In the Homeland of Jesus of Nazareth With Pastor David Gomez November 16 - 26, 2012

Tour Highlights:
Roundtrip Air from Houston to Ben Gurion Airport in Israel

One of Israel's top tour guides and drivers will be with you the entire trip.
All breakfasts and dinners as per the itinerary.

Deborah Hotel (Tel Aviv), Prima Galil Hotel (Tiberias), Rimonim Hotel (Jerusalem),

Visit the Bethlehem, the Church of the Nativity, Shepherds' Field, Jerusalem, the Old City Walls, Mount Moriah, the Haas Promenade, The Kidron Valley, the Valley of Gehenna, the Mount of Olives, the Temple Mount, and the Dome of the Rock. Pray in the Garden of Gethsemane, see Mount Zion, the Upper Room, King David's Tomb, and the Pool of Bethesda Sing a hymn in the Church of St. Anne, walk the Via Dolorosa, "The Way of The Cross", see the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Herod's Antonia Fortress, Cardo, The Southern wall excavations,, Western Wall, Masada, the Dead Sea, Qumran, view the Dead Sea Scrolls, Ein Karem, pray at the Garden Tomb.

  Itinerary

Day 1. Arrival at Ben Gurion Airport.
Met by a CHT representative and transfer to your hotel.
Dinner and overnight Deborah Hotel,Tel Aviv

Day 2.Jaffa / Caesarea / Mount Carmel / Druze Villages / Acre
After breakfast, visit the ancient Joppa (Jaffa): here was the house of Simon the Tanner (Acts 10: 9-16) and the place of the Miracle of the resurrection of Tabita (Acts 9: 36-43). After the visit drive North to Caesarea Maritima. Visit the Roman Theater, the Herod's Palace, the Palace of the Roman Procurator (Acts 23: 23 and Acts 26: 23 - Paul; Acts 10: 20-48 - Peter and Cornelius), the Amphitheater and the Crusaders' City and Harbor. Proceed to Mount Carmel to visit the Monastery of the Muhraka, where Elijah fought with the Baal priests. From the roofs of this Monastery, we have a beautiful view of the Jezreel Plain.Through the Druze villages, Daliyat el Carmel and Usifiya, we proceed to Haifa for a panoramic view of the city and harbor. Proceed to Acre to visit the old city with its city walls, the Knights' Halls and the Harbor. Through the Galilee proceed to Tiberias.
Dinner and overnight Prima Galil Hotel, Tiberias

Day 3. Galilee / Yardenit
After breakfast, boat ride on the Sea of Galilee, where Jesus walked on the water (Matthew 14: 22-23). The ride will end at Ginnosar, to visit the Ancient Boat from the time of Jesus that was found nearby. Drive to the Mount of Beatitudes (Matthew 5: 7) where we shall visit the heptagonal church that was built by the Italian architect Berluzzi. Proceed to Tabgha, for a visit of the Church of the Loaves and the Fish (Matthew 14: 14-34). Driving along the Northern shores of the Sea of Galilee we shall reach Capernaum, the town of Jesus, where he lived in the house of Peter performing from there his miracles and healings (Matthew 4: 13, Matthew 8: 14-15). Through the Golan Heights, proceed to Banyas, the ancient Caesarea Philippi (Matthew 16: 13-20) one of the main sources of the Jordan River. We conclude our day at the Yardenit Baptismal site near the southern part of the Sea of Galilee. Return to the hotel for overnight.
Dinner and overnight Prima Galil Hotel, Tiberias

Day 4. Nazareth / Megiddo / Jerusalem
After breakfast, drive to Cana and visit the church that stands on the spot where Jesus performed his first miracle. Then we continue to Nazareth to visit the Church of Annunciation (Luke 26: 28) and Nazareth Village, where the Bible comes to life. We then travel through the Jezreel Plain on to Megiddo, named also Armageddon - the place where the last battle of mankind is due to take place (Rev. 16:16) - where we shall visit the Museum and this 5,000 year old city with the Gates from the times of King Solomon, the old Canaanite temples and the water tunnel from the time of King Ahab. From here, we travel south through the Jordan River Valley for the ascent to Jerusalem.
Dinner and overnight Rimonim Hotel, Jerusalem

Day 5. Jerusalem - The Mount of Olives and the Old City
After breakfast, ascend the Mount of Olives for a wonderful panoramic view of the Old City of Jerusalem with the Temple Mount. Walking down the Mount of Olives, we shall reach the Church of Dominus Flevit (Luke 19: 41-44) for the visit and proceed to the Garden of Gethsemane, the place where Jesus was arrested (Matthew 26: 36-58), to see the old olive trees and visit the Basilica of the Agony. Driving through the Kidron Valley, we shall reach the Lion's Gate and enter the Old City to visit St. Anne's Church and the Pool of Bethesda. We then walk in the footsteps of Jesus along the Via Dolorosa (all 14 Stations of the Cross) and, via the exotic bazaar, arrive at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. We proceed through the newly rebuilt Jewish Quarter and the Roman Cardo. We then visit the Temple Institute* to learn all about Solomon's Temple. We conclude our day at the Western Wall - the holiest place for the Jews.
Dinner and overnight Rimonim Hotel, Jerusalem

Day 6. Jerusalem - Layers of History
After breakfast, we visit David's City, the most ancient part of Jerusalem and enjoy sloshing through Hezekiah's water tunnel (strap-on water shoes needed). We then walk along the foundation stones of the Western Wall of the Temple Mount in the Rabbinic Tunnels*. Then on to Mount Zion to visit the Tomb of King David and the Room of the Last Supper. To conclude our day, we take in a wonderful summary of Jerusalem history at the Tower of David Museum.
Dinner and overnight Rimonim Hotel, Jerusalem

Day 7. Jerusalem - Bethlehem* / Garden Tomb / New City
After breakfast, proceed to Bethlehem* to visit the Church of the Nativity (Luke 2: 1-7). Next we drive back to Jerusalem to the area of Golgotha (place of the skull) and the Garden Tomb to celebrate the resurrection with Communion and a time of praise. Proceed to Yad Vashem, the Memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. Drive to the Israel Museum with its Shrine of the Book, where the Dead Sea scrolls are kept, see the Model of Jerusalem as it was at the time of the Second Temple. Then see the Menorah in front of the Knesset-the Israeli Parliament.
Dinner and overnight Rimonim Hotel, Jerusalem

Day 8. Massada / Dead Sea
After breakfast drive via the Good Samaritan Inn (Luke 8: 25- 37) to the mountain fortress of Massada, stronghold of the Jews in the war against the Romans. Ascend to the fortress by cable car to visit the palaces of Herod the Great with its Roman baths and pools. Descend for a possible "dip" and "float" in the salty water of the Dead Sea, the world's lowest place. On the way back to Jerusalem, stop in Qumran--the city of the Essenes--where the Dead Sea scrolls were found in a cave by a shepherd.
Dinner and overnight Rimonim Hotel, Jerusalem

Day 9. Ein Karem / Emmaus (Latrun) / Abu Gosh
After breakfast, we have some free time this morning for shopping in Jerusalem, followed by a late morning check-out from the hotel. We then visit Ein Karem, birthplace of John the Baptist, and continue to Beit Shemesh and the Elah Valley, where David fought Goliath. Driving via Emmaus (Latrun) (Luke 23: 39-44), we proceed to Abu Ghosh, the biblical Kiryat Ye'arim, from where King David brought the Holy Shrine back to Jerusalem. We enjoy a delicious Middle Eastern farewell dinner in Abu Ghosh and leave for the airport for our flight back home.

Day 10. Arrive home
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*visit subject to availability.

*Itinerary Subject to Change