ISRAEL , IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE BIBLE.
7 nights and 8 days of Biblical orientation

Day 1. Arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport. Assistance and reception. Welcome to the Land of the Bible. Accommodation in Tel Aviv.
Day 2. Drive to the North of Israel. Our pilgrimage starts at JAFFA, the village where Peter stayed when he had the impure animals vision. This is the same Jaffa of the Prophet Jonas and of other passages of the Bible. Drive on along the path of the ancient Via Maris on our way to the ruins of CAESAREA. Visit to the Theatre and the Aqueduct. Drive on to MOUNT CARMEL, site of the Prophet Elias deeds, where the modern city of Haifa stands today. Continue to Tel MEGGIDO, the archaeological site in the heart of the Armaggedon Valley. Drive on through the Valley of Jezreel towards Nazareth, the city where Jesus spent his childhood and adolescence. We are now in the heart of GALILEE and this day tour will finish with a drive to the shores of the Sea of GALILEE, for an overnight stay.
Day 3. Boat ride on the lake, landing in the Valley of Magdala. Continue to the ruins of CAPERNAUM, where Peter's mother-in-law's house once stood and where Jesus stayed as a guest and the place of many of his miracles. Continue to Tabgha, site of the miracle of the Bread and Fish. The morning tour finishes with a prayer at the mount of the Sermon of the Mount. In the afternoon, drive on to the North of Galilee to visit BANIAS or CAESARIA FILIPPOS, one of the main sources of the River Jordan in the Golan Heights. Return to Tiberias.
Day 4. Drive from Tiberias to the shores of the River Jordan, prayer and baptism. At last, we begin our journey to Jerusalem. Drive out along the Jordan Valley through the desert in Samaria and Judea, passing Jericho where we recall the conquest of the city by Joshua and Jesus stayed on his way to Jerusalem. Start our the ascent to Jerusalem. Triumphant entry to the City with a special prayer"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces." Arrival at the hotel.
Day 5. We start with a visit to Bethlehem, south of Jerusalem. Visit the Church of the Nativity, built on the site where Jesus was born. Return to Jerusalem and the MOUNT OF OLIVES, where we will recall the Ascension of Jesus and enjoy a beautiful panoramic view of the city for which Jesus wept. Arrival at the Gethsemane Garden, where we will have time for prayer and worship among the old olive trees of Kidron stream. Continue on to MOUNT ZION visiting the CENACLE, site of the Last Supper of Jesus and to King David's Tomb. Visit the BIBLICAL GARDEN at the Evangelical Institute, including a Paschal Supper.
Day 6. We will enter, for the first time, within the walls of Old Jerusalem, through the Jewish Quarter up to the Western Wall and the Temple Mount, where the Moslems mosques stand today. This is the MOUNT MORIAH of the Bible. We continue by foot to the Pretorius site, where Pontius Pilate condemned Jesus, and from there along the Via Dolorosa in the footsteps of Jesus towards the garden of Golgotha, site of the Crucifixion and of the Empty Sepulchre. Time for prayer and communion. In the afternoon, we continue on to explore New Jerusalem, with a visit at the scale model of the city, to the Holocaust Memorial and the Shrine of the Book, where the Dead Sea Manuscripts are on exhibit to the public.
Day 7. Drive to the Dead Sea desert. A visit to the ruins of Qumran, where the Essene community lived, which bequeathed to us in their parchments the oldest copies of Biblical texts. Drive on to the Fortress of MASSADA, visiting this impressive work, carried out more than 2000 years ago by King Herod and scene of one of the most dramatic moments of Jewish history. Free time to dip in the salty waters of the Dead Sea. Return to Jerusalem. In the evening, a farewell dinner.
Day 8. Morning free for personal activities. Transfer to Ben Gurion International Airport for departure, passing Emmaus.