11 DAYS ITINERARY

DAY 1 - Departure from USA,

Departure will be from Minneapolis - St. Paul International airport (MSP) Flight is overnight to Israel, Tel Aviv.

DAY 2 - Arrival to Israel, Tel Aviv,

Upon arrival at "Ben Gurion" Tel Aviv airport, group will meet with the guide and proceed to the hotel, for Mass, dinner, free time and first overnight in the Holy land.

- EXACT ITINERARY FOR DAY 2 WILL DEPEND ON THE FLIGHT SCHEDULE AND ARRIVAL IN ISRAEL

DAY 3 - Caesarea - Haifa - Cana - Nazareth/Tiberias

After a good night's rest you will leave the hotel in Tel Aviv and drive north along the Mediterranean Sea on the way to the Crusader port city of Caesarea and the Roman Capital of Israel. Here, we will see the archaeological ruins of the Roman amphitheatre from the days of King Herod. Our next stop is in Haifa, and on to Mount Carmel. We will visit Carmelite Monastery, Chapel of the Holy Family and Elijah’s cave where we celebrate the Holy Mass. After lunch we drive to Cana , the site of Jesus' first miracle. In this beautiful little town we will have the Renewal of the Marriage Vows and blessing of families. Overnight and dinner is in our hotel, city Tiberias or Nazareth.

DAY 4 - Nazareth - Mt. Tabor

We will leave our hotel and drive to Nazareth, the boyhood home of Jesus and the place where He spent the first 30 years of His life. We will pray in the church of St. Joseph and celebrate Mass in the Church of the Annunciation where the Angel Gabriel announced to Mary that She would be the Mother of God. A short walk through old Nazareth brings us to see the Well where Mary went for water. After lunch we will drive to Mt Tabor. We will take a short taxi drive up to the mountain to visit the Church of Transfiguration. Return to our Hotel in Tiberias/Nazareth for dinner and over night..

DAY 5 - Capernaum - Mt. of Beatitudes - Tabgha - River Jordn - Sea of Galilee

Today we will literally follow the "Footsteps of Jesus". We will visit Capernaum where Jesus spent most of His preaching; new church built at the site of the Home of St. Peter, ruins of the synagogue that had being built in the time of Jesus. Through story of our guide we will get to know more of the Life of Jesus in Capernaum. Than we drive to Mt. Of Beatitudes where the Lord Jesus preached Sermon on the Mountain celebrate the mass here and continue to Tabgha the site of the Multiplication of the loaves and fishes and the church of St. Peter's Primacy. We will enjoy a boat ride from Capernaum to Tiberias. For our last stop of the day, we will visit River Jordan's Yardenit Garden for a renewal our baptismal vows, remembering how John the Baptist baptized Jesus. (Bring a swimsuit.)
Finally, we return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

DAY 6 - Tiberias - Jericho - Jerusalem

After breakfast, we depart Tiberias for Jerusalem. We drive south through the Jordan Valley to Jericho, the oldest known continuously inhabited city in the world. After a stop to tell the story of Zacchaeus and lunch, we drive through Judean Desert, passing by the Mt. of Temptation. We arrive in Jerusalem in the afternoon for Mass and then visit the Upper Room where the Last Supper took place, and the church of Dormition where the Blessed Virgin Mary fell into Eternal Sleep. Our long travel day ends in Jerusalem for dinner and overnight..

DAY 7 - Jerusalem - Bethlehem

After breakfast we start our day with a view of the Holy City from atop the Mount of Olives. We then walk down the Palm Sunday Road, the road Jesus followed on His way to Jerusalem. We stop at the chapel of Dominus Flevit where our Lord wept and shed a tear for the city of Jerusalem (Luke 19: 37- 42). We than proceed to the Garden of Gethsemane and pray at the church of All Nations (Church of Gethsemane), where Jesus prayed: "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me, nevertheless, not my will but your will be done". In the Afternoon we drive south of Jerusalem to Bethlehem (house of bread in Hebrew), to see the church of Nativity built over the tomb of St. Jerome. In the Grotto under the central altar one can see the Holy Manger, and the Silver Star with the Latin inscription "Hic de Maria Virgine Jesus Christus Natus est". After the visit to a birthplace of Jesus we will celebrate Mass at the Shepherd’s Field where Angels appeared to the shepherds (Luke 2), to announce the Birth of Jesus. Here there is a beautiful view on Mt. Herodian and Judean Hills.

DAY 8 - Jerusalem

As Jerusalem is our destiny, today early in the morning you will enter the Old City and follow the Stations of the Cross the Via Dolorosa, from Pilate’s fortress to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, site of Crucifixion and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, wherw we will have Mass. After lunch we will visit the Temple Mount with the Western Wall of Solomon's Temple, the Al Aqsa Mosque, and the Dome of the Rock. We will pray the pool of Bethesda where Jesus Christ healed a man who was crippled for 38 years. The Church of St Anne one of the rare churches that was spared from destruction of Moslems because was built over the crypt venerated as a birthplace of Mary and a home of her parents Joachim and Anne. Dinner will be at the hotel.

DAY 9 - Dead Sea - Qumran - Masada

In the morning we drive towards Ein Karem. We will visit the Church of Visitation the site of the Blessed Virgin Mary's visit with her cousin Elizabeth. This is the place where Our Lady said Her "Magnificat". Mass will be at the birthplace of St. John the Bapist. After Mass we take an excursion to the area of the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth, 1300 feet below sea level. Our first stop is at Qumran, the place where Dead Sea Scrolls were found, more than 900 pieces in 30 caves. In the wilderness of Judea stands the rock fortress of Massada, built in the second century BC and also in the year 40 BC by Herod the Great. There we learn an amazing story of the fortress and people died here during the occupation by Romans. Our last stop is for a dip in the Dead Sea. (Bring a swimsuit.) The high percent of solids will make our swimming in the Dead Sea very “interesting”. Then it is back to Jerusalem for dinner and overnight at the hotel.

DAY 10 - Jerusalem

Our final day begins after a good night's rest with a visit to the church of St. Peter Gallicantu, the church built on the site of the house of high priest Caiaphas. This is where Jesus spent night in the dungeon after his arrest. On this site Peter denied Jesus three times and the cock crowed (Gallicantu). We will celebrate Mass here. After Mass you can spend the afternoon as you wish, either shopping in the Old City, visiting or resting at the hotel. Dinner at the hotel.

DAY 11 - Jerusalem - Tel Aviv, flight home

Group has transfer to Tel Aviv airport for flight back home to the US, arrival same day.

RATES - based on min 20 pilgrims in the group:

OCTOBER 19 - 29, 2010:

MINNEAPOLIS - $ 3595.00.....................CASH discount price $ 3495.00
LOS ANGELES - $3595 .00.....................CASH discount price $ 3495.00
NEW YORK/NEWARK - $ 3495.00........CASH discount price $ 3395.00

Single room supplement $ 450,00
Land only........................$1975,00

Includes:

• round trip airfares USA - TEL AVIV - USA
• airport tax- ** SUBJECT TO CHANGE**
• first class, 4* hotels in Tiberias, Jericho, Jerusalem
• buffet and breakfast and dinner daily
• Catholic guide in Israel
• porterage in/out of one piece of luggage per person
• entrance fees according to the itinerary
• high class A/C tourist bus
• daily holy mass celebrated by priest in the group

Not included:

• tips for driver and guides ( 10 $ per day) beverages at meals
• travel insurance, available upon request
• all other items of personal nature
  
  

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