Day 1: Arrival to Amman

On arrival to Amman, After immigration and customs formalities, meet your guide and transfer to your hotel for dinner and accommodation. (D)

 

Day 2: AMMAN - PETRA

We start our day with an excursion to the lost city of Petra, “The Red Rose City”, a city dating back to 300 B.C., which was literally cut into the cliff sides. Take a horse back, or carriage ride through the 2km. Siq, the only access to this city carved out of rose colored rock. Tour the various temples, the Amphitheater, the Monastery, the Streets of Columns, and the Treasury. Return to Amman in the afternoon. (B,D)

Evening: Dinner and overnight at your hotel in Petra

 

Day 3: PETRA - MT. NEBO - MADABA - NAZARETH

Check out of your hotel after breakfast. On the way to Sheikh Husain Bridge we will stop in Madaba (the city of mosaic), to the Mount Nebo where Moses saw the promised Land before dying. Cross the border of Jordan into Israel via the Sheikh Hussein Bridge. Head for Nazareth, the place where Jesus spent His childhood. Check-in at your hotel in Nazareth for dinner and accommodation (B,D)

Evening: Dinner and overnight at your hotel in Nazareth

  

Day 4: Mt Tabor – Cana – Nazareth (B/D)

Today: Drive to Mount Tabor (The site of the Transfiguration) and then to Cana of Galilee to visit the wedding Church (Mass) where Jesus performed the first of his signs, changing water to wine. Continue drive to Nazareth and visit the Basilica of the Annunciation starting with the Grotto of the Annunciation and the Church then we will visit the house of the Holy Family underneath the Church of St. Joseph.

Evening: Dinner and overnight at your hotel in Nazareth

 

Day 5: Tiberias- Beatitudes - Tabgha - Capernaum- Sea of Galilee (B/D)

Today: This morning we drive to the Sea of Galilee. Visit the Mt. of Beatitudes where Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount, continue to Tabgha to see the splendid mosaic of the loaves and fishes with which he feed the Five Thousand. Visit the Church of St. Peter’s Primacy and then go to visit Capernaum to see the house of St. Peter and the Synagogue where Jesus preached. 

One of today's highlights is a Boat ride across the Sea of Galilee.  

Evening: Dinner and overnight at your hotel in Nazareth

 

Day 6: Jericho – Qumran – Dead Sea (B/D)

Today: After breakfast, you will drive along the Jordan Valley. Visit the Jordan River to renew our baptism vows. Drive down the Jordan Valley and we stop at the oasis town of Jericho, visit the excavations of the oldest city in the world and view Mt. Temptation where Jesus fasted and was tempted by Satan. We will visit the excavations of Qumran where the Dead Sea Scrolls were uncovered. On the way, back there is time for a swim (or rather a float!) in the mineral rich waters of the Dead Sea, renowned for its healing properties.

Evening: Dinner and overnight in Bethlehem or Jerusalem.

 

Day 7: Ain Karem / Bethlehem (B/D)

Breakfast at the hotel. Drive to Ein Karem to visit St. John the Baptist Church and Church of Visitation (Magnificat) where the Blessed Virgin Mary visited Elizabeth. Afterwards, drive back to Bethlehem to visit the Shepherds Field, the site where the star appeared to the shepherds which lead them to the manger where baby Jesus was born. Proceed to Milk Grotto. Visit also the Basilica and Grotto of the Nativityand the Church of Nativity, the traditional birthplace of Jesus, and the Manger Square.

 

Day 8: Jerusalem - The Passion of Jesus' last hours (B/D)

Today:  We enter the Old city Jerusalem to visit the Dome of the Rock, El-Aqsa Mosque, the Western Wall and the Jewish quarter and the Cardo, St. Anna Church for the visit of the Pool of Bethesda. We continue to the Judgment Hall known as the Antonia Fortress where he was led to be condemned to death by Pontius Pilate. At that place we start walking the Via Dolorosa through the markets of the Old City praying the Stations of the Cross, we reflect on the greatness of His sacrifice, stopping at each of the fourteen stations of the cross until we reach the church of Holy Sepulcher. Visit Calvary and the empty Tomb of our Lord and the different sections of the church. 

Evening: Dinner and overnight in Bethlehem or Jerusalem.

 

Day 9: Jerusalem Mt. Of Olives (B/D)

Today: After breakfast, we drive to the top of Mt. Olives for a panoramic view of Jerusalem for a better understanding of its geography and some of the key sites surrounding the area. Visit the Church of Pater Nostre where Jesus taught his disciples how to pray, and then we walk on the Palm Sunday road to the church of Dominus Flevit, where our Lord wept over the city. Continue our walk on the Palm Sunday road to the Garden of Gethsemane. At Gethsemane is the Rock of Agony where Jesus uttered his last prayer. Spend some time in reflection and meditation inside the church.

Evening: Dinner and overnight in Bethlehem or Jerusalem.

 

Day 10: Jerusalem – Taba -  (B/D)

Breakfast at hotel and check-out. drive to Israel/Egypt border, Cross Eilat border for crossing into Egypt. Will be met and assisted for drive to departure to St. Catherine, transfer to hotel & overnight.

 

Day 11: St. Catherine – Cairo (B/D)

Those interested to climb Mt. Sinai will wake up at 2AM and walk up to the top of Mt. Moses with Bedouin guide. Watch the sunrise from top of the mountain, where Moses received Ten Commandments. Back to hotel for breakfast

Breakfast at hotel, visit the monastery of St. Catherine, Departure to Cairo, and transfer to hotel Dinner & overnight

 

Day 12: Great Pyramids – Sphinx (B/D)

After breakfast we travel to the Giza Plateau to visit the Great Pyramids and the Sphinx an

archaeological site on the Giza Plateau, on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt. This complex of ancient monuments includes the three pyramid complexes known as the Great Pyramids, the massive sculpture known as the Great Sphinx, several cemeteries, a workers' village and an industrial complex. These are some of the structures that the people of Israel built as slaves in Egypt.

Then we will visit the famous Egyptian Museum contains the world's most extensive collection of pharaonic antiquities; no visit to Egypt is complete without a trip through its galleries where the treasures of King Tut Ein Khamon are exhibited. Visit Coptic Church a part of Old Cairo which encompasses the Babylon Fortress, , the Hanging Church, the Greek Church of St. George and many other Coptic churches and historical sites. It is believed that the Holy Family visited this area and stayed at the site of Saints Sergius and Bacchus Church (Abu Serga). Coptic Cairo was a stronghold for Christianity in Egypt until the Islamic era, though most of the current buildings of the churches in Coptic Cairo were built after the Muslim conquest of Egypt

OR

Visit, the monastery of St. Simon el Mokkattam. Simon the Tanner (fl.10th century), also known as Saint Simon the Shoemaker is the Coptic Orthodox saint associated with the story of the moving the Mokattam Mountain in Cairo, Egypt, during the rule of the Muslim Fatimid Caliph al-Muizz Lideenillah (953-975) while Abraham the Syrian was the Pope

of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria

Dinner and overnight in our hotel.

 

Day 13: Over day Alexandria (B/D)

Breakfast at the hotel, Pickup, depart for Alexandria.

Today it is the great and beautiful city; Alexandria has been for centuries the cultural capital city of the ancient world: enough to think of its two famous buildings, the Library and the Lighthouse. The city counts today over three million inhabitants and it is stretched along its bay for over 20 km. Visit to the catacombs of Kom esh Shuqafa, (meaning "Mound of Shards") is a historical archaeological site located in Alexandria, Egypt and is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the middle Ages. The necropolis consists of a series of Alexandrian tombs, statues and archaeological objects of the Pharaonic funeral cult with Hellenistic and early Imperial Roman influences.

Visit the library of Alexandria, masterpiece of the modern architecture. The Library of Alexandria was reborn in October 2002 to reclaim the mantle of its ancient namesake. It is not just an extraordinarily beautiful building; it is also a vast complex where the arts, history, philosophy, and science come together. Moreover, the myriad activities it offers have made it a place for open discussion, dialogue, and understanding. At the end of the visits depart for Cairo.

Arriving Cairo transfer to the hotel and overnight.

 

Day 14: Return Home (B)

After Breakfast transfer to airport for departure flight