Tour Itinerary: Days 1-5
June 21st: Depart from USA
Our trip begins as we leave Seattle at 6:30 PM and fly to Amsterdam.
June 22nd: Arrival in Amsterdam
After arriving in Amsterdam, Netherlands at 1:30 pm, we will catch a train to the Amsterdam Central Station. From there we will walk to the Anne Frank House, where we are schedule for a group tour at 4:00 and 4:30 pm. After our tour, we will enjoy a nice stroll along the canals of Amsterdam and grab a bite to eat before heading back to the the Schiphol airport to catch our evening flight to Tel Aviv at 9:05 pm (and hopefully some sleep).
June 23rd: Tel Aviv, Israel
After arriving at the Ben-Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv at 2:30 am, we will transfer to our hotel in Netanya for a few hours of some much needed shuteye. Our full day of touring begins at 10:00 am with breakfast. Then we head off to the place where Jesus grew up, Galilee. On our way there we stop at the site of Herod the Great's famous man-made harbor, Caesarea. Caesarea was the only harbor in ancient Israel. In addition to sailing in and out of this harbor during his missionary journey's, the apostle Paul was also imprisoned here for several years. Caesarea was also a key location for the Crusaders in the Middle Ages. Next we travel to Mt Carmel, where Elijah defeated the prophets of Baal, and then on to the ancient city Beit She'an for an amazing evening tour and light show. Dinner and overnight at the Ohalo Hotel in Tiberias.
June 24th: The Galilee
We spend today touring the ancient sites around the Sea Galilee. We begin by taking a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. This was the place where Jesus first met His disciples and where he walked on the water. After sailing from Tiberias to Capernaum, we visit the ancient remains of the city of Capernaum. Capernaum is an ancient fishing village on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee. Capernaum was the hometown of the Apostle Peter, and the place where Jesus healed a paralytic and Peter's mother-in-law (Mk. 1:21, 29). Jesus made Capernaum the main base of his Galilean ministry. Today a church stands on the spot where Peter's house was supposedly located. The house does date back to Jesus' time and appears to have been a sacred site by the mid-1st century. From here we will travel to the the Mount of the Beatitudes, Tabgha (where Jesus feed the 5000), and the place where John is said to have baptized Jesus. We will finally stop at the little town where Jesus grew up, Nazareth. Here we will visit Nazareth village, an open air museum that reconstructs and reenacts village life in the Galilee in the time of Jesus. Dinner and overnight at the Ohalo Hotel in Tiberias.
June 25th: Jordan
Today we cross into Jordan. Our first stop will be to the biblical city of Gerasa, which is known today as Jerash. Due to the city's extensive and impressive ruins, it is often dubbed as the "Pompeii of the East." The beautifully preserved ruins of Jerash include places of worship and other buildings from the Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine and early Muslim periods.
After lunch our next stop is Mount Nebo, a 3,300 foot high mountain located 6 mi NW of Madaba in Jordan, and opposite the northern end of the Dead Sea. According to ancient tradition, this is the mountain from which Moses saw the Promised Land before he died. Because of its connection to Moses, Mt. Nebo has long been an important place of Christian pilgrimage.
Our final stop being reaching our hotel in Petra, is Machaerus. Machaerus is one of the desert fortified palace occupied by Herod the Great. It is also the place where the Jewish historian Josephus says that John the Baptist was executed. Dinner and overnight in Petra.