Date Changed for Holy Land Experience 2018

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T&T Anglican Diocese
in ,

Holy Land Experience 2018

12 Days / 11 nights Travel & Tour

25th May to 5th June, 2018

ITINERARY – Trinidad / London / Tel-Aviv, Israel / London / Trinidad

 Day 1 – DEPART TRINIDAD

Depart Port of Spain via Gatwick, London to Tel-Aviv, Israel (check in 3 hours before departure).

Day 2 – WELCOME TO ISRAEL

Arrival in Ben Gurion Airport. Meet assist by Tour representative and meeting with your guide and driver for the duration of the tour.  Transfer to a hotel in Tel-Aviv for check in.

Day 3 – Free Day

Breakfast only 

Day 4 – TEL AVIV/JAFFA – NAZARETH – TIBERIAS

We begin our pilgrimage with a visit to ancient Jaffa (New Testament Joppa) where the Apostle Peter had a vision, whilst sitting on the rooftop of the House of Simon the Tanner, and he received God’s command to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles. Next we drive northwards through the modern metropolis of Tel Aviv and on to the ruins of Caesarea Maritima, which was seat of government of the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate. Our next stop is on Mt. Carmel where we shall visit the “Place of Sacrifice” where the Prophet Elijah had an encounter with the Priests of Baal (1 Kings 18:17-40). We Drive on across the “Plain of Harmageddon” to the town of Nazareth, a town in the hill country of Galilee where Jesus grew to manhood (Matth. 2:23), and visit the Basilica of the Annunciation. We visit also Nazareth Village, an authentic reconstruction of a Jewish village under Roman occupation set during the Late Hellenistic period. Late afternoon we check into our hotel.

Day 5 – SEA OF GALILEE

First this day we shall visit Cana in Galilee, the scene of the wedding feast, where Jesus turned the water into wine (Jh. 2:1-11). We proceed to The Sea of Galilee which is rich in memories of the three years of Jesus’ Ministry around its shores. We drive around the western shores of the Sea of Galilee to visit the pilgrim shrines on its NW shores. We start with a visit to the Mount of Beatitudes, the scene of the Sermon on the Mount, and continue to Tabgha to visit the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes and the nearby Chapel of the Primacy. This is followed by a visit to the ruins of the ancient town of Capernaum which in Jesus’ day was a flourishing border town. So frequently did Jesus visit it and so mighty were his works there that it was called “his own city” (Matth. 4:13). We shall see the ancient synagogue and the “House of Peter” before continuing our drive around the eastern shores of the Sea to Kibbutz Ein Gev where a lunch of St. Peter’s Fish is waiting for us. This is followed by a boat trip across the Sea of Galilee to the city of Tiberias. . Before returning to our hotel we shall have the opportunity to stop at a baptismal site on the banks of the Jordan River before we return to our hotel.

Day 6 – GOLAN HEIGHTS

This morning we drive up to the Golan Heights passing by Katzerin “the town of the Golan” which was established in 1974 and continue on to Mt. Bental from where there is an observation point over the whole region and onto the ghost town of Kuneitra. Next we stop at the Banias, the location of Caesarea Philippi where the Apostle Peter made his great confession of faith in Jesus as the Christ, before continuing to Tel Dan, which was the north most town in biblical Israel (hence the saying “from Dan to Beersheba”). We drive back to the Sea of Galilee.

Day 7 – MT. TABOR – JORDAN VALLEY – JERUSALEM

We say farewell to the Sea of Galilee after breakfast and start this day with a drive through the beautiful landscape of Lower Galilee, the scene of much of Christs’ ministry and the home of many of the disciples, to Mt. Tabor, the Mount of the Transfiguration (Matth. 17:1-8). From the top of the Mount there is a wonderful panoramic view which extends from Mt. Hermon in the north to the hills of Samaria in the south. We drive on past the small town of Nain, where Jesus raised the widow’s son (Lk. 7:11-17). Next we drive to foot of Mt. Gilboa, stopping for a moment at the Spring of Ein Harod where Gideon the Judge, collected his people to fight the Midianites (Judges 7: 4-7). Then we continue our drive southwards through the Jordan Valley to Jericho the most ancient city in the world. We stop at a Sycamore tree of the kind Zaccheaus climbed in order to see Jesus and a view of the Mt. of Temptation before we drive on up through the Judean Wilderness to Jerusalem, the city of God, and take a first glimpse of the city from the heights of Mt. Scopus before checking into our hotel.

Day 8 – MT. OLIVES – OLD CITY OF JERUSALEM

After breakfast we shall start our pilgrimage in Jerusalem with a drive to the top of the Mt. of Olives, from which Jesus ascended to heaven after his resurrection. From the top of the Mount there is a magnificent view over all of ancient and modern Jerusalem, the center of the biblical world. We visit the holy shrines on the Mount and walk on down the “Palm Sunday Road” visiting the Chapel of Dominus Flevit (Jesus wept) enroute to the Garden of Gethsemane and the Church of All Nations where Christ prayed On the night of his betrayal (Lk. 22:40-46). Next we shall enter within the old Walled city of Jerusalem and walk in the footsteps of our Lord as he bore the burden of our sins to the Cross at Golgotha. We visit the Pools of Bethesda and walk on along the Via Dolorosa, following the 14 Stations of the Cross from Pilate’s Judgement Hall to the empty tomb in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. After lunch we shall visit the last standing remnant of the ancient Temple at the Western (Wailing) Wall and visit some of the exciting archeological sites in and around the Old City. We end this memorable day with a visit to the Garden Tomb and Gordon’s Golgotha before returning to our hotel.

Day 9 – MT. ZION – EIN KAREM – BETHLEHEM

We start this day with a visit to Mt. Zion where we shall stop to see the Upper Room, the Tomb of King David and the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu which is built over the Palace of Caiaphas, the High Priest, who imprisoned Jesus and interrogated him before his trial before Pontius Pilate (Lk. 22:54). Next we shall drive through the New City, passing the Knesset (Israel’s Parliament building), and on into the hill country to a “city of Juda” which Today is called Ein Karem. Here we shall visit the Church of the Visitation, which by tradition is built over the house of Zacharias, where the Virgin Mary came to visit her cousin Elisabeth (Lk. 1:39-80). Here John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ, was born. A visit to the Yad Vashem memorial to the victims of the holocaust is also on our program for this morning. Afternoon drive to Bethlehem, the royal city of David, to kneel at the place of the birth of Christ in the Grotto of the Nativity. We visit also the Shepherd’s Field where the Angel of the Lord appeared to the Shepherd’s On that first Christmas Eve and announced the birth of the Saviour (Lk. 2: 8-18). Finally we drive past Rachel’s Tomb and return to Jerusalem.

Day 10 – DEAD SEA – MASSADA

After breakfast we set out again passing the “Inn of the Good Samaritan” Enroute to the Dead Sea, the lowest spot on the face of the Earth. We drive around the shores of the Dead Sea, and begin with a visit Qumran where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. We pass Ein Gedi enroute to the mountain fortress of Massada. Ascent by cable car for an extensive tour of the site which was the scene of the last Jewish resistance against the Romans in the year 73 AD. We return to the shores of the Dead Sea and have an opportunity for a bathe in mineral rich waters before returning to Jerusalem.

Day 11 -DEPARTURE FROM TEL-AVIV ISRAEL – LONDON

After breakfast we take our leave from Jerusalem and check in for flight in Ben Gurion Airport, rejoicing and putting our trust in the Lord, remembering the words of the Psalmist in Psalm 125:1: “They that trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion, which cannot be removed but abideth forever”.

1 night hotel stay – London with breakfast.

Day 12 – DEPARTURE FROM GATWICK, LONDON

Transfer to Gatwick International Airport for flight to Trinidad (check in 3 hours before flight   departure).

COST

The cost is $40,000 dbl occupancy and $45,000 for single occupancy. Interested persons can notify our diocesan office (868-622-7704 or 868-622-2863). A down payment of $10,000 is requested by the end of September 2017. Spaces are limited!

RATE INCLUDES:

  • Return airfare via London
  • Travel and Medical insurance
  • Meet and assist by Tour Representative upon arrival/departure
  • Sightseeing as per attached itinerary (order of visits subject to change)
  • Government licensed English Speaking tour guide 7 full days & 2 transfers
  • Luxury airconditioned coach 7 full days & 2 transfers
  • Entrance fees including: Caesarea, Nazareth, Nazareth Village, Mt. Tabor, Mt. of Beatitudes, Capernahum, Tabgha, Boat ride on the Sea of Galilee, Banias, Tel Dan, Jericho, Ein Harod, Mt. Olives, Pools of Bethesda, St Peter in Gallicantu, Davidson Center, Yad Vashem, Qumran, Massada incl. cablecar
  • 9 Nights hotel accommodation
  • 1 night Tel Aviv
  • 3 nights Nazareth
  • 4 nights Jerusalem
  • 1 night London
  • Meal arrangements: breakfast & dinner at hotels, lunch in local restaurants
  • Welcome kit: map, hat, backpack
  • Pilgrim certificate

RATE NOT INCLUDING:

  • Airport tax
  • Additional meals
  • Expenses of a personal nature
  • Tips to guides
  • Any services not mentioned above