Sample Itinerary: Christian Emphasis – 6 Days

Day  1
Begin by driving to the top of the Mount of Olives for a spectacular view of Jerusalem’s Old City, the Kidron Valley and the New City to the West. From this vantage point, the Temple Mount with its golden Dome of the Rock dominates our view. It was on this spot that the Second Temple stood during the time of Jesus.

According to prophecy, the Last Judgment will take place here, which explains why the entire mountainside is a Jewish cemetery where the departed await the resurrection of the dead. Walk down the steep road, the “Palm Sunday Walk,” where Jesus was ushered into the city by crowds who laid palm branches in his donkey’s path and shouted “Hosanah!” Take time to visit the tear-shaped Church of Dominus Flevit (“The Lord Wept”) half-way down. At the foot of the mountain visit the Garden of Gethsemane where some of the olive trees are believed to have been there at the time of Jesus.

Visit the Church of All Nations, also known as the Basilica of the Agony. Walk up to the St. Stephen’s Gate (also known as the Lion’s Gate) to the Ecce Homo convent, built over remnants of the Antonia Fortress where Pontius Pilot sat in judgment over Jesus, and where the fourteen Stations of the Cross officially begin. Follow the Via Dolorosa along the other Stations all the way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where according to Orthodox Christian tradition, Jesus was crucified, buried and rose from the dead.
Other streams of Christianity prefer to contemplate these events at the Garden Tomb (Gordon’s Calvary) just outside of the Old City walls near the Damascus Gate. Groups often hold prayer sessions there, which can be arranged in advance with the Garden Tomb staff.

In the afternoon, visit St. Peter in Gallicantu and the Cenacle (Room of the Last Supper) on Mount Zion.

Day 2
Early morning visit to Ein Kerem, to the churches of St. John the Baptist and the Visitation (St. Elizabeth).  Then go up to the Hadassah Hospital to see the world-famous Chagall stained glass windows featuring the twelve tribes of Israel.  Next a visit to Yad VaShem, Israel’s national museum of the Holocaust. (Alternative: Bible Lands Museum) After lunch go to the Israel Museum to see the Dead Sea Scrolls in the Shrine of the Book and the Second Temple Model of Jerusalem. Pass by the Knesset, Israel’s parliament and other government buildings on the way back to your hotel.

Day 3
A day at the Dead Sea! Leave Jerusalem of the mountaintops and descend through the Judean Desert to the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth. First visit Qumran, where most of the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. Drive through the oasis of Ein Gedi, where David hid from Saul, arriving a short time later at the dramatic desert fortress of King Herod, Massada. Here, just after the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 AD, Jewish rebel holdouts made their last stand against Rome. Afterwards, lunch and relaxation at the Ein Gedi spa at the Dead Sea. Return to Jerusalem.

Day 4
Drive by Jericho and north through the Jordan valley to the ancient city of Beit Shean or Scythopolis. This was an enormous, thriving cultural center during Jesus’ day, located as it was at the intersection of two of the ancient world’s most important roads. Continue on to the Sea of Galilee, through the upper Jordan River valley where Israel’s first kibbutzim (communal settlements) were established in the early twentieth century. Stop at the Yardenit site on the Jordan River where tourists have the opportunity to renew their baptismal commitment at the facilities there. Continue on to Ein Gev on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee and have a special lunch of St. Peter’s fish. Then sail across the lake to Capernaum, the center of Jesus’ Galilee ministry. Visit Tagha (Heptapagon) and the church of St. Peter’s Primacy before going up to the Mount of Beatitudes, one of the most graceful sites in the area. Return to Tiberias, built by Herod Antipas, the son of Herod the Great whom Jesus called “the fox.” Overnight in Tiberias

Day 5
From Tiberias we travel to Tsippori on the outskirts of Nazareth and see the beautiful Greco-Roman town that Jesus and Joseph may very well have helped build.  Then we enter Nazareth to visit the largest cathedral in the Middle East, the Church of the Annunciation, situated on the spot where the Holy Family lived and worked two thousand years ago. After lunch, drive on to Megiddo (Armagedon) at the mouth of the Jezreel Valley (the Plain of Esdraelon). Tour this extremely significant site before driving to Tel Aviv-Jaffa for the night.

Day 6
Begin the day with a short walking tour of ancient Jaffa, to see the traditional house of Simon the Tanner. Enjoy the renovated artists’ quarter juxtaposed around the remnants of the ancient city gates built by the Egyptian Pharoah Ramses II (of Exodus fame). See how the modern city of Tel Aviv grew northward on the sand dunes out of Jaffa.  Travel up the coastal road, the route of the ancient Sea Way, to the magnificent Herodian port city of Caesarea where Peter visited the centurion (site of the “Gentile Pentecost”) and Paul was deported to his martyrdom in Rome. Return to Tel Aviv for an afternoon at leisure on Tel Aviv’s stunning beaches or strolling along the new boardwalk with its numerous shops and restaurants.