8 Day Catholic Pilgrimage

Day 1: You will arrive at the Ben Gurion International Airport and your Elijah Tours host will meet you. Your host will help with transport to the hotel and assist you in getting settled for the night.

Day 2: Tel Aviv / Caesarea / Acre / Tiberias
You will enjoy a delicious breakfast of local fare. We will then head north to Caesarea where you will have the pleasure of visiting the Herod’s Palace, the Roman Theatre, the Palace of the Roman Procurator, the Crusaders City, the Amphitheater, and the Harbor. After enjoy the sites of Caesarea, we will head to Mount Carmel. In Mount Carmel, you will get to visit the location where Elijah battled the Baal priests known as the Monastery of the Muhraka. The roof of the Monastery will allow you enjoy a magnificent panoramic view of the Jezreel Plain. From there, we will travel through the Druze villages and into Daliyat el Carmel and into Usifiya. This route will lead us to Haifa where you will enjoy a splendid panoramic view the harbor. Next, we will visit historic Catholic sites including the Church of Stella Maris (also known as the Carmelite Monastery) and Prophet Elijah’s cave. Our next stop is historic Acre to see the city walls, the Harbor and the Knights’ Hall. Our journey will then lead us through Galilee to our final destination of the day, Tiberias, where we will settle for the night.

Day 3: Galilee
Enjoy a wonderful local breakfast and then we are off to the Sea of Galilee to enjoy a boat ride on the water that Jesus walked on (Matthew 14: 22-23). The boat tour ends in Ginnosar, where you will see an Ancient Boat from biblical times. Next, the tour heads to Nazareth where we will visit the Church of Annunciation (Luke 26: 28) and Mary’s Well. Next, we will head to Cana in Galilee where Jesus’ First Miracle of changing water to wine occurred (John 2: 1-11 and John 4: 46-54). We will then return to Tiberias to settle in for the night.

Day 4: Mount Tabor / Megiddo / Jaffa / Jerusalem
After enjoying a great breakfast, we are off to Mount Tabor to visit the site of Transfiguration (Matthew 17: 1-8). We will take a trip to the rooftop of the Catholic Church to gain a magnificent bird’s eye view of Lower Galilee and the Plain of Jezreel. We will then drive through Afula and Megiddo (Armageddon). Megiddo is believed to be the location where the final battle of mankind will occur (the Apocalypse of St. John). We will also visit the Museum, the Gates from the times of King Solomon, the old Canaanite temples, and the water tunnel from the ancient times of King Ahab. Next, we will then travel through Wadi Ara on the ancient road of Via Maris. This ancient road is connected to old Egypt and Mesopotamia. The next part of the journey will take us to Tel Aviv-Yafo. We will visit ancient Jaffa, the house of Simon the Tanner (Apostles 10: 9-16), and the location of the Miracle of the resurrection of Tabita (Apostles 9: 36-43). Finally, we will travel through the Hills of Judea and into Jerusalem where we will stay for the night.

Day 5: Old City Jerusalem
After enjoying a wonderful breakfast, we will head up to the Mount of Olives. We will then visit the Chapel of the Ascension (Luke 24: 50-53) and the Church of the Pater Noster (Luke 11: 1-4). Here we will enjoy the magnificent panoramic view of the Old City Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. Next, we will enjoy a walk down the Mount of Olives to the Church of Dominus Flevit (Luke 19: 41-44). Next, we will head to the Garden of Gethsemane. We will see where Jesus was arrested (Matthew 26: 36-58). We will also enjoy looking at the old olive trees and visiting the Basilica of the Agony. The next part of our journey will take us through the Lion’s Gate. We will enjoy a walking tour of the Old City where we will visit St. Anne’s Church and the Pool of Bethesda (John 5: 1-15). We will also walk through the Via Dolorosa to see the Stations of the Cross, the remains of Antonia, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Next, we will enjoy the sites and sounds of the Old City Jerusalem bazaar and retire to the hotel to settle in for the night.

Day 6: New City Jerusalem and Bethlehem
First, we will enjoy a fabulous breakfast. Then we are off to Mount Zion to see the Room of the Last Supper and King David’s Tomb. We will then enjoy a walking tour through the Jewish Quarter to visit the Wailing Wall, which is considered the holiest Jewish site. Next, we will drive through the New City Jerusalem and into Ein Kerem where we will visit St. John’s Church (Luke 1: 1-25). We will then drive to Yad Vashem to visit the Memorial for victims of the Holocaust. Finally, we will proceed to Bethlehem to visit the Church of the Nativity (Luke 2: 1-7) and Shepherd’s Field (Luke 2: 8-20). We will then return to the hotel to settle in for the night.

Day 7: Masada / Dead Sea
After eating breakfast, we will drive to Masada. We will head to the top of the fortress by cable car to visit Herod’s Palace and the baths and pools. We will then descend via cable car and head to the Dead Sea, where you will have the opportunity to enjoy taking a swim in the salty water of the Dead Sea. After a relaxing swim the Dead Sea, we will stop in Qumran (where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found) on the way back to Jerusalem. We will then settle in at the hotel for the night where you can get ready for your flight home tomorrow.

Day 8: Departure flight from Ben Gurion International Airport

After a delicious breakfast, you will be transported to Ben Gurion International Airport to begin the journey home. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to guide you on this magnificent 10 day Catholic Pilgrimage. We look forward to serving you again the next time you visit the Holy Land!