Tower of David, Jerusalem, Israel

Join-A-Group tours promise guaranteed departure dates with minimum of 2 persons.

Highlights tour is a comprehensive 7-night trip which explores the Negev desert, Galilee regions, Jerusalem, the Dead Sea. It is possible to add extra nights at the start or end of the tour in either Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. Also possible to extend the tour with a visit to Jordan and/or Egypt. The tour starts on a Sunday all year round except for the period October 2-8, 2014.

Accommodations: Tourist Class, First Class, Superior, and Deluxe hotels are available according to your choice.

Sunday arrival

Old Jaffa, Israel

Day 1: Sunday – Tel Aviv.  Upon arrival at Ben Gurion airport, you will be met by our representative. Overnight: Tel Aviv.

Day 2: Monday – Tel Aviv / Negev /  Dead Sea
After breakfast, your guide will meet you at the hotel. Drive south to the Negev for a short visit to Beersheva, capital of the Negev. Continue via Arad to the ancient mountain fortress of Masada, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Ascend by cable car to the fortress – the last stronghold of the Jewish Zealots in their war against the Romans. Visit the excavations including King Herod’s palace, the synagogue, and bathhouse.  Enjoy the breathtaking view of the Roman camps and the Dead Sea.  Weather permitting, float in the dense salty, mineral-rich waters of the Dead Sea. Note: Bring a swimsuit and swim gear. Ascend to Jerusalem. Overnight: Jerusalem

Arab Suq, Jerusalem

Day 3: Tuesday – Jerusalem. After breakfast, drive to Mount Scopus for a spectacular panoramic view of Jerusalem. The holy city of Jerusalem, sacred to Christianity, Judaism and Islam,  occupies a unique place in the world.  Continue to the Mount of Olives where Jesus first gave the Lord’s Prayer, and continue to the Garden of Gethsemane where Judas betrayed Jesus.  Drive a short distance to the Israel Museum to view a detailed model of the Old City of Jerusalem from the time of the Second Temple and see the Dead Sea Scrolls in the Shrine of the Book. Continue to Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial. Continue to Ein Karem, the birthplace of John the Baptist, and a picturesque village in the south western outskirts of Jerusalem. Overnight: Jerusalem

Day 4: Wednesday: Old City of Jerusalem / Bethlehem
Enter the walls of the Old City to visit the Western (Wailing) Wall and the actual site of the Second Temple, the Temple Mount. Walk along the Way of the Cross, Via Dolorosa, to Calvary and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which houses both the traditional site of Crucifixion and the Tomb of the Resurrection.  Visit Mount Zion,  the traditional tomb of King David and the Room of the Last Supper.

Ship of the desert, Negev

Security permitting, drive to Bethlehem to visit the Church of the Nativity. Overnight: Jerusalem

Day 5: Thursday: Beit Shean / Tiberias / Galilee
Descend Jerusalem to drive north along the Jordan River Valley. Visit Jericho (security permitting), the oldest city in the world. Continue north to Beit Shean, an ancient Roman city destroyed by an earthquake and recently excavated.  Proceed to Tiberias, the ancient center of Jewish learning. Drive along the shores of the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum to visit the ruins of the ancient synagogue. Overnight: Kibbutz Hotel

Day 6: Friday: Upper Galilee / Golan Heights / Nazareth   
Drive to the Golan Heights. Visit the former Syrian fortifications, and the Druze villages via Banias, the source of the Jordan River. Proceed via the Hula Valley to Safed, ancient city of  mysticism (Kabbalah). Visit a centuries-old synagogue still in daily use, and the artists’ colony.  Proceed Nazareth to visit the Church of Annunciation. Overnight: Kibbutz Hotel

Wailing Wall, Jerusalem

Day 7: Saturday: Acre  / Haifa / Tel Aviv  
After breakfast, drive west to Acre (Akko) – a UNESCO World Heritage Site,  to visit of this ancient Crusader stronghold on the Mediterranean. Continue to Haifa, for a tour of the world-famous Bahai Gardens and Shrine. Continue to Mount Carmel for a panoramic view of the city and the bay. Proceed south along the coast to Caesarea to visit the Roman Theater and the Crusader fortress. End the day with  a short city tour of Tel Aviv-Jaffa. Overnight: Tel Aviv

Day 8: Sunday. Departure. Transfer to the airport for your flight.

Options: Extend your stay with additional days in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, or an add-on to Jordan and/or Egypt.

Included:

• 7 nights hotel accommodation on bed and breakfast basis
• Transfers from/to airport on arrival and departure
• Sightseeing in a modern air conditioned motor coach
• Service of a government licensed guide on all touring days
• Entrance to sites included in itinerary.

Not included:

• Porterage at airport
• Tips for guide, driver, hotel staff
• Beverages with meals
• Travel insurance

Notes:

• The tour is on a guaranteed departure basis – subject to a minimum of 2 participants.
• The sequence of the tour, hotels used, and sites visited may be amended due to circumstances.
• Reservations received less than 14 days prior to departure are on a request only basis.