Depart Denver in the afternoon on a flight to New York’s JFK International Airport, where you will connect with a transatlantic flight to Tel Aviv.

Wednesday, June 4   Tel Aviv – Jerusalem

Upon arrival at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport in the midafternoon, transfer to the Mount Zion Hotel in Jerusalem. Enjoy an evening walk through the Old City. The remainder of the day is free to rest from the long flight, with dinner at Mount Zion Hotel in Jerusalem.

Thursday, June 5   Jerusalem

Enter the Dung Gate of the Old City this morning, climbing to the Temple Mount to see the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site of Islam. Stop at the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest site, and walk through the Western Wall tunnel, which enables you to examine the length of the outer Herodian Temple wall—mostly preserved in mint condition—including two stone blocks each weighing about 600 tons. Visit the Wohl Archaeological Museum to see the remains of several mansions from Herodian times. Walk along the Roman Cardo through the Jewish Quarter. Continue to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where Christians commemorate the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Christ. Stop on Mount Zion to visit the Upper Room. Overnight at hotel.

Friday, June 6   Jerusalem

Begin the day at Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Museum. Visit the Garden Tomb, an alternative site for the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. Continue to Solomon’s Quarries, a vast cave beneath the north wall of the Old City, located between the Damascus Gate and Herod’s Gate. It is believed that stone chiseled from here was likely used by Solomon in the construction of the First Temple, as well as by Herod in his many construction projects. In Jewish tradition, the quarry is known as Zedekiah’s Cave, because it is believed that Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, used it as an escape route to flee the armies of Nebuchadnezzar. Stop at Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives. Drive to Bethlehem to see the Church of Nativity. Return to Jerusalem for dinner and overnight.

Saturday, June 7   Jerusalem – Dead Sea Area

Drive by the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament building, to the Shrine of the Book, where the Dead Sea Scrolls are kept. View the Model of Ancient Jerusalem as it looked in 66 A.D., before Jerusalem was ransacked by the Romans. Depart out of Jerusalem to Wadi Qilt for a view of St. George’s Monastery, built into the cliffside. Continue to Kibbutz Kalia for a swim in the Dead Sea, dinner and overnight.

Sunday, June 8   Jerusalem / Dead Sea / Nazareth

Drive along the western shore of the Dead Sea to Masada, taking a cable car to the top of this high plateau. Fortified by Herod the Great, Masada was the last stronghold of the Zealots against Rome in 66 A.D. Continuing north along the Dead Sea, stop at Ein Gedi, the region where David fl ed from King Saul and cut off a part of his robe in a cave. Here you may choose to hike over the rocks to the waterfall at Ein Gedi Nature Reserve or relax in the park and watch the hyraxes and ibex. Continue through the Judean desert to Qumran, home of the Essenes, who wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls. View Cave # 4, which contained the greatest quantity of the scrolls discovered. Visit the excavations at Jericho and view the Mount of Temptation. Drive north along the Jordan River, stopping at Yardenit, the modern Jordan River baptismal site located where the Jordan flows out of the southern end of the Sea of Galilee. Continue to Nazareth for dinner and overnight.

Monday, June 9   Nazareth / Mt. Tabor

Tour Nazareth, boyhood home of Jesus, stopping to see the Greek Catholic Synagogue Church. Take taxis along the winding road to the top of Mt. Tabor, the traditional “high mountain” of the transfiguration and mentioned by name in the Old Testament as the place where Barak and Deborah defeated Sisera. View Mt. Gilboa where the Israelites slew many Philistines. Continue to Tel Beth Shean, the site of an extensive archaeological excavation and restoration project, where about twenty levels of civilization have been revealed. It was here that the Philistines fastened the bodies of Saul and Jonathan to the wall of the city. Drive to Ein Harod, site of Gideon’s victory over the Midianites. Dinner and overnight at Kibbutz Ma’agan, located on the shores of the Sea of Galilee.

Tuesday, June 10   Sea of Galilee Area

Drive along the western shore of the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum, to visit the synagogue and the place where early Christians remembered Peter’s house. Continue to Tabgha (short for Heptapagon, “seven springs”) to view the mosaics in the Church of the Loaves and Fishes. Ascending the Mt. of Beatitudes, listen to Jesus’ teachings and take time to meditate on His Sermon on the Mount. Enjoy a late afternoon boat ride on the Sea of Galilee in a replica of a boat similar to the ones used by Peter, Andrew, James and John. Stop at the ruins of the ancient Jewish village of Katzrin, continuing to the eastern side of the lake to visit Gadarra, where Jesus exorcised the evil spirits, allowing them to enter into a herd of swine, which ran into the Sea of Galilee. It is here that we find the ruins of Kursi, a Byzantine Monastery memorializing two of Jesus’ miracles, dating from the 5th century. Return to Kibbutz Ma’agan for dinner and overnight.

Wednesday, June 11   Upper Galilee

Drive on an ancient trade route, passing Hazor, to Tel Dan. Enjoy a nature walk and visit the high place where Jeroboam son of Nebat set up a golden calf. Continue to Caesarea Philippi (Banias), where Peter answered Jesus’ question, “Who do you say that I am?” Continue over the Golan Heights, skirting Mt. Hermon, with a view toward Damascus. See Kuneitra, a “ghost town” that was shelled and captured by Syrian troops, retaken by Israelis, and then defended against intense Syrian counter attacks, during the Yom Kippur War. Drive to the Dubrovnik Farm, which is a pre-1948 Settler fort. Continue to Vered HaGalil (Rose of the Galilee), a stud farm and riding stable which offers horse-riding. Return to Kibbutz Ma’agan for dinner and overnight.

Thursday, June 12   Tel Aviv Area

Drive to the mound of Megiddo, har megiddo in Hebrew, which gave its name to Armageddon. After surveying the Plain of Jezreel, proceed to Caesarea, with its magnificent harbor, hippodrome, theater and aqueduct constructed during the reign of Herod. It was here that Peter explained the way of salvation to Cornelius. Dinner and overnight will be at the Renaissance Hotel in Tel Aviv.

Friday, June 13   Jaffa / Home

This morning drive along the Mediterranean coast to Jaffa (Joppa), the port city from which Jonah departed in his attempt to escape from the Lord. Take a walking tour of the Old Town, including the house of Simon the Tanner where Peter had his vision. Drive to Neot Kedumim, the Biblical Landscape Reserve, where a Pilgrims’ Tour of the reserve will help you to look at the Gospels in their context. Learn about Israel’s natural and agricultural landscapes and first-century daily life, religion and culture. Visit a chapel where pilgrims prayed 1600 years ago. Learn how olive oil was pressed during the time of Jesus, and enjoy a biblical-style lunch. Transfer to the airport for a late night departure, arriving in Denver late Saturday morning. Shalom!

Saturday, June 14   USA

Arrive in Denver late this morning with a new understanding of the Land of Christ.

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For further information, contact:
Rex or Shauna Hoey
224 Crystal Park Road
Manitou Springs, CO 80829
Tel: (719) 227-1655
E-mail:rexhoey@hotmail.com

Travel Arrangements by:

Lindy Witman
124 E. Main St, 4th Floor
Ephrata, PA 17522
Tel: (800) 418-2929 ext. 81307
(717) 721-7307
Fax: (717) 733-1009
E-mail:lindyw@mtstravel.com

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