DAY 1: NORTH AMERICA / EUROPE. Depart North America aboard our trans-Atlantic jet bound for Europe. Dinner and breakfast will be served in-flight. DAY 2: EUROPE / TEL AVIV. Upon arrival in Tel Aviv we will be met and transferred to our hotel for dinner and overnight.  DAY 3: TEL AVIV / HAIFA / GALILEE. Enjoy city sightseeing before we drive along the coastal plain of Caesarea, the provincial capital of the Roman Procurators. Visit the ruins of the fortifications, harbor, moat and amphitheatre. Continue to Haifa for a view of the bay and lunch. Proceed to Mt. Carmel, Bahai Temple and Gardens. On to visit Nazareth. We will see the Church of the Annunciation, carpentry shop and Mary's Well. Continue to Tiberias for dinner and overnight by the Sea of Galilee.
 DAY 4: GALILEE / CAPERNAUM / JERUSALEM. Morning devotional service on the Sea of Galilee. We then board our motor launch for a cruise across the Sea of Galilee to visit the ruins of Capernaum, the ruins of the House of Peter and the synagogue. View the Mt. of Beatitudes - site of the Sermon on the Mount. Visit Tabgha (the chapel dedicated to the multiplication of the loaves and fishes). After lunch we depart via Mt. Tabor, the traditional site of the Transfiguration, to Ein Dor past Nain to Megiddo. Here we visit Solomon's Stables, the famous tower and secret passages. Continue to Dothan, Samaria and then on to Jerusalem to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
 DAY 5: JERUSALEM. Drive to the top of the Mount of Olives for a panoramic view of Jerusalem. Visit the chapel of the Ascension, the church of Pater Noster and Dominus Flevit. Walk along Hosanna Road to the Garden of Gethsemane. Visit the Church of the Nations which stands on the Rock of the Agony. See the Pillar of Absalom, the Eastern (Golden) Gate and the Pinnacle of the Temple. Continue to the Gibon Spring, Pool of Siloam and Hezekiah's Tunnel. After lunch, drive to Mt. Zion. Visit the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu - on the site of Caiphas House - the Upper Room, the Tomb of King David and the Dormition. Continue to tour the new part of Jerusalem, the Hebrew University, the Shrine of the Book that houses the Dead Sea Scrolls, Ein Karem - birthplace of John the Baptist - Kennedy Memorial and the Model City at the Holy Land Hotel. Return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
 DAY 6: MASADA / QUMRAN / JERICHO / JERUSALEM. This morning we drive via the Judean Desert to the Dead Sea - the lowest point on earth. A beautiful new road takes us south along the shores of the Dead Sea to Masada, truly a remarkable piece of history. On the way we view Ein Fescha, a green oasis in the middle of the desert. Then ascend to Masada by cable car to visit the magnificent ruins of the fortress where from 70-73 A.D. the Jewish defenders made the last stand of the Judean revolt against Rome and where the remains of store houses, cisterns and a 6th century Byzantine church are still on view. After lunch at Ein Gedi we return along the Dead Sea to Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. Visit the remains of the community center of the Essenes and the Caves of the Scrolls. Then we proceed to Ancient Jericho where the walls came tumbling down and a commanding view of the Mt. of Temptation and Elisha's Fountain. Continue to Bethany, the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus. Dinner and overnight at our hotel in Jerusalem.
 DAY 7: JERUSALEM / BETHLEHEM. View the Kidron Valley and the Mount of Olives from the Eastern Gate as you start a walking tour to the Old City of Jerusalem entering through St. Stephen's Gate to the Pool of Bethesda and Saint Anne's Church, the Ecce Homo Arch (Behold the Man), the Lithostrotos and the Via Dolorosa. Continue to the Temple Area of Mt. Moriah. Visit the Dome of the Rock, El Aksa Mosque and the Wailing Wall. Walk through the Old City bazaars to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. View the Tower of David and the Citadel as you leave the Old City through Jaffa Gate. After lunch visit the Garden Tomb and Golgotha -Place of the Skull. Onward to Bethlehem to visit the Church of the Nativity and the birth place of Jesus, observing Rachel's Tomb, the Shepherd's Field and the Field of Boaz.
DAY 8: JERUSALEM / TEL AVIV / ZURICH / LAKE LUCERNE. This morning will return to Tel Aviv where we will transfer to the airport for our flight to Zurich, Switzerland. Upon arrival at the Zurich airport we will transfer to our motor coach for a short orientation tour of the city. Switzerland's largest city and one of the world's most important financial centers. We will see Zwingli's Great Church and the fine lakeshore district before continuing to Lake Lucerne and our lakeside resort in an indescribably beautiful mountain setting.  DAY 9: LAKE LUCERNE. Enjoy an excursion to the most impressive countryside of Switzerland. Drive along the shores of the Lake of Sarnen, then continue our ascent through the woods to the Brunig Pass, where we make a short stop to enjoy the view over the lovely valley of Meiringen. Brienz, center of Swiss woodcarving, is next. Then to Interlaken, the world famous summer and winter resort. Soon you arrive at the glacier-waterfalls of the Jungfrau region. Seven glacier-waterfalls inside the mountain made accessible by tunnel lift and illuminated. The Trummelbach alone drains the might defiles of Eiger (3970m), Monk (4099m) and Jungfrau (4158m) and carries twenty 200 tons of boulder detritus per year. The only glacier-waterfalls in Europe inside the mountain and still accessible. Beyond Lauterbrunnen you see the Staubbach Fall, scattered in spray by the mountain breeze long before it reaches the ground. Then proceed by a very charming road to Grindelwald, the well known winter and summer holiday resort, especially famous for the beautiful chalets. The wonderful panorama of the giants of the Alps can be best seen from here. You have a glorious view of the Jungfrau, Eiger and Monk. Later on return to Lucerne.
 DAY 10: LAKE LUCERNE. We make our way to the charming lakeside village of Vitznau, situated below Mt. Rigi, and from here we take the little mountain railway which climbs to the summit at 5,900 feet. It is a most picturesque spot with beautiful views over Lake Lucerne and the surrounding mountains. After spending some time at the summit, we take the cable car down to Weggis, where we board our boat for the cruise across Lake Lucerne to Lucerne town. The afternoon is at leisure to shop, wander around the handsome boulevards, see the elegant shops side by side with quaint medieval streets, old wooden bridges and flower-decked lakeside promenades. We then rejoin our boat and return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
DAY 11: LAKE LUCERNE / ZURICH / NORTH AMERICA. This morning we transfer to Zurich Airport for our return flight home to North America. We bring photographs, gifts and unforgettable impression of an in-depth inspirational tour enhanced by our rich fellowship together. |
