The Octagon Tour to the Holy Land

Price Per person based on double occupancy

Date	Price	Single Supplement
April 16-25, 2024	$4,495*	$905
*Includes airfare from Houston. Reservation Due By: January 5, 2024 Final Payment Due By: February 16, 2024

Included

Roundtrip airfare from Houston including taxes and fees (air taxes and fuel surcharges are subject to change), 8 nights lodging at 4-star hotels, Breakfast & dinner daily at hotels, Full time English-speaking tour guide, Services of long-distance deluxe motor coach as appearing on itinerary, All entrances and transportation as appearing on itinerary, Porterage at hotels (1 piece), 1 group arrival transfer and 1 group departure transfer, Whisper/Listening devices – currently $20 per person, Tips to drivers, guides, and hotel staff, Pilgrim Payment Processing for check, Visa, MasterCard or Discover

Not Included

All lunches and drinks with meals except as noted in itinerary, Optional Travel Insurance – 6.75% or 9.0% of tour cost (TX rates current as of quote date)

Day 1: Depart the US (Tuesday, April 16)

On this day, you will board your plane for a flight to Tel Aviv.

Day 2: Arrive in Israel (Wednesday, April 17)

Upon landing in Israel, we travel to Jerusalem where we will overnight for the next four nights.

Day 3: City of David, Mount Zion, Jewish Quarter (Thursday, April 18)

We will start this day by visiting the location of the Upper Room, where Jesus had His last supper with His Apostles. We will even celebrate the Lord’s supper here. Then onto the home of Caiaphas, the high priest who turned Jesus over to Pontius Pilate. You will also walk through the dungeon where Jesus may have stayed overnight. We will look upon the Field of Blood, the land that was purchased with Judas’ 30 pieces of silver. Then it’s on to the Pool of Siloam, where Jesus healed a blind man, and to the site of the synagogue where the healed man was expelled by the Pharisees. You will see the Valley of Gehenna, the site that illustrated Jesus’ many teachings on hell. Then it’s onto the Ophel archaeological excavations south of the Temple Mount. Here you will walk on the very streets that Jesus traveled on. It is here that Peter probably preached his Pentecostal sermon, where 3000 were saved. One out of ten stories in Jesus ministry took place on the Temple Mount, and we will go onto the Temple Mount, the site of the Second Jerusalem Temple. (The Temple Mount is safe, because we are accompanied by an Arab guide, and we are friends with the guards at this site.) We will spend time praying at the Western Wall, which is very close to the palace where Jesus stood before Herod Antipas during His trial.

Day 4: The Passion (Friday, April 19)

This entire day is spent mostly retracing the footsteps of Jesus on the day that He died. We will start by going to the Pool of Bethesda, where Jesus healed a paralytic, and to the birthplace of Mary. We will then proceed down the traditional Via Dolorosa. Along the way we will see the Prison of Jesus and Barabbas, the Courtyard of Flagellation, and several of the stations of the cross. Then onto the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where we will give you a very complete tour. Inside this church you will see where the cross stood on Calvary. You will also go inside the tomb where Jesus was raised from the dead, and you will see the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. As a special treat, we will go down into the mysterious caverns beneath the church, just discovered in the 1970‘s, to the oldest known chapel in the world. All of this is in a fascinating market place, where will give you some time for dining and souvenir shopping.

Day 5: Mount of Olives (Saturday, April 20)

Today we will visit the site where Jesus ascended into Heaven. We will also visit the cave where it is believed that Jesus taught His disciples The Lord’s Prayer, and the Olivet Discourse (about the end times). We will also walk down the road that retraces Jesus’ Palm Sunday path to Jerusalem. The Garden of Gethsemane is our next stop, where you will see the traditional rock on which Jesus prayed to His father just prior to His capture. You will see the cave where He taught his disciples, and where He probably met Nicodemus. You will also walk down the Kidron Valley, where Jesus was lead away by the temple guards. Our day will end with a visit to the famous Garden Tomb, where some believe that Jesus was laid.

Day 6: Bethlehem, Qumran, Jericho (Sunday, April 21)

On this morning, we will visit Bethlehem, the birthplace of Christ. Here you will see the Church of the Nativity (the oldest church in the world), and you can actually touch the spot where Jesus was born. From there we will go to the Milk Grotto, where Jesus was raised until He escaped from Herod’s murderous guards. Our next stop will be the Shepherd’s field, where the angels appeared on the night that Jesus was born, and where the shepherds were buried. Heading east we will see Qumran, the place where John the Baptist probably lived out part of his adult life, and following that we will see the site where the Jews first crossed over the Jordan River. There is little doubt that John baptized Jesus here, and you can even be baptized in the same place. Proceeding north, we will walk a bit of the same Jericho road that Jesus traveled. This is where Christ met blind Bartimaus, and Zaccheus, the tree-climbing tax collector. It is also near the location of the story of “The Good Samaritan”. We will then proceed to Herod’s Jericho palace before going on to Jericho itself, where Joshua fought his famous battle. You can even see the walls of Jericho (the ones that didn’t fall down)! Lunch in Jericho is a delightful experience. We will then take a cable car up to the Mount of Temptation, where Jesus fasted for forty days before finally continuing to our hotel along the shores of Lake Galilee for the next three evenings.

Day 7: Galilee (Monday, April 22)

This day is filled with many adventures. We will start out visiting Kursi, where Jesus cast the demons into the swine. Afterward we will visit the Church of the Multiplication, where Jesus fed thousands. Then onto Capernaum, the town of Jesus, on the north shore of Galilee. (About one fifth of all stories in the Gospels took place in or around Capernaum.) We will also see the home where Jesus and Peter lived, and the synagogue where He preached. We will also visit the Church of Peter’s Primacy, where the resurrected Jesus told Peter, “Feed My sheep”. Then we will walk to the Mount of Beatitudes, where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount, and where He appointed His 12 Apostles. We will also visit Chorazim, one of the towns that Jesus cursed.

Day 8: Galilee (Tuesday, April 23)

First off we will board a worship boat (complete with a praise band) that will carry us across Lake Galilee to the Gennesaret Valley, where Jesus healed the sick. Here you will see a 2000-year-old boat, just like the one that Jesus and the Apostles sailed. We will also view Herod’s palace in Tiberias, where Salome may have danced for Herod’s party guests. We will also view Magdala, the hometown of Mary Magdalene. Then we will depart Galilee and head south through Samaria. On our way we will go to Jacob’s well, where Jesus met the woman at the well. We will have lunch in Sebastia, where John the Baptist was buried, and we will go into the Cave of the Ten Lepers. Our last stop will be to visit Bethany, and the Tomb of Lazarus. (You can actually go down into the tomb yourself!) Then onto our hotel for a fabulous buffet dinner.

Day 9: Nazareth (Wednesday, April 24)

Today we will travel to Nazareth, the boyhood home of Jesus. Here we will enter the Church of St. Gabriel, and Church of the Annunciation and you see the cave where Gabriel appeared to Mary. We will also visit the ancient ruins of Nazareth, Mary’s well, the site of Joseph’s workshop, and the synagogue where Jesus taught. Down the road a bit we will stop at Nain (Na-yeen), where Jesus resurrected the son of a widow. We will then continue to our last hotel on the Mediterranean coast prior to our flight home tomorrow.

Day 10: Return Home (Thursday, April 25)

On this day we transfer to the airport for our flight back to the US.

Itinerary subject to change while touring for the best interest of the group.