next, we head to the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount.  From there, we continue on to Caesarea Philippi, location of one of the largest springs feeding the Jordan River and also where, in response to a question from Jesus about who his disciples thought he was, Peter replied “.. you are the Christ, the Son of the living God ..”.  End the day with a tour of the Golan Heights, taking in its valleys, grazing lands and mountains.  Thereafter, return to the Kibbutz Lavi Hotel for dinner and overnight stay.

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Day 04 – NAZARETH – BEIT SHEAN – JERUSALEM   [B/D]

Begin the day with a drive to Nazareth (where Jesus grew up) via Cana (where Jesus performed his first recorded miracle of turning water into wine).  In Nazareth, visit the Church of the Annunciation (believed to be Mary’s home and where she was told by the archangel Gabriel that she would be giving birth to Jesus), the Church of St Joseph (with an underground chamber believed to be where Joseph worked) and Mary’s Well (believed by the Greek Orthodox Church to be the actual site of the Annunciation).  Next, we head to the Jordan River and the Yardenit Baptismal Site, believed by some traditions to be the site where Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist.  Continue on to Beit Shean, one of the oldest cities in Israel and on whose walls King Saul and his sons were hung.  Archaeological excavations have revealed over 20 layers of remains from ancient civilizations.  In the 1st century A.D., Beit Shean became a flourishing Roman city and at the Archaeological National Park (in Beit Shean), visitors can view the history of Israel through the archaeological remains from each historic period.  From Beit Shean, we head to the Golden City of Jerusalem travelling south along the shores of the River Jordan and passing by Jericho, a Canaanite city whose walls collapsed making it an easy victory for the Israelites in their first battle in their conquest of Canaan (“The Promised Land”).  Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.

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Day 05 – JERUSALEM OLD CITY   [B/D]

Today, we shall visit the Old City of Jerusalem, one of the oldest cities in the world and a holy site to 3 major religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam.  Appreciation of Jerusalem begins with a panoramic view of it from the Mount of Olives, which overlooks the walls of the old city and an ancient Jewish cemetery.  Visit the Church of All Nations (so called as numerous nations contributed to its construction) located near the foot of the Mount of Olives that was built over a rock purported to be the rock on which Jesus prayed the night before his crucifixion.  Proceed on to Mount Zion to see the Tomb of King David (presumptive burial site of King David) and the Room of the Last Supper (a.k.a. “Cenacle”) that is considered one of the holiest sites of Christianity.  Continue on to the Old City of Jerusalem, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to begin exploring and appreciating the historic monuments and sites within it.  Walk through the Cardo, the main street of Jerusalem 2,000 years ago; view the Temple Mount and the Western Wall; walk along the Via Dolorosa, the route along which Jesus carried his cross; visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (built, according to tradition, on the site of Jesus’ crucifixion and burial).  No visit to Jerusalem is complete without a walk through the colourful Arab bazaar.  Thereafter, visit the Garden Tomb, believed by Protestant Christians in the main to be the actual burial site of Jesus.  Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.

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Day 06 – JERUSALEM – BETHLEHEM – JERUSALEM   [B/D]

Today, we visit the “New City” of Jerusalem.  Few places in the world offer such a diversity – from the ultra-orthodox neighbourhood of Meah She’arim to the commercial hustle and bustle of Ben Yehuda Street; from the history of the Bible to the legacy of the Holocaust.  Visit the “Model of Ancient Jerusalem”, a 1:50 scale model of the city of Jerusalem in the late Second Temple period.  Continue on to Yad Vashem, Israel’s memorial to the victims of the Holocaust – enter the site by walking along the Street of the Righteous Gentiles, dedicated to the non-Jews that risked their lives in order to save their Jewish neighbours.  Continue on to Ein Karem, a picturesque and charming hillside village renowned for being the hometown of the parents of John the Baptist – Zechariah and Elizabeth – and its numerous holy sites including the “Church of the Nativity of St John the Baptist” where within the church is a cave believed to be the birthplace of John the Baptist.  Thereafter, proceed on to Bethlehem to visit the Church of the Nativity, believed to be the site where Jesus was born and, not surprisingly, also the oldest church still in use in the Holy Land.  Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.

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Day 07 – JERUSALEM – QUMRAN – MASADA – DEAD SEA – JERUSALEM   [B/D]

Drive through the Judean Desert to Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls (ancient Jewish religious manuscripts) where found in 1947 by a Bedouin boy.  Visit the ancient city of Qumran and drive along the shores of the Dead Sea, the deepest hyper-saline lake in the world and also the lowest point on land in the world, to Masada, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Masada was the last stronghold of the Jews after the destruction of the Second Temple and much of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. by the Romans following a revolt against Rome.  The ancient fortress occupies a breathtaking strategic location high on a plateau above the Dead Sea and its remains are well-preserved with the most impressive structure being King Herod’s northern palace.  Near the palace is a large Roman-style bath house with a colourful mosaic floor and walls decorated with murals.  Many other buildings at the site such as the western palace, the mikveh (Jewish ritual bath), storerooms, watchtowers and synagogue relate the history of Masada.  Ascend Masada by cable car and enjoy this very impressive historical site.  Time and weather permitting, we will have an opportunity to float on the Dead Sea.  Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.

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Day 08 – JERUSALEM – JERASH – AMMAN   [B/D]

Today, we head to Jordan.  Arriving at the border between Israel and Jordan and after border crossing procedures, proceed on to Jerash.  The modern city of Jerash sits alongside Gerasa of antiquity, an ancient city housing some of the finest Greco-Roman architecture in the world and considered by many as the best preserved Roman city, and one of the largest Roman cities, outside of Italy.  Not surprisingly, the “Jerash Archaeological City” is on the UNESCO World Heritage Site tentative list.  After Jerash, continue on to Amman for a city tour of the capital of Jordan.  Dinner and overnight in Amman.

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Day 09 – AMMAN – PETRA   [B/D]

After early breakfast, we head south on the road to Wadi Musa (Valley of Moses), a town that sprung up around Petra, to begin our exploration of Petra – one of the “New Seven Wonders of the World” and a UNESCO World Heritage Site that requires no introduction (remember “Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade” and the hunt for the Holy Grail?).  The red sandstone city of Petra (“Al Khazneh“) was built in the 3rd century B.C. by the Nabataeans who carved palaces, temples, tombs, storerooms and stables from the soft stone cliffs.  Petra is approached through the 1.2km-long, high-walled Siq – a crack in the rock, torn apart by tectonic forces.  As you exit the Siq, the most impressive of Petra’s sights, the Treasury, will be right in front of you!  Apart from the Treasury, we will visit other interesting monuments and also al-Madhbah (“High Place of Sacrifice”), an important historical site which at 170m high offers spectacular views of Petra.  After a day in Petra, we head back to Wadi Musa.  Dinner and overnight in Petra (Wadi Musa).

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Day 10 – AMMAN – MADABA – MOUNT NEBO – TEL AVIV   [B/D]

Today, we head to the Jordanian city of Madaba – The City of Mosaics – to visit its most renowned attraction – the remains of the oldest known map of the Holy Land on the floor of a church that was painstakingly assembled from more than a million pieces of coloured stones.  From there we continue on to Mount Nebo, an elevated ridge some 820m above sea level from which Moses first laid eyes on The Promised Land (ancient Canaan) and from which, on a clear day, you can see the Dead Sea, the Jordan River valley, Jericho, Bethlehem and the distant hills of Jerusalem.  Whilst there, visit a basilica whose floor has a stunning display of Byzantine mosaics.  From there, we head to the border and, after border crossing procedures, to Tel Aviv.  Dinner and overnight in Tel Aviv. 

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Day 11 – TEL AVIV – TEL AVIV AIRPORT  [B]

Free time until your transfer to Ben Gurion International Airport for your departure flight.

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Escorted tours are usually available every month. Whether you prefer the above itinerary “as-is” or would like to add activities prior to, and/or after the tour, if you will indicate the start/end dates of your intended travel and provide your contact details, we will get in touch with you to discuss the itinerary on a no-obligations basis on your part.