9 Day All Inclusive Slower Paced Israel Tour

Our journey begins as we board our overnight connecting flight to Tel Aviv, the largest city in Israel. Meals served on board.

Upon arrival in Tel Aviv we meet our guide and travel northeast across Israel to the famous Sea of Galilee (Matthew 4:18-10; Mark 7:31-32). Here in the ancient city of Tiberias (John 21:1-3) we enjoy dinner and retire for our first night in the Holy Land. Tomorrow is a big day!

This morning we sail on a replica wooden boat from Jesus’s day and float where Jesus walked (Matthew 14:22-33)! We also have a chance see the New Testament boat found below the sea. We then proceed on land to view many biblical sites, including the ancient city of Capernaum (Matthew 9:1). We walk the shore of Tabgha (John 21:4-17) and we read the Sermon on the Mount...on the mount itself (Matthew 5-7)!

In the afternoon we move on to Magdala. This hometown of Mary Magdalene (Luke 8:2) was frequently visited by Jesus, and it contains one of the oldest synagogues in the world. Our final stop for the day is the River Jordan (Joshua 3:15-17; 2 Kings 5:10-14), where travelers with a pastor may be baptized in a similar fashion as Jesus was to begin His ministry (Matthew 3:13-17). We return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

This morning we depart westward from the region of the Sea of Galilee and travel through Cana of Galilee, where Jesus performed His first miracle (John 2:1). We continue to Jesus’s childhood town of Nazareth (Luke 1:26-27) and ascend Mount Precipice (Luke 4:29-30) for a panoramic view of the famed Jezreel Valley. We also visit the Mount of Megiddo, where 34 battles have been fought over 4,000 years, with the great final battle yet to come: the battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16:16). From there we travel to Mount Carmel, site of Elijah’s confrontation with the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18).

Our day is capped off with a tour of the Mediterranean coast city of Caesarea Maritima and the great Roman Aqueduct from 10 BC (Acts 25:11-14, 23). We then head south to Bethlehem for dinner and overnight.

We begin our day in Bethlehem with a tour of the Church of the Nativity, the oldest church in the Holy Land (Matthew 2:1; Luke 2:4). Within the same church complex we visit the manger and the cave of Saint Jerome before a short drive to one of the possible sites of the shepherds’ fields (Luke 2:8-16). We will never forget singing Christmas carols overlooking these fields!

After enjoying a hilltop view of Bethlehem and its relation to Jerusalem, the desert, and ancient Moab, we drive up to one of Herod the Great’s opulent palaces, Herodium (Matthew 2:1-12, 16). We return to Bethlehem (Luke 2:4) with time for shopping before we return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

Leaving Bethlehem, we head south along the Dead Sea and ascend to the ancient fortress of Masada. It is here where Jewish defenders in the first century AD made their last stand in the Judean revolt against Rome. We see the remains of storehouses, cisterns, and a sixth-century Byzantine church. Following the coast of the Dead Sea, the lowest point in the world at 1,300 feet below sea level, we proceed to the pleasant walking trail of Ein Gedi, where David found refreshment during his escape from King Saul (1 Samuel 24:1-12; Psalm 63).

Our tour continues to the Qumran Caves where the Dead Sea scrolls were found, the most significant archeological discovery of the 20th century. After lunch we have the opportunity to relax and float in the mineral-rich waters of the Dead Sea. Finally, atop Mount Scopus, we behold majestic Jerusalem. We then check into our hotel for dinner and overnight.

Following breakfast we take a group photo on the Mount of Olives while enjoying a breathtaking panoramic view of Jerusalem. We then begin retracing the steps of Jesus (Psalm 132:13-14) at Dominus Flevit (“Our Lord Weeps”). Our walk descends the Mount of Olives to the Garden of Gethsemane, where we take time to meditate on the Gospel text of Jesus’s agony and view the Church of All Nations (Matthew 26:36-50).

We go on to Mount Zion (Psalm 125:1) to visit the Upper Room (Matthew 26:1-129) and the Tomb of King David. We continue to the grounds of a church called Peter in Gallicantu, which affords the best view of early Jerusalem from the west. Here, as some suggest, was the house where the High Priest Caiaphas interrogated Jesus (John 18:19-38). We then enter the Old City and make our way to the Western Wall, the last remaining outer wall of the ancient Jewish temple (Ezra 4:3; John 2:20). We head south along the wall to the Southern Steps where Jesus entered on countless occasions to finish the day before we return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

After breakfast, we enter the Old City through the Dung Gate (Jeremiah 19:2) and ascend to the Temple Mount, where the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque are located. This, the holiest of sites in the world, is the location of countless biblical events, including where Abraham was commanded to sacrifice Isaac (Genesis 22:11-14; 2 Samuel 24:16-25). Walking off the Mount, just to the north, we find the Pool of Bethesda, the perfectly preserved Church of Saint Anne (John 5:1-9), and the start of the Via Dolorosa. Continuing on, we see Pilate’s Judgment Hall, the Chapel of Flagellation, Lithostrotos, and the Arch of Ecce Homo (“Behold the Man”). We follow the movement of Jesus on his pre-crucifixion journey along the Via Dolorosa (John 18:28), winding through the modern day bazaars on our way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Later, we pay a visit to the Garden Tomb for private communion, prayer, and worship (John 19:38-42; 20:1-10) before returning to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

This morning we begin our journey home, rejoicing in our unforgettable experiences in the Holy Land. Our hearts are full; we walked in the footsteps of Jesus, and we will never be the same (Numbers 6:24–26).

Our journey begins as we board our overnight connecting flight to Tel Aviv, the largest city in Israel. Meals served on board.

Upon arrival in Tel Aviv we meet our guide and travel northeast across Israel to the famous Sea of Galilee (Matthew 4:18-10; Mark 7:31-32). Here in the ancient city of Tiberias (John 21:1-3) we enjoy dinner and retire for our first night in the Holy Land. Tomorrow is a big day!

This morning our drive takes us to the northern limits of Jesus’s travels as we cross the River Hatzbani to Dan, the Sources of the Jordan. Here we combine a nature walk beside the Upper Jordan with views of the ancient ruins, topped by the Israelite high place that supported a golden calf. Then a short drive to Banias (Caesarea Philippi), where Peter made his great profession of faith and recognition of Christ Jesus. Driving along the foot of Mount Hermon, we ascend to the Golan Plateau for a magnificent view of upper Israel. On our return we will stop at Chorazin and then on to our hotel to join the rest of the group for dinner and overnight.