Tuesday, November 10, 2026

Depart the U.S.

 

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Wednesday, November 11, 2026Arrive at Ben Gurion Airport. Shuttle to hotel on the coast for dinner and a good night’s sleep at David’s Harp  Hotel, Netanya or similar (1 night)

 

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Thursday, November 12, 2026Up the coast to Galilee. We will begin the day visiting Caesarea Maritima, a city built 2,000 years ago by King Herod for the Romans. It served as the capital of Judea for 600 years. We then drive to the highest point on Mt. Carmel and recall 1 Kings 18 and Elijah’s confrontation with the prophets of Baal and Asherah. From here, we go to Megiddo, a chariot city of Solomon and the location of Armageddon. Then we cross the Jezreel Valley to the city where Jesus grew up, Nazareth. From Nazareth, we head to our hotel on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. David’s Hearp Resort, Galilee or similar (3 nights)

 

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Friday, November 13, 2026In the Footsteps of Jesus in Galilee. Visit The Mount of Beatitudes, where Jesus gave His first teaching, the Sermon on the Mount. We will visit the site of Peter’s Primacy on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, where Jesus prepared breakfast for the disciples. We then go to Capernaum, the town where Jesus based his Galilean ministry. On then to Bethsaida, the House of the Fisherman, and the location of the Feeding of the 5,000. In the afternoon, we will see a 2,000-year-old fishing boat and take a ride on a worship boat on the Sea of Galilee.

 

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Saturday, November 14, 2026The Northern Reaches of the Promised Land. Driving through Naphtali, first to Tel Dan, the largest karstic spring in the Near East. We recall Judges 18 and 1 Kings 12, the sin of Jeroboam and the beginning of the Divided Kingdom (3,000 years ago). We also visit the oldest vaulted mud-brick gate system in the world from nearly 4,000 years ago. On then to Caesarea Philippi, the second largest feeder of the River Jordan. Matthew 16 comes alive here with Peter’s confession of Christ. Then, we return to the Sea of Galilee and drop in on Kursi, where Jesus delivered a man and sent demons into 2,000 pigs.

 

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Sunday, November 15, 2026Down the Jordan Valley (The Lowest Place on Earth). We start the day with baptisms in the River Jordan, then we will travel south to a city of the Decapolis, Bet Shean, with its amazing tel and stunning Roman remains. Onward and south, passing by Jericho to Qumran, the community of the Essenes, who wrote The Dead Sea Scrolls. Then, to En Bokek for a float in the Dead Sea and overnight in a spa hotel. David Dead Sea Resort & Spa or similar (1 night)

 

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 Monday, November 16, 2026Come, Let Us Go Up to Jerusalem, the City of the Great King. We start our day at Masada, the final battle site of the Great Rebellion against the Romans 67-73 AD. Then to Ein Gedi, an oasis in the wilderness. We climb Wadi David, passing by pools of spring water, recalling scripture. Then toward Jerusalem, but first to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus. While in Bethlehem, we will visit the Church of the Nativity, a site of deep historical and spiritual significance. Inside the church is a small area traditionally recognized as the location of the manger. This spot draws hundreds of visitors daily, and the wait to enter can often be 2–3 hours. To ensure we make the most of our time and experience the broader beauty and history of Bethlehem, our group will not be waiting in line to visit this specific area. We appreciate your understanding and hope you’ll enjoy the many other meaningful aspects of this sacred site with us. Olive Tree Hotel or similar (4 nights)

 

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Tuesday, November 17, 2026In the Footsteps of Jesus. First to the Mount of Olives, then a pilgrim walk down to the Garden of Gethsemane via the Church of Dominus Flevit, where Jesus wept over Jerusalem. A short walk across the Kidron Valley, we enter the Old City through the Sheep Gate. We visit the Pools of Bethesda, remembering the miracle of John 5, and we sing in the Crusader Church of St. Anne’s. We then walk the 14 Stations of the Cross called the Via Dolorosa and end up at the Holy Sepulchre Church. We then leave the Old City through the Jaffa Gate. Our bus will take us into the Samarian Mountains, where we meet and have lunch with Father Abraham in His tent. We will also ride camels then return to Jerusalem.

 

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Wednesday, November 18, 2026We start this day on Mt. Zion in The Upper Room, where our Lord partook of the Last Supper with His disciples. This is also the place where the promised Holy Spirit fell on crowds of people. We then walk to the ruins underneath several churches, remembering where our Lord was kept in a prison by Caiaphus before being taken into the Praetorium the next day. We then enter the city through the Lion’s Gate and explore the Jewish Quarter: The Cardo, the Broad Wall, and the Western Wall. We have lunch in the Jewish Quarter and then take the bus to modern Jerusalem to Machane Yehuda Market.

 

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Thursday, November 19, 2026Continue In the Footsteps of Jesus. We visit the Israel Museum and see an amazing model of the Old City of Jerusalem in 66 AD, one year before its destruction in AD 70 by the Roman Xth Legion under Titus. We see the Shrine of the Book, where some of the Dead Sea Scrolls are displayed. We then go to an area outside the Damascus Gate called the Garden Tomb. We will tour and be reminded of Our Lord’s death, burial, and resurrection as we worship Him together and take communion. A fitting way to end our tour of The Holy Land. The afternoon is then free.

 

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Friday, November 20, 2026 – DEPARTURE/EXTENSION

Participants not continuing on the Jordan extension will check out of the hotel and travel to Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV) for departure flights. For those staying for the Jordan extension, there will be an early departure from our hotel to the Sheikh Hussein Border.

 

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Optional Jordan Extension

 

Friday, November 20, 2026Early departure from our hotel to the Sheikh Hussein Border. After completing passport formalities, we enter the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. We travel to Jerash, one of the best preserved and most complete provincial Roman cities. Jerash, Gerasa of Roman Times, was one of the cities of the Decapolis, a confederation of 10 Graeco-Roman cities dating from the first century BC situated in Jordan, Syria and Israel. Known as the Pompeii of the East for its extraordinary state of preservation, the ruins indicate human occupation at this location for more than 2,500 years. Geneva Hotel, Amman, Jordan or similar (3 nights).

 

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Saturday, November 21, 2026Onto the King’s Highway we drive through the land of the Moab, where to the east we view the hilltop palace/fortress of Machaerus, the place where John the Baptist was beheaded, to the amazing city of Petra. Walk through the “Siq,” an immense crack in the Nubian sandstone, to the city of Petra. Two thousand years ago, the Nabateans carved a city out of the rose red rock, and the Treasury, El Khazneh, is one of the most elegant remains of antiquity. Beyond El Khazneh, we are surrounded on both sides by hundreds of Petra’s carved and built structures. Back to Amman for overnight.

 

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Sunday, November 22, 2026Mt. Nebo, believed to be the site of the tomb of Moses, commands a spectacular view across the Jordan Valley and the Dead Sea. The drive continues to the town of Madaba, the biblical Medeba, 30 kilometers south of Amman. Madaba is best known for its byzantine and umayyad mosaics, and at the Greek Orthodox Church of St. George we may view the earliest original surveying map of the Holy Land. We cross back into Israel and drive to Jerusalem for dinner and one last night.

 

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Monday, November 23, 2026

Homeward. Check out of hotel and take transport to Queen Alia International Airport (AMM) for departing flights.