Heritage of the Holy Land and Jordan (Multi country)

Upon arriving at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, meet your tour representative, who will be waiting for you after passport control holding a sign with your name on it. Our representative will guide you to pick up your luggage and then escort you through customs to meet your driver, who will transfer you to your hotel in Tel Aviv. Spend the rest of the day at leisure, relax in the hotel and freshen up after your flight or head out into the vibrant city of Tel Aviv to wander on its historic streets, colourful back alleys and most famous landmarks.

Overnight in Tel Aviv

After breakfast, you will be picked up at around 8 am to enjoy a short visit of the city of Jaffa, Tel Aviv’s charming neighbour, where we take a short walking tour through the picturesque alleys of this old, fortified town. Pass by the house of Simon the Tanner and marvel at the views from the hilltop. Then drive north along the coast to the archaeological ruins of Caesarea, built by Herod the Great in honour of Augustus Caesar. Continue to Megiddo, where the Book of Revelations mentions a great battle at the place called ‘Armageddon’. It was an ancient city inhabited continuously for more than five millennia (6,000-500 BC). After exploring the ancient ruins, arrive at Tiberias, a glimmering white city that sits on the shores of Galilee, and check in to your hotel.

Overnight in Tiberias

Wake up to breakfast at the hotel and then start the day with a drive to the southern part of the Sea of Galilee to visit the Yardenit Baptismal Site. Your next stop is Capernaum, the centre of Jesus’ ministry. Continue on to Tabgha, the site of Christ’s miracle of feeding the 5,000 and the Church of the Multiplication, where the mosaic floor depicts a basket with loaves and two fish. Drive on to the Mount of Beatitudes, which overlooks the sea where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount. It is believed that Jesus picked his 12 apostles here. Ascend to the Golan Heights to view the panoramic view from the peaks of Mount Hermon: the rugged plateau of the Golan Heights and beneath it the green pastoral Hula Valley. Visit Banias (Caesarea Philippi), one of the sources of the River Jordan, where Jesus took his disciples, revealing His purpose and His Church before his last trip to Jerusalem and where Simon identified Jesus as the Messiah. Drive to the southern part of the Sea of Galilee to visit the Yardenit Baptismal Site. Return to Tiberias for another lovely night in town. 

Overnight in Tiberias

Wake up to breakfast at the hotel. You can choose to go on an optional sailing excursion before leaving Tiberias. The boat trip will take approximately 1 hour. Sail on a boat on the Sea of Galilee to experience the tranquillity and scenery that hasn’t changed much in 2000 years (subject to weather conditions and fee).  Then, travel to Nazareth, the city where Jesus spent his childhood, and visit the Church of Annunciation, built on the site where archaeologists believe the Archangel Gabriel appeared to the Virgin Mary. You will also see Mary’s Well and Joseph’s Church. Stop at Cana to visit the Wedding Church where Jesus performed his first miracle, turning water into wine. Visit the ancient synagogue at Beit Alpha, located at the foot of the northern slopes of the Gilboa Mountains which has one of most preserved and beautiful mosaics in Israel. Drive through the Jordan Valley, passing by Jericho, before ascending through the Judean Mountains to Jerusalem. 

Overnight in Jerusalem

After breakfast in the hotel, you will be picked up at about 8 am. Drive through remarkable scenery of the Dead Sea to Masada which is situated on an isolated cliff in the Judean Desert. The site was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001. Ascend by cable car to the fortress, which was the last stronghold of the Jewish Zealots in their war against the Romans. Visit the excavations, King Herod’s palace, the synagogue, the bathhouse and much more. Enjoy the breathtaking view of the Roman camps and the Dead Sea below. Visit the site of the Qumran Caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. Nearly 400 metres below sea level, the Dead Sea is the lowest point on the earth’s surface. Bring your swimsuit as if the weather permits it’s possible to “float” on the salty, mineral-rich water. Return to Jerusalem at around 6 pm for overnight.

Overnight in Jerusalem

Start the day with breakfast at the hotel, after which you will meet your guide about 8 am and visit the Israel Museum’s Shrine of the Book, which contains the famous Dead Sea scrolls. Then a visit to the beautifully renovated model of the Herodian city of Jerusalem, dating back to the time of the Second Temple. Enjoy Ein Karem, a picturesque village in the southwestern outskirts of Jerusalem. This small village has great significance in Christian traditions, since this is where according to tradition John the Baptist was born. Then visit Yad Vashem, the official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, established in 1953, located at the foot of Mt. Hertzl. Then travel to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, commemorated at the Church of the Nativity and Manger Square. Return to your Jerusalem hotel at around 6 pm. 

Overnight in Jerusalem

Today after breakfast at the hotel you will be picked up at around 8 am. We will enter the Old City of Jerusalem where you will see the Western Wall and the actual site of the Second Temple, the Temple Mount. Walk along the Way of the Cross, the Via Dolorosa, to Calvary and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, housing both the traditional site of Crucifixion and the Tomb of the Resurrection. To the southwest, just outside the Old City, is Mount Zion, with the traditional tomb of King David and the Room of the Last Supper. Visit the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus spent his last night and was betrayed by Judas. Enjoy the spectacular panoramic view of Jerusalem - the holy city for each of the world’s three great religions – Christianity, Judaism and Islam, from atop the Mount of Olives. Get back to the hotel in the evening at around 6 pm.

Overnight in Jerusalem

Wake up to the morning breakfast at the hotel, check out and be ready at 8 am to drive to the Sheikh Hussein border crossing for procedures to enter Jordan. Proceed to Jerash - the city of the Decapolis, located about 45km north of Amman in the fertile heights of the Gilad. Visit the ancient Roman city with colonnaded streets, the baths and the hill of the top Temple. Drive to Amman for a panoramic city tour of the Jordanian capital. Arrive at your hotel in Amman at about 6 pm for check in.

Overnight in Amman

After breakfast, leave Amman at 8 am and drive to Mount Nebo, from where Moses viewed the Promised Land. From there you will see the Jordan Valley, Jericho and the Dead Sea. Continue along the Desert Highway to Wadi Musa, the modern village of Petra. Enter the site of Petra and walk, or ride on horseback to the "Siq" (Canyon). Walk through the "Siq" to the red rock city, the ancient capital of the Nabateans from 3rd Century BC to 2nd Century AD. Visit the most interesting carved monuments such as the Treasury (El Khazneh - a tomb of a Nabatean king) then the field of tombs, obelisks and the altar. From this point you can view the whole of the rock city. After the visit, return to Wadi Musa at about 6 pm.

Overnight in Petra

After breakfast at around 8 am drive south to the towering mountains and rock formations of Wadi Rum, which mesmerised Lawrence of Arabia. Drive through the stunning desert landscapes on a jeep safari, visiting the Lawrence Spring and Khazali Canyon. Drive north to Madaba to visit the remains of the Byzantine church with its ancient mosaic floor map, the oldest surviving original cartographic depiction of the mosaic map of the Holy Land and Jerusalem. After the visit, drive to Amman and arrive at 6 pm for check in.

Overnight in Amman

After breakfast, prepare for your departure and transfer to Ben Gurion Airport in time for your onward or return flight (we recommend that you book your return flight in the afternoon no earlier than 2 pm).