Itinerary

Day 1, Thursday 16th October

Journeying to The Holy Land

Meet at London Heathrow for our evening flight to Tel Aviv. Your Lightline representative will be on hand to help you with check-in formalities. Dinner will be served in-flight.

Day 2, Wednesday 17th October

Caesarea & Mount Tabor

We arrive at dawn where we will be met by our guide and then driven north along the Mediterranean coastline to the Galilee, breaking for breakfast in Caesarea Maritima on route. It was here that Paul was imprisoned before his trial in Rome and where Peter baptised Cornelius the Roman Centurion. Our pilgrimage begins at Mount Tabor, traditionally associated with the Transfiguration. After visiting the glorious Basilica on the summit of the mount, and enjoying wonderful views of the Jezreel Valley and the Plains of Armageddon, we will drive down to the Sea of Galilee and our hotel on the shores of the lake. The rest of the day will be free to relax and time to acquaint ourselves with our new surroundings. In the evening we will gather together before dinner for a briefing. Dinner and overnight in Galilee.

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Day 3, Thursday 18th October

Annunciation

After breakfast we drive to Cana, the site of Jesus’ first sign, according to the Fourth Gospel. We then continue to Nazareth, the town in which the gospel story begins. In addition to visiting the Basilica of the Annunciation, Mary's well and the synagogue church. After a early break for lunch we drive up into the Golan Heights to visit Banias (Caesarea Philippi), a source of the Jordan River and the site where Peter made his great profession of faith in Jesus. We will return to our hotel in good time to freshen up for our evening meal. Dinner and overnight in Galilee.

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Day 4, Friday 19th October

Teaching and Feeding

Today we will focus on the principal sites of Jesus’ ministry around the home he made for himself by the Sea of Galilee. After commemorating the call of the first disciples in a Eucharist by the Sea itself, we will visit the excavated ruins of Capernaum, as well as sites associated with the Feeding of the 5000, the recommissioning of Peter, and the giving of the Sermon on the Mount. In addition we will have a chance to sail on the Sea itself in a modern replica of a First Century fishing boat. At the end of the day, we will visit the River Jordan, and have the opportunity to renew our baptism vows, as preparation for our journey south towards Jerusalem and all that lies ahead on our pilgrimage.

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Day 5, Saturday 20th October

An ancient pilgrimage route

This morning we bid farewell to the Galilee, and begin our journey south. We come first to the city of Nablus in which is found Jacob’s Well - a site which Jesus himself visited on a journey to Jerusalem. We will visit the village of Taybeh, the only entirely Christian village in Palestine, before heading up hill through the Judean wilderness towards Bethlehem. We are then confronted by the vast concrete wall surrounding Bethlehem. Passing through the checkpoint, we make our way to the church of the Nativity, the oldest church in Christendom. We then visit the Shepherd’s Fields before finally continuing to Jerusalem and our hotel. Dinner and overnight stay in Jerusalem.

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Day 6, Sunday 21st October

Tears and Prayers

This morning we leave after an early breakfast and drive to the summit of the Mount of Olives, where we will spend the morning recalling the Palm Sunday route, and visiting places associated with particular events in the gospels as we slowly make our way downhill. We start at Bethphage, the traditional starting point of the procession of palms, and in the course of our journey will visit the church of the Pater Noster, where we recall Jesus’ teaching of the Lord’s Prayer to his disciples, and the church of Dominus Flevit, where Jesus wept over the fate of the city. Finally, we reach the Garden brooding Church of All Nations, where we recall Jesus’ agonized prayers prior to his arrest, and reflect on the failure of his closest friends to keep awake and watch with him. After a break for lunch we spend the afternoon exploring the holy sites located on Mount Zion, where the earliest Christian community lived in the days following the resurrection. Here we will find a site commemorating both the Upper Room used for the Last Supper as well as the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, and a striking abbey in honour of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary. The principal focus of the morning, however, will be a visit to the church of St Peter in Gallicantu, built at the top of an ancient set of steps which leads up from the City of David to what is believed to have been the residence of the Jewish High Priest. Many believe that Jesus himself was led up these steps to his trial by the Jewish authorities after his arrest. Return to our hotel for dinner and overnight stay.

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Day 7, Monday 22nd October

Taking up the Cross

We will start our day (If permitted) by visiting the Temple Mount, where we can see close up (but not enter) the glorious Dome of the Rock and the Al Aqsa Mosque. This will lead us to the remarkable church of St Anne and the Pools of Bethesda, which we will visit, before coming to the start of the Via Dolorosa. Here we will celebrate the Eucharist, and then wind our way through the narrow alleys of the Old City, following the traditional Way of the Cross, culminating in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In the afternoon we will visit the Israel Museum to view a model of Jerusalem based around the time of Jesus. After a simple lunch in the Old City we proceed to the village of En Karem, the home of John the Baptist and finally we visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial museum and park. Before returning to our hotel for dinner and overnight stay.

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Day 8, Tuesday 23rd October

Jericho - The Dead Sea & Qumran

A day at leisure to explore the Old City and visit the Garden Tomb or we will have the option of joining a full day optional excursion - Leaving Jerusalem after an early breakfast we drive to the oasis city of Jericho. Here we can view the Mount of Temptation, the traditional Sycamore tree and a break for coffee, before we drive along the shores of the Dead Sea to visit Mountain top fortress of Masada. We ascend the summit by cable car to visit Herod’s Palace. It was here that the Jewish Partisans committed mass suicide during the Jewish revolt against. We then continue to Qumran, the site where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found and the view the recently excavated Essene Monastery, where the Scrolls may have originated. After an opportunity of floating in the uique mineral-laden waters of the Dead Sea we return to Jerusalem, Farewell dinner and overnight stay.

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Day 9, Wednesday 24th October

Emmaus & our Journey home

After breakfast, we will check out of our hotel, and start heading west, towards the airport. After seven miles, we will stop at the village of Abu Ghosh, one of the sites associated with the village of Emmaus in the gospels, to celebrate our final Eucharist together. After a stop for lunch, we will arrive at Ben Gurion airport, to board our flight back to London, and our journey to our own homes. And we hope that each one of us will continue to tell our friends all that has happened to us on the road...