Day by Day Travel Itinerary

• Day 01 Mon . Apr . 15

  Departure USA

  Depart the United States for an overnight flight to Cairo, two connections along the way, one in Atlanta and a long layover in Paris. 

• Day 02 Tue . Apr . 16

  Arrive Paris · Cairo

  Upon arrival in Paris, we’ve included a hotel room near the airport for your relaxation, prior to your evening departure to Cairo.  Midnight arrival Cairo International airport where you’ll be transferred to your hotel in Cairo.
  
  * For those who do not want the hotel room in Paris you will get a price reduction of $75 per person, please let us know if you do not want the Paris Hotel. 

• Day 03 Wed . Apr . 17

  Cairo · Pyramids

  We visit Memphis, the capital of the old Kingdom, viewing the statue of Ramses II and the alabaster sphinx. We then tour the world’s oldest pyramids at Sakkara (2686 BC). We go on to the great pyramids of Giza and the famous “three pyramids”, as well as the Sphinx.

• Day 04 Thu . Apr . 18

  Museum · Old Cairo · Bazaar

  We visit the Grand Egyptian Museum of Antiquities, which contains thousands of artifacts. In Old Cairo we tour the Citadel, the Alabaster. We shop in the Khan al Khalili Bazaar, built in 1382.

• Day 05 Fri . Apr . 19

  Sinai Peninsula · Suez Canal · Red Sea · St. Catherine

  This morning drive East towards the Sinai Peninsula and the Suez Canal. After crossing the Suez Canal, you admire the Red Sea, viewing the possible locations where the waters parted. You then travel through and stop at Wadi Feiran one of the possible sites where the Israelites camped. Before the day ends you arrive at your hotel in the St. Catherine area. Here at the foothills of Mount Sinai, the Israelites rested and made the golden calf!

• Day 06 Sat . Apr . 20

  Mt. Sinai · Monastery · Taba Border · Arava Border · Aqaba

  Enjoy the amazing sunrise on Mt. Sinai. A day to remember! Early in the morning, the energetic can climb Mount Sinai to see the sunrise and get a panoramic view of the land Moses saw over 3,500 years ago. After descending, a buffet breakfast will satisfy your appetite. After breakfast we will visit St. Catherine Monastery, the oldest on earth, where monks have been witnesses to the Christian faith since the fifth century AD. We will visit the chapel of the Burning Bush and the Museum of the Skull. From St. Catherine drive to the Taba Border, cross into Israel and a short distance drive, we get to the Arava Border with Jordan Cross into Jordan for your overnight in Aqaba.

• Day 07 Sun . Apr . 21

  Day Of Leisure Resort Aqaba

  Aqaba, famed for its preserved coral reefs and unique sea life, this Red Sea port city was, in ancient times, the main port for shipments from the Red Sea to the Far East. The Mameluk Fort, one of the main historical landmarks of Aqaba was originally a Crusader Castle, rebuilt by the Mameluks in the sixteenth century. Square in shape and flanked by semicircular towers, the fort is marked with various inscriptions marking the latter period of the Islamic dynasty.  Today is yours to explore this historic city on your own. While some explore the city or relax by your hotel overlooking the Red Sea, others can have a diving option on that day for those who wish to go scuba diving?

• Day 08 Mon . Apr . 22

  Kings Highway · Wadi Rum · Petra

  Drive north along the King’s Highway, through the land of Edom into the Wadi Rum, the land of the Midianites with its spectacular desert scenery and the background against which the film Lawrence of Arabia was shot. Then along the same route the Israelites took after the king of Edom (Petra) denied them passage during the years of wilderness wandering. We pass the Biblical Mount Seir and make a brief stop at Wadi Musa. Tradition has it that here is found the very rock which Moses struck (Numbers: 20:7-11). Continue on to Petra, where your guided tour begins. We enter Petra on foot, though the Siq, a narrow, winding gorge over 1 kilometer in length. We visit the Great Treasury (Al-Khazneh Farun), the Roman Theatre, the Royal Tombs, as well as hundreds of monuments, tricliniums, and obelisks, all carved from the multi-shaded, rose red sandstone. (Petra is thought to be the Biblical Selah) Tonight you will overnight in Petra.

• Day 09 Tue . Apr . 23

  Kerak · Madaba · Mt. Nebo · Amman

  First this this morning we go to “Bethany across the Jordan”, the site of John the Baptist’s settlement at Bethany beyond the Jordan. This is the place that has been long known from the Byzantine and medieval texts and the Bible as the place of Jesus’ baptism (John 1:28 and 10:40). The site has now been identified on the bank of the Jordan River and was systematically surveyed, excavated, restored, and prepared to receive pilgrims and visitors in early 2000.  Continue driving along the King’s Highway north as we then pass the Crusader Castle of Kerak and drive through Wadi Mujeb to Madaba. There we visit the church with the mosaic floor from the 6th century showing the map of the Holy Land as Christian pilgrims knew it. From there we go to Mt. Nebo and view the Holy Land as Moses viewed it before the Israelite tribes crossed into the Promised Land. Drive to Amman for our overnight stay.

• Day 10 Wed . Apr . 24

  Border Crossing · Jericho · Beth Shean · Samaria · Jerusalem

  Drive down to Allenby Bridge and cross into the Holy Land. Drive to Jericho. At Jericho, we visit this oldest city and view the traditional mountain of Jesus’ temptation. Then we drive north through the Jordan Valley to the crossing point with the Jezreel at Beth Shean (aka Scythopolis). Here we shall climb the tel and view the setting for the death of Saul (I Samuel 28 - II Samuel 1). We then survey the magnificent Roman and Byzantine ruins: theatre, bathhouses, ancient restrooms, market areas, colonnaded streets. We then enjoy a spectacular, scenic drive to Samaria. There we visit Sebastia, believed by some to be the burial place of John the Baptist. Farmers in Sebastia are still uncovering Roman glass as they plow their fields. In Samaria, we also visit a Greek Orthodox church in the town of ancient Shechem (now Nablus). This modern-day church stands over Jacob’s Well. We continue to our hotel in Jerusalem for the remainder of our trip. 

• Day 11 Thu . Apr . 25

  Mt. Of Olives · Gethsemane · Bethlehem

  We start the day with an orientation to Jerusalem from the Mt. of Olives. We then follow the traditional Palm Sunday route to the church known as Dominus Flevit (“the Lord weeps”). After viewing the Golden Gate, we walk downhill to Gethsemane, where we take time to meditate on the Gospel text. Then we drive to Mt. Zion: to the grounds of a church called Peter in Gallicantu, which affords the best view of early Jerusalem from the west. (Here, the Assumptionist Fathers propose, was the house where the High Priest Caiaphas interrogated Jesus.) Driving south, we visit Solomon’s Pools, Jerusalem’s main source of water for almost 2000 years. Passing the monastery of Hortus Conclusus (“the sealed garden”) in Artas, we go to Shepherds’ Fields. We conclude the day with a visit to Bethlehem, walking through its alleys and markets to the Church of the Nativity.

• Day 12 Fri . Apr . 26

  Dead Sea Scrolls · Yad Vashem · Garden Tomb

  We drive to the Shrine of the Book, which houses the Dead Sea Scrolls.  Next, we visit Yad VaShem, the Holocaust Memorial Museum, dedicated to the six million Jews who lost their lives before and during the World War II.  Also, memorials have been placed to the many Gentiles who helped the Jews during this period, risking their lives to do so.  Next, we have a visit to the model of Jerusalem, representing how the city looked on the eve of the Jewish revolt, 36 years after the Passion of Jesus. This afternoon, a special service and communion will be held at the Garden Tomb. 

• Day 13 Sat . Apr . 27

  Western Wall · Via Dolorosa · Old City· Farewell Dinner · Departure

  Today, we transfer to Dung Gate where just inside, we take the time to examine the ruins near the south side of the Temple complex, which includes steps where we may be certain that Jesus taught, and He and his disciples walked. We then walk up to the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest site. We view the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site of Islam, located on the traditional site of the ancient Temple Mount. Just to the north we find the Pools of Bethesda (John 5) and St. Anne’s Church, which has remarkable acoustics, and which has been perfectly preserved from the Crusader period. We then follow the Way of the Cross (Via Dolorosa) back as far as the Holy Sepulcher. From there we walk through the Arab Souks, past the Armenian Quarter and exit the Old City through the Mt Zion Gate to visit the Upper Room and King David’s Tomb on the grounds of Mt. Zion. The rest of the afternoon you’ll have some time to explore the old city on your own “free time”. This evening we’ll enjoy a Middle Eastern farewell dinner before our evening transfer to the Ben Gurion airport for our flight home.

   

• Day 14 Sun . Apr . 28

  Arrive USA

  Arrive back in the USA and make connections to your home city.