Day 1: USA/Cairo
Overnight flight to Cairo.
Day 2: Cairo
On arrival at Cairo airport, you will be met by your local guide. Transfer to your hotel in Cairo for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 3: Cairo
We will begin the day with a visit to the Egyptian Museum. The spectacular finds of Howard Carter in King Tutankhamen’s tomb, the unusual Amenhotep IV and many more wonderful articles will show you what life for the pharaohs may have been. In the afternoon we will continue on to the Old City of Cairo where you will get a touch of all the great religions of Egypt today. First we will visit Saint Sergius Church, which is a 4th century church and today is considered the oldest of Cairo's Christian churches. We will visit The Hanging Church (El Muallaqa), with its nave suspended above the passage. It is the most famous Coptic Christian church in Cairo, in Basilican style. We will walk through the ancient Khan el Khalili Bazaar where we can imagine Egyptians of centuries past bartering for goods, much as we do today. Dinner and Overnight: Hotel in Cairo
Day 4: Cairo/Tel Aviv
Today we will visit one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world: the Pyramids. No pictures or videos will ever prepare you for the size of the pyramids. The pyramid for Khufu (Greek Cheops) is the largest at 451 feet tall and was built in 2570 BCE. The second largest pyramid is Khafre’s (Chephren), son of Khufu, and the smallest is the grandson Menkaure (Mycerinus). We’ll see the Valley Temple where the Pharoahs were first laid out for their funeral before entering the tombs. Of course, the Sphinx will be there before the pyramids. It is a lion’s body with the face of Khufu. Dinner and transfer to the airport for flight to Tel Aviv. Meeting and assistance at the airport in Israel by Coral Travel and Tours representative. Overnight: Hotel in Tel Aviv
Day 5: Tel Aviv - Caesarea – Haifa - Tiberias
After an Israeli breakfast, drive to Jaffa, one of the oldest cities in the world. Visit the House of Simon the Tanner and walk through Jaffa's reconstructed Old Quarter. Continue to Caesarea, the seat of the Roman Procurator of Judea at the time of Christ, and the site where Peter converted the centurion Cornelius. This fortified harbor city was built 2000 years ago by King Herod the Great. View the ruins of Roman, Byzantine and Crusader times. Explore the Roman Theater and Aqueduct. On to Mt. Carmel, which will bring us to the site where Elijah challenged and defeated the 450 prophets of the Baal. On our way to the Sea of Galilee, we’ll pass Nazareth, where Jesus spent his childhood, and visit the Church of Annunciation and the city of Cana, where Jesus attended a Wedding Feast with his disciples and performed His first miracle: turning jars of water into wine. Dinner and overnight: Hotel at the Sea of Galilee
Day 6: Sea of Galilee, Golan Heights, Caesarea Philippi
The day starts with a drive to the Mt. of Beatitudes, site of the Sermon on the Mount. Drive along the Hula Valley to Tel Dan and visit the remains of the city. Continue on to Caesarea Philippi, where Peter made his confession of faith to Jesus. Via a ride through the Golan Heights, we return to the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee, the area where Jesus spent his years of ministry. View the ruins of Capernaum, the town where Jesus made his home after leaving Nazareth. See the remains of the ancient synagogue in which he may have preached and the house of St. Peter. After a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee continue to Tabgha where the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fish took place. Dinner and overnight: Hotel at the Sea of Galilee
Day 7: Bet She’an – Gideon Springs – Dead Sea – Qumram - Jerusalem
After breakfast we’ll leave the Sea of Galilee and travel to Bet She’an. Recent excavations have disclosed the impressive ruins of the country’s largest city from the Roman and Byzantine periods, which was destroyed by an earthquake in 749 CE. On to Gideon Springs (Ein Harod), the site of Judge Gideon. The tour continues through the Jordan Valley, pass Jericho, believed to be the world’s oldest walled city. This was the first city taken by Joshua when the Hebrews returned from Egypt, “and the walls fell down.” It was also the site of the Mt. of Temptation. Continue to Qumram where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. Enjoy and afternoon “float” on the Dead Sea. Drive to Jerusalem. Pass the traditional site of the Inn of the Good Samaritan. Enter the city of Jerusalem in the traditional way and view the city from Mt. Scopus. Dinner and overnight: Hotel in Jerusalem
Day 8: Jerusalem
After breakfast ascend the Mt. of Olives for a breathtaking panoramic view of the old city of Jerusalem. Walk along the Palm Sunday Way. Descend to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus spent the last night before he was arrested. Visit the Church of All Nations. Drive along the "Last Way" to Mt. Zion. Cross the Kidron Valley and see the Tombs of Absalom, Zachary and James. Drive to Mt. Zion and visit the House of the High Priest Caiphas. Visit the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu, the site where St. Peter denied His Lord 3 times. On to the Last Supper Room and King David’s Tomb. Walk through the Jewish Quarter to the Western Wall. Visit the Southern Wall excavations and view the City of David (Davidson Center). End the day with a visit to the Israel Museum where the Dead Sea Scrolls are kept in the Shrine of the Book and the Holy Land walk-around model, as it was in the Second Temple Period (the time of Jesus). Dinner and overnight: Hotel in Jerusalem
Day 9: Jerusalem
After breakfast drive to the western part of the city. Stand next to the Menorah, the symbol of Israel, which is located next to the Knesset (the Israeli Parliament). Visit Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Museum. Continue to the Old City and visit the Church of St. Anne to see the Pools of Bethesda. Walk along the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. End our visit at the Garden Tomb. Farewell Dinner. Overnight: Hotel in Jerusalem
Day 10: Jerusalem – TEL AVIV/USA
Transfer to Tel Aviv Airport for your return flight home. Arrive to the USA the same day. |
