Day 1. Arrival in Israel.
Arrival at Ben Gurion airport. Your guide will welcome you and will accompany you to your hotel in Tel Aviv. Dinner and overnight in Tel Aviv.
Day 2: Tel Aviv – Beer Sheva – Arad.
Our first tour day in Israel. After breakfast we will tour the city of Tel Aviv and we will also visit Jaffa, the biblical Joppe. Jaffa is one of the oldest port cities in the world. Via Ashdod and Ashkelon we drive to Beer Sheva. We will visit the remains of Biblical Beer Sheva and go on a jeep safari through part of the Negev desert. Just before sunset we go for a camel ride. Afterwards we will enjoy a traditional Bedouin meal. Overnight in Bedouin camp.
Day 3. Masada – Ein Gedi – Qumran – Jerusalem.
After a delicious breakfast, we go to the lowest lake in the world: The Dead Sea. We start with a visit to Masada. We travel to the top by cable car and enjoy the beautiful view. In this fortress high on the rock, we will hear the fascinating story of king Herod who built the fortress; we will also hear about the courageous Zealots. Next, we travel to the biblical oasis of Ein Gedi. We go for a walk in the nature reserve of Ein Gedi, known from the stories about David and king Saul. We will also briefly visit Qumran, where once a shepherd boy found the Dead Sea Scrolls. Before we travel to Jerusalem, you will have time to really relax. You will “float” in the Dead Sea. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.
Day 4. Jerusalem: the Old City.
The best place to start our first day in Jerusalem is on the Mount of Olives. From here we have a magnificent view over the Old City. We walk down the mountain and pass the Garden of Gethsemane with its centuries old olive trees and the Church of All Nations. Through the Lions’ Gate we enter the Old City. We walk over the Via Dolorosa where we will visit Bethesda and Ecce Homo. We continue in the Christian Quarter where the Holy Sepulchre Church is situated. In the Jewish Quarter we visit the restored Hurva Synagogue and walk over the Cardo. In the Roman period this was a covered shopping street. We continue to the Wailing Wall. We conclude the afternoon with a visit to the Garden Tomb. In the evening we visit the Citadel. We learn about the history of Jerusalem from the past to the present through a sound and light show. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.
Day 5. the New City.
This day is dedicated to the New City. In the morning we will go to Yad Vashem for an extensive visit. This is the holocaust museum. It is a memorial where the 6 million Jews are remembered who were murdered during World War II. In the afternoon we visit the Israel Museum. Here we see a model of ancient Jerusalem in the time of king Herod. The Shrine of the Book is part of the Israel Museum. The oldest bible text in the world, the Dead Sea Scrolls, can be found here. These were found by a shepherd boy in a cave in Qumran. Next, we will visit the seven-branched candelabrum, the Menorah, which faces the Knesset, the Israeli parliament building. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.
Day 6. Beit She’an – Tiberias – Galilee.
Early in the morning we leave Jerusalem and drive through the western bank of the Jordan river in the direction of the Dead Sea. On the way we briefly stop at Qadi Kelt. Here stands a beautiful Greek Orthodox monastery. Via Jericho, the oldest city in the world, we drive to the excavations of Beit She’an, a city from the Roman time. We continue our journey to Tiberias. Here we will visit several Holy places from the Bible around the lake of Galilee, such as Capernaum, with the remains of a Synagogue, and the Mount of Beatitudes. We close our day with a boat ride on the lake. Dinner and overnight in Tiberias.
Day 7. Golan Heights – Safed – Nazareth.
The Golan Heights with its beautiful landscape lies to the North of Tiberias. That is where we will visit the Banias, one of the springs of the Jordan. We continue our journey to Safed, the center of Kabbala. We walk through the artists’ quarter and visit a synagogue. We drive to Nazareth Village. Here we will have an interesting guided tour, that will show us how the inhabitants of Nazareth lived 2000 years ago. Dinner and overnight in Tiberias.
Day 8. Akko – Haifa – Caesarea.
Our suitcases are packed. We drive to the West to the coast. Here we will visit the ancient city of Akko. This small port city is famous for its underground Crusader city and its fortresses from the Middle Ages. We continue our journey to Haifa. We will go for a short tour of the city and walk in the Persian gardens of the Bahai sanctuary. On Mount Carmel we have a great view of the whole city. We drive in southern direction to go and see the spectacular excavations of Caesarea. Dinner and overnight in Tel Aviv.
Day 9: Departure.
Unfortunate this tour has come to an end. We get ready for our return flight home.
Participation price:
Following is included:
- Hotelovernight, staying in a double room.
- On breakfast and diner base.
- Transportation in a luxery touringbus with airconditioning.
- Transfer upon arrival and departure.
- Official English speaking guide
- All entrees mentioned in the itinerary.
- Portrage
- Groups picture
Excluded:
- Personal expenses
- Insurances
- Beverages during meals
- lunches
- Tip for driver, guide and hotel.
- Flight