Holy Land Tours
Experience The Holy Land with a Believer, not just a Guide
If you share in a Holy Land tour, we guarantee the experience will change your life. Every time you open your Bible for the rest of your life you will have a picture in your mind of the setting because you will have seen it with your own eyes. It has been said that “your Bible will go from black and white to colour”.
You will find that some things in the Holy Land look like you always imagined them to look, and you cannot gain that knowledge unless you travel there. Naturally all our Holy Land tours allow you to walk where Jesus walked, to see where He died for our sins and to see where He rose from the dead. You will never be the same again!
DAY 01: TEL AVIV / JOPPA / NETANYA
Our tour starts in Tel Aviv, where we board a chartered motor coach for a transfer to Netanya via Joppa for a panoramic orientation of the land and visit the Church of St. Peter.
DAY 02: NETANYA /CAESAREA / NAZARETH
This morning we will follow in the footsteps of Paul and make our way up the Plain of Sharon to Caesarea. We will visit the aqueduct, the ancient Herodian harbour, the remains of the seaside palace of Pontius Pilate and the theatre, then we continue to the altar of Elijah at the Muhraka atop Mount Carmel.
We then cross the Valley of Jezreel to Nazareth. Visit Nazareth Village, a reconstructed first-century village that tells the story of the hometown of Jesus. Continue to Church of Mary’s Well and end the day with a panoramic view of the area of Jesus’ lakeside ministry from the cliff of Mount Arbel.
DAY 03: SEA OF GALILEE / CAPERNAUM
Begin the day boarding a wooden boat for Ginnosar - sailing in the footsteps of Jesus! Visit an original fishing boat of Jesus’ day recently discovered. Drive to the Mount of Beatitudes and continue to Tabgha to visit the Church of Loaves and Fishes as well as the Church of Mensa Christi where, after the resurrection, Jesus appeared to his disciples on the lake shore. Continue to Capernaum to see the house of Peter and synagogue where Jesus preached and cast out demons
DAY 04: DAN / CAESAREA PHILIPPI
Travel north to the Upper Jordan Valley to Dan. Continue to the foothills of Mount Hermon Caesarea Philippi where Peter acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah. Climb to the cave and remains of the pagan temples of Roman times. Continue to Golan Heights and stop at a former Israeli military outpost to hear about the Yom Kippur War. Descend towards the eastern shores of the Sea of Galilee to the remains of the Church of Gerges.
End our day with baptism or the renewal of baptismal vows at the Jordan River (pictured).
DAY 05: BETH SHEAN / JERICHO / DEAD SEA
Leave the Sea of Galilee to go to Beth Shean, a magnificent Roman town with colonnaded streets and bath houses. Pass Mouth Gilboa to Jericho, the world’s oldest city, to climb the Tel to view the ancient towers and the Mount of Temptation marking Jesus’ temptation by Satan in the wilderness.
Continue to the impressive desert fortress of Masada (pictured). Ascend by cable car to view the palaces of Herod and the site of the Zealots’ last stand against the Romans and end our day at the Dead Sea.
DAY 06: JERUSALEM
Travel up the Dead Sea coast to visit Qumran where the Dead Sea Scrolls were written and hidden up until 1947. Traverse the Judean Desert to ascend the Mount of Olives for a breath-taking view of the Old City. Descend the traditional Palm Sunday Road to the Church of Dominus Flevit. Continue to the Garden of Gethsemane for reflection and prayer. Drive to Mount Zion to visit the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu. Conclude our day at the Upper Room, traditional site of the Last Supper. This evening we will walk through underground tunnels to see the remnants of the Temple Mount of Jesus’ day.
DAY 07: JERUSALEM / BETHLEHEM
We begin at the Western (Wailing) Wall, remnant of the Temple in which Jesus preached and the sacred place of prayer for Jews all over the world. Continue to Temple Mount to view the Dome of the Rock (pictured). We will stop to worship at the Rabbi’s Steps on the Ophel Ridge.
Travel to the Shepherds’ Fields to rejoice over the glad tidings of the birth of Jesus. Return to Bethlehem to visit the 5th-century Church of the Nativity. Possible worship service in the Chapel of the Massacre of the Innocents. Finally, we stop to shop for famous olive wood and mother-of-pearl crafts that have been produced by the Christians of Bethlehem for centuries
DAY 08: JERUSALEM
Crossing the New City of West Jerusalem, we view a 1:50 scale model of the City of Jerusalem of Jesus’ Day and the Shrine of the Book where the Dead Sea Scrolls are displayed. Continue to the Herzl Museum. Visit Yad Vashem, the Museum and Memorial of the Holocaust. We will conclude our day at the pastoral village of En Karem, traditional birthplace of John the Baptist. .
DAY 9: VOLUNTOURISM DAY
This day will be devoted to global voluntourism in Bethlehem or Jerusalem. We will spend time ministering to orphanages and hospitals, picking fruit, helping students practise their English, or painting and cleaning churches, schools or community centres.
DAY 10: JERUSALEM
This morning, we visit the Pools of Bethesda and sing in the adjoining Crusader Church of St. Anne. Proceed up the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. We conclude our voyage with a communion celebration at Golgotha and the Garden Tomb.
Afternoon at leisure for additional sightseeing, shopping, or reflection.
DAY 11: DEPART FOR HOME
Morning at leisure to explore the Old City. Visit Emmaus for a possible worship service attendance at the site of the post-resurrection revelation of Jesus to his disciples
Transfer to the airport for the late night or early morning return flight home
We have two Holy Land tours available for you in 2021 with both dates depending on the current international travel restrictions of the Covid-19 virus.
(Dates to be advised)
One 12-day Holy Land tour will be ably led by Senior Baptist Pastor, Windsor Park Church, Grant Harris;
whilst another 12-day Holy Land tour will be ably led by Senior Baptist Pastor, Orewa Baptist Church, Mark Poole.
Please contact us to be included for any future updates on these two tours and to register your interest.
