Board for your flight from the USA to Israel. This will be an overnight flight, arriving the next day to Tel Aviv.

After arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, reception and assistance, we will drive to our hostel for check in, welcome dinner and a walk along the sea front.

-Overnight in a Tel Aviv Youth Hostel

Starting the tour off we head to Caesarea Maritima (Acts 8:40), Herod’s magnificent coastal city, with fine Roman and Crusader buildings. Particularly impressive are the amphitheater, hippodrome and the nearby aqueduct. We will see the amazing water transport techniques of the Romans also at Park Alona, by wading through 800 meters of an underground water conduit (water sandals and towels are a must). Ascend to Mount Carmel (1 King 18:16), where the Prophet Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal and then drive by Megiddo (Joshua 12:21), in the Valley of Armageddon, before hiking in the Mount Arbel Park overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

–Overnight at a Youth Hostel in Tiberias

We begin this day at Magdala (Luke 8:1-3) on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, the hometown of Mary Magdalene. Continue to Capernaum (Matthew 4:13), a fishing village on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, and where Jesus preached and healed. We will pray and worship while sailing on the Sea of Galilee (Matthew 14:25) in a wooden boat. Enjoy an adventurous afternoon in the Galilee Panhandle, rafting and kayaking in the tributaries of the Jordan River (Winter alternative: a visit to the border near Lebanon and an opportunity to meet with young Israeli Defense soldiers serving there).

-Overnight at a Youth Hostel in Tiberias

We begin the morning on the Mount of Olives (Matthew 24:3), for a panoramic view of the Old City of Jerusalem, prior to descending towards the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:40) for prayer and meditation in the ancient olive groves. We will walk along the Way of the Cross, visiting the Church of St. Anne and the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:2-9). We will also visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the site of the crucifixion, then continue through the winding alleyways of the Old City, with free time for shopping in the Old City “Shouk” (market).

-Overnight in a Jerusalem Youth Hostel

Today we visit Temple Mount (Genesis 22:2), where Jewish tradition holds that it is the site where God gathered dust to create Adam and where Abraham was going to sacrifice Isaac. We then go under the Old City on the Western Wall Tunnels Tour, allowing visitors to reach the segments of the Wall hidden from view, and to walk through ancient and fascinating subterranean spaces with exquisite archeological findings. We will travel back to the beginnings of the city at the City of David site where ongoing excavations are revealing thousands of years of history, including Hezekiah’s tunnel. Continue to the Southern Steps, where pilgrims ascended to the Temple in the time of Jesus.

-Overnight in a Jerusalem Youth Hostel

Today we partake in communion and worship at the Garden Tomb (John 19:38-42), located in the heart of historic Jerusalem, just outside the Old City walls. On site there is an ancient Jewish tomb which many believe is the site of Jesus’ burial and resurrection. We’ll spend the afternoon visiting the Holocaust Memorial Museum at Yad Vashem, Israel’s official memorial dedicated to the lives lost during World War II. We continue to the Israel Museum, home of the Dead Sea Scrolls and the impressive model of the Second Temple period. We will also take a special tour of the section of the museum dedicated to early Christianity in the Holy Land.

-Overnight in a Jerusalem Youth Hostel

This morning we travel to the Jordan River and the traditional baptism site of Qasr El Yahud (Matthew 3:13), where pilgrims on both the Israeli and Jordanian sides are baptized. Further south we drive to Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. The final site on the Dead Sea is the mountaintop fortress of Masada, built in 30 B.C. by King Herod. Almost 100 years later the fortress served as a refuge for Jewish zealots fleeing from Roman rule. We will ascend the site by cable car, and after the tour the descent will be on the Roman Ramp, built 2000 years ago by the Roman legions in order to conquer the stronghold. Arrive at the Kfar Hanokdim desert oasis and Bedouin encampment, for dinner, traditional hospitality and camel rides.

-Overnight in the Kfar Hanokdim tents

Today begins with an adventurous and exciting camel ride through the dessert landscape. After returning to the camp we will head to the nearby town of Arad to meet with members of the local Christian community. From there we drive to sand surf and hike in the striking Ein Avdat reserve, where many centuries ago Nabateans and early Christian monks lived in the caves scattered on the canyon walls. To close out our day we’ll travel to a Kibbutz village for dinner with young kibbutz residents and star gazing around a late night bonfire.

-Overnight at a Kibbutz village

To start the last day of the tour, we drive to the historic Elah and Soreq valleys in the land granted to the Tribe of Judah. Here David battled Goliath (1 Samuel 17), the Holy Ark was returned from Philistine captivity, and where David hid the first time from King Saul in the caves of Adulam. Hike to the recently excavated Biblical city of Sha’arayim (Khirbet Qeiyafa), and continue to the northern end of the valley to visit the monastery of Emmaus Nicopolis (Luke 24:13-25). In the late afternoon we drive to the airport for the flight back home!