Holy Land in Nine Days and Eight Nights
Day 1: Home - Tel Aviv -
Galilee
Begin your spiritual
journey with an evening departure from your hometown, on the overnight
flight to Tel-Aviv.
Arrival at Ben
Gurion Airport. Exit the terminal at the sign marked ‘groups’
and meet your guide. Transfer to your hotel in Nazareth or Tiberias, with
a stop on the way at Caesarea Maritime, if time permits (this
depends on your flight arrival time). Dinner and lodging
at your hotel.
Day 2: Haifa – Nazareth
This morning we drive to Haifa
and the Carmel Mountains, heading for the place where Elijah challenged
the prophets of Baal at a site now called Mukhraka. Up on the Carmel
Mountains we also visit the church of Stella Maris, where we will have a
panoramic view of the city Haifa.
In
the afternoon we visit the Basilica of the Annunciation starting at the
Grotto where the Annunciation took place, then we will visit the house of
the Holy Family under the Church of St. Joseph, the Fountain of Mary and
the Synagogue. Dinner and lodging at your hotel.
Day 3:
The ministry of Christ in the Galilee
This morning we drive to the Sea of Galilee to
visit the Mt. of Beatitudes where our Lord gave the Sermon on the Mount.
Continue to Tabgha to see the splendid mosaic of the loaves and fishes
with which he fed the Five Thousand. Visit the Church of St.
Peter’s Primacy and then go to visit Capernaum to see the house of
St. Peter and the Synagogue where our Lord preached. You will have to
try the St. Peter’s fish for lunch that day. One of today´s
highlights is a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee, and a visit to the
‘Jesus Boat’ - a 2000 year old boat found on the shores of
Magdala.
We finish our day with a visit to
the Jordan River to renew our Baptismal Vows. Then drive back to the
hotel for dinner and lodging.
Day 4: Cana of Galilee – Transfiguration –
Jericho - Jerusalem
Drive to
Cana of Galilee to visit the church of the wedding where Jesus performed
the first of his signs, changing water to wine. Here couples can renew
their wedding vows.
Next we head towards Mount Tabor, the Mount
of the Transfiguration, and visit the beautiful Basilica and the rock
under the altar where the Transfiguration took place. We will spend some
time on this peaceful mountain for meditation and reflection. Leaving the
mountain, we drive via the Jordan Valley to Jericho, where we view the
Mount of Temptation and the Sycamore tree that Zacchaeus climbed in order
to see Jesus. We continue our drive up to Jerusalem and check into
the hotel for dinner and lodging overnight.
Day
5: Bethlehem – Ein Karem
This morning we drive to Bethlehem to visit the
place of our Lord’s birth in the Basilica of the Nativity. We will
see the Grotto of the Nativity, the Church of St. Catherine, where the
Midnight Mass is celebrated, and the Caves of St. Joseph and St. Jerome
underneath the church. Visit to the Shepherds’ Fields, where the
Angels appeared to the shepherds who were watching over their flocks during
the night. In the afternoon we drive to the nearby village of Ein Karem to
visit the birth-place of St. John the Baptist and the Church of the
Visitation, where Mary came to visit her kinswoman Elizabeth and
proclaimed the ´Magnificat’. If time permits we will stop to
visit the Holy Land Model, before returning to the hotel for
dinner and lodging.
Day 6:
Introduction to Jerusalem
After breakfast we drive to the top of the Mt. Olives for a panoramic view
of Jerusalem and a better understanding of its geography and some of the
key sites surrounding the area. Visit the Church of Pater Noster where
Jesus taught his disciples how to pray, and then proceed down the Palm
Sunday route to the Church of Dominus Flevit, where our Lord wept over
the city. We continue our walk on the Palm Sunday route to the Garden of
Gethsemane, where we find the Rock of Agony where Jesus prayed before his
betrayal. Before going back to the hotel, we will have free time at the
dimly-lit church for prayer and reflection. This afternoon we go on Mount
Zion to visit the Church of the Dormition Abbey, where our Blessed Mother
fell asleep. Next we go to the Cenacle, the place of the Last Supper and
Pentecost. Today we also visit the Church of Saint Peter in Gallicantu,
which commemorates the house of Caiphas, the high priest of the Jews,
where Jesus was imprisoned for the night and where Peter denied our Lord.
After this we return to our hotel for dinner and lodging.
Day 7:
Jerusalem, The Passion of Jesus´ last hours
Our tour this morning will be dedicated to the
Old City of Jerusalem. We’ll start at the Western Wall,
the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, including St. Anne’s
Church and the Pools of Bethesda. From there we continue to the Judgment
Hall known as the Antonia Fortress where Jesus was led to be condemned to
death by Pontius Pilate. At that place we start following the Vía Dolorosa through the markets of the Old
City, praying at the Stations of the Cross: we reflect on the greatness of
His sacrifice, stopping at each of the fourteen stations of the Cross until
we reach the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. There we will visit Calvary and
the empty Tomb of our Lord, and the different sections of the church. We
will have free time at the church for prayers and reflection before going
back to the hotel for dinner and lodging.
Day 8: The wilderness: Bethany - Qumran - Masada - Dead
Sea
Today we have a rather different
experience. We will drive to nearby Bethany to visit the church and the
Tomb of St. Lazarus. From here we drive to the Dead Sea area to see the
caves at Qumran where the Dead Sea Scrolls were hidden. We will also visit
the archeological site there and see a video about the place. Then we
drive further south along the Dead Sea and stop for a swim in the
mineral-rich waters of the Dead Sea, renowned for its healing properties,
before returning for dinner and lodging at the hotel in
Jerusalem.
Day 9: Jerusalem – Home
Transfer to the airport, filled
with cherished memories, for your return flight home.