Day 1 – Jaffa and Tel Aviv
Day 2 – Northward by the Coastline
Day 3 – Upper Galilee
Day 4 – The Golan Heights
Day 5 – Along the Jordan River to the Dead Sea
Day 6 – Ein Gedi Oasis and Masada
Day 7 – Jerusalem, holy city for 3 religions
Day 8 – Old and new in Jerusalem
Day 1 – Jaffa and Tel Aviv
Drive shortly to Jaffa and stroll through the alleys of the old city, the galleries and the old port
Drive shortly to Neve Zedek, the first Jewish settlement out of Jaffa the beginning of Tel Aviv
Walk through the colorful Carmel market (Shook)
Continue walking towards Rothschild Avenue and explore the "White City" Architecture
Drive back to your hotel in Tel Aviv
Day 2 – Northward alongside the Mediterranean Coastline
Check out from Tel Aviv and drive to Caesarea – visit the impressive ruins of one of the largest Roman ports in the ancient world
Drive to Haifa, up Mount Carmel to the panoramic lookout over Haifa and its bay, Galilee and the magnificent Baha'i Gardens
Drive to Acre (Akko) and walk through the streets and alleys of the Crusaders world (underground) and the Ottomans (Turks) and Arabic Old City (up ground)
Drive westward across Galilee to Tiberias.
Overnight in a Tiberias hotel.
Day 3 – Sea of Galilee and Golan Heights
Drive alongside the Sea of Galilee and make our first stop at Mount of the Beatitudes, a catholic church that commemorates the famous Sermon on the Mount (Mat. 5-6).
Downhill, we drive shortly to Tabgha and visit two churches there, one commemorates the Miracle of the Multiplication of the Fishes and Loaves and the other one is Peter's Primacy also known as Menza (table) Christi.
After lunch break (St. Peter fish and some Pita bread…) we visit Capernaum, the ruins of Kfar Nahum, home base for Jesus, by the lake, presenting the reconstructed remains of the largest ancient synagogue ever found in the Middle East and Peter's House.
Drive to Tel Dan – walk through the nature reserve and the ancient remains of the important biblical town called Dan (Laish)
Drive to a hotel in Tiberias or nearby for overnight
For a more Jewish oriented tour:
Day 3 – Upper Galilee and Hula Valley
Drive to Tzfat (Safed) and walk through the alleys of the Jewish "Shtetle" and the Kabala hometown
Drive northward to Metulla, the northern town in Israel, located on the border with Lebanon, overlooking to Hezbollah land
Drive to Tel Dan – walk through the nature reserve and the ancient remains of the important biblical town called Dan (Laish)
Drive to Hula Valley’s reservoir, rent a golf cart and drive around the remains of the famous swamp, an amazing landing place for half a billion(!) birds, migrating 2 times a year (autumn & spring), from and to Russia and Africa.
Overnight in Tiberias or nearby
Day 4 – The Golan Heights
Drive northward through Hula valley to Banias – an easy hike through the nature reserve with one of Israel's main sources of water and the impressive ruins of Caesarea Phillipos
Drive up to Golan Heights under the slopes of Mount Hermon
Drive shortly to Mount Bental (a non-active volcano) lookout over "The Valley of Tears" and Syria
Drive to Katzrin and visit the famous Golan winery (optional)
Drive to further southward to the Peace Vista near Kibbutz Kfar-Kharuv, a breathtaking viewpoint over the lake and Galilee
Drive down the slopes of the Golan Heights on a winding breathtaking road to "The 3 Countries' (Israel, Syria and Jordan) meeting point" and then further down to the Jordan Valley
Day 5 – Along the Jordan river to the Dead sea
Drive southward along the Jordan River's bank (border with Jordan) to Belvoir (KoKhav Hayarden), a well-preserved Crusader’s fort with a breathtaking view over the Jordan Valley
Continue to Beth She'an and visit the impressive Greco-Roman ruins of the Land of Israel's eastern gate
Continue driving through the Jordan valley, bypassing Jericho towards the Dead Sea
Time permitting, we visit Kumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found
Drive further down south to Kibbutz Ein Gedi's guesthouse located in an amazing desert environment and landscape
Day 6 – Ein Gedi Oasis and Masada
A short hike through the famous Ein-Gedi Oasis, dipping in the waterfall pools, hopefully meet some protected wildlife
Drive shortly to Masada – mount up with a cable car to the top and visit the famous cliff\fortress
Enjoy the rest of the afternoon at the Ein Gedi's hot springs for the famous Dead Sea experience (mud, float)
Drive to Jerusalem for overnight
Day 7 – Jerusalem, a holy city for 3 religions
Start with Mount Scopus lookout over the Judean desert
Continue to Mount of Olives for a panoramic viewpoint over Jerusalem
Drive to the Israeli side of Jerusalem and visit the Museum of Israel (mainly the Shrine of the Book and theminiature model ofancient Jerusalem) or visit Yad Vashem, the Holocaust museum
Drive to the Old City and walk into it through Jaffa Gate to the Christian Quarter
Visit the church of the Holy Sepulcher, walk through the local marketplace (Bazar, Shook) and some Stations of the Cross (Via Dolorosa), to the Jewish Quarter, back to Jaffa Gate to end our day
Overnight in Jerusalem
Day 8 – Heritage in Jerusalem
Start at Yad-Vashem, the Holocaust Museum
Drive to Zion Gate at the Old City and walk to the City of David, for an unbelievable journey to "Where it all begun…". A 2-3 hours of exploring the archaeological recent excavations, already opened for the public. Tunnels, cisterns walls, etc.
We end up our excursion of the City of David, coming out from the drainage tunnel under Robinson’s Arch by the Western Wall
We walk around the archaeological park there and then, walk further to the religious part of the Western (Wailing) Wall
For a more Jewish oriented tour:
Day 3 – Upper Galilee and Hula Valley
Drive to Tzfat (Safed) and walk through the alleys of the Jewish "Shtetle" and the Kabala hometown
Drive northward to Metulla, the northern town in Israel, located on the border with Lebanon, overlooking to Hezbollah land
Drive to Tel Dan – walk through the nature reserve and the ancient remains of the important biblical town called Dan (Laish)
Drive to Hula Valley’s reservoir, rent a golf cart and drive around the remains of the famous swamp, an amazing landing place for half a billion(!) birds, migrating 2 times a year (autumn & spring), from and to Russia and Africa.
Overnight in Tiberias or nearby
