Your experience begins as you depart the USA on an overnight flight.

You will be welcomed to the Holy Land by our airport representative and transferred to Netanya, where you will enjoy dinner and a stroll on the Mediterranean beach before resting.

Begin this day with a walking tour of the site of Caesarea, the port and entry point to the country in the Roman period. After lunch, travel to Nazareth and visit Mt. Precipice, Mary’s Well, the Orthodox Church of the Annunciation, El Babour Mill, and the Basilica of the Annunciation.

After breakfast, your hike of the Jesus Trail begins. Walk through Nazareth’s Old City and climb to the crest of the Nabi Sa’in Ridge. Descend the rolling hills to Sepphoris, the cosmopolitan capital of Galilee, in Jesus’s day. Enjoy a thorough tour of the archaeological remains of the city. Tradition suggests this site was the birthplace of Mary, the mother of Jesus. Time permitting, we will bus to Cana of Galilee and visit the church built to remember the first miracle of Jesus: water to wine.

This second day of the Jesus Trail hike begins at the modern site of Kibbutz Lavi. From Lavi, walk across expansive fields to the Horns of Hattin, a volcanic structure best known as the site where Saladin defeated the Crusaders in the battle of 1187. Descend the slopes of this ancient volcanic cone to Nebi Shu’eib, a Druze shrine to Jethro, the father‐in‐law of Moses. Explore the shrine before continuing by bus to Moshav Arbel. From there, we will make our way on foot to a Byzantine-era synagogue. Finally, climb one last slope to the summit of Mt. Arbel for a spectacular afternoon view.

Weather permitting, we begin this third day of trekking by descending into the Wadi Hamam, otherwise known as the Valley of the Doves. Appreciate the austere cliffs of this spectacular gorge, the scene of fighting between Herod the Great and the Jewish zealots who resisted his power. Jesus would have likewise walked this path, a “valley of the shadow of death.” Bus hop to Magdala, the Mount of Beatitudes, and Tabgha, before completing the final segment of the Jesus Trail to Capernaum. Celebrate and visit the ruins there.

Today’s sites are all visited by bus. Begin by traveling down the Jordan River valley to Qasr el‐Yehud, a site associated with the Baptism of Jesus. Make the quick drive from there to Jericho and visit the Old Testament period tel. Climb up the Judean Ridge by bus to visit Bethlehem’s Shepherds’ Field Church and the Church of the Nativity. Conclude this spectacular day by arriving in Jerusalem to check in to your hotel for dinner and overnight.

Explore the Old City of Jerusalem on foot. Visit the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, the Pool of Bethesda, the Via Dolorosa, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Conclude your visit of this most famous biblical city by stopping by the Western Wall and visiting the Davidson Center, where remains from Jerusalem of Jesus’ day may be appreciated.

Return to the USA