Catholic Holy Land Tours
This is our most popular Holy Land tour among Catholic pilgrims, however we would be delighted to craft a dedicated Holy Land tours to meet your desired, budget, travel expectations and much more.
Day 1: Airport - Tel Aviv
Welcome to Israel!
Arrival at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv.
Welcome by a representative of G&S Travel and transfer to Tel Aviv.
Start your Holy Land experience by sightseeing in Tel Aviv and Jaffa.
Visit Old Jaffa with its ancient port as well as the traditional house of Simon the Tanner where Peter had a vision.
Walk through the ancient streets of Jaffa, check out the small artists’ shops and studios and feel like you are walking in a unique Middle Eastern city.
take an afternoon walk in the city of Tel Aviv. Get to know the fascinating history of the city while walking in the picturesque streets of the Neve Tzedek neighborhood, the first Jewish neighborhood built outside the walls of Jaffa.
Finish your day by ‘joining’ the declaration of Israel in the Independence Hall in Rotschild Street and check out the unique Bauhaus architecture in the streets of Tel Aviv.
Overnight: Tel Aviv
Day 2: Tel Aviv - Caesarea - Haifa
Open your eyes to a lovely and relaxing view of the Mediterranean Sea.
Start the day by driving along the shoreline to Caesarea.
See the remains of the once magnificent port built by Herod the Great as well as the ancient theater and the hippodrome. See the site where Paul appeared before Festus and King Agrippa before he was sent to Rome, and simply enjoy the air and the view of the Mediterranean Sea.
Drive to Haifa, the capital city of the north of Israel.
Attend mass at the Stella Maris Monastery and the Church of St. Elias.
Drive along Panorama Road, visit the Bahai Gardens – World Center of the Bahai denomination.
Overnight: Haifa
Day 3: Acre - Cana - Nazareth
Drive to Acre, site of the Canaanite and Phoenician port. Visit the Fortress of Acre, the Great Mosque, the walls of the city of Acre, and the churches.
Drive to Nazareth. Visit the Church of Annunciation, St. Joseph’s Church, and Mary’s Well – the only source of water in ancient Nazareth.
Drive to Cana (Wedding Church) where Jesus performed the miracle of the Marriage in Cana.
Visit Mount Tabor, which many believe to be the site of the transfiguration of Christ. Visit the Church of Transfiguration.
In the afternoon, attend Mass on Mount Tabor.
Drive to Tiberias on the shores of the Sea of Galilee.
Overnight: Tiberias
Day 4: Sea of Galilee / Tiberias
Open the curtains in the hotel and reveal the sight of the magical shores of the Sea of Galilee.
Start the day on the Mount of Beatitudes to recall the Sermon on the Mount. Go down by foot (optional) to the shore, enjoy the view and recall some of Jesus’s most famous parables, which were probably inspired by these surrounding. Visit Tabgha, the site of the multiplication of bread and fish and see the outstanding Byzantine mosaic floor of the Church of Multiplications and the Mensa Christi Church.
Continue to Capernaum to see the town that Jesus chose as his home. Visit the recently excavated site of Magdala where a 1st century synagogue was discovered. If time allows, visit Kursi on the other side of the lake to see where Jesus healed the men possessed by demons.
Take a Boat Ride in the sunset, on a boat resembling that of ancient times.
Overnight: Tiberias
Day 5: Golan Heights-Jordan River
Drive to and visit the Baptism site “Yardenit” situated at the southern end of the Sea of Galilee. This site or to the south of this site is where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist, an important event in the life of Jesus.
Continue your day by driving to the Golan Heights.
Visit the Mount Bental lookout towards Syria, Lebanon, and the Golan Heights and hear the famous stories of the 1948 War of Independence. Climb to the highest point to get an amazing view of the whole area.
Overnight: Tiberias
Day 6: Beth Shean - Jericho
Start the morning by heading south. Drive to Beth Shean (Scythopolis) . Climb the mound, where the corpses of King Saul and his sons were hung by the Philistines after being slain on Mount Gilboa. Recall the tragic story and view the surroundings. Visit the excavations from the Roman Byzantine periods (the Roman Theater, streets, temples, and much more), and see one of the Decapolis.
If time allows, visit the ancient synagogue of Beit Alfa with its beautiful mosaics.
Continue south, through the Jordan Valley.
Drive to Jericho, visit the excavations of Tal-El-Sultan. View Mount Temptation. Pass by the famous sycamore tree that Zacchaeus climbed.
Overnight: The Dead Sea
Day 7: Qumran-Dead Sea-Masada
Drive to Qumran, visit the site of the Essene community, and view the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered.
Drive to the Masada Fortress: Ascend and descend by cable car, take a walking tour of the fortress and learn why the site became a symbol of Jewish heroism.
Continue to the shores of the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth! Experience floating on the Dead Sea and cover yourself with healthy mud!
Drive to Jerusalem.
Overnight: Jerusalem
Day 8: Bethlehem - Jerusalem
Drive to Bethlehem and visit the Church of Nativity and the Shepherds Fields.
Visit the Israel Museum to view the “Shrine of the Book” (exhibition of the Dead Sea Scrolls) and a model of Jerusalem from the time of Herod the Great.
Visit “Yad Vashem”, the Memorial museum for the victims of the Holocaust.
Overnight: Jerusalem
Day 9: Old City - Jerusalem
Drive to the Mount of Olives for a panoramic view of Jerusalem. Walk down the Mount and see the old Jewish cemetery, then continue to the Garden of Gethsemane. Walk through the Old City. Visit the Pool of Bethesda at the St. Anna Church. Continue through the Via Dolorosa, Lithostrotos, and Ecce Homo Arc, to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
Visit Mount Zion, including the Tomb of David and the Room of the Last Supper. Walk through the Jewish Quarter to see the Western Wall and the “Cardo Maximus”, a Roman street.
Walk through the Oriental bazaar and buy your family a nice souvenir from the Holy Land!
Closing dinner and receive the Christian Certificate.
Overnight: Jerusalem
Day 10: Jerusalem - Airport
Start your last day with a visit to Ein Karem – traditional birthplace of John the Baptist and the Church of the Visitation. The site is also attributed to John the Baptist’s parental summer house, where Mary visited and the Church of St. John the Baptist. Inside are the remains of an ancient mosaic floor and the cave where John the Baptist was born.
Transfer to Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv for the return flight.
Shalom until the next time in the Holy Land!
Video clips
The baptismal site “Yardenit” on the Jordan River is a must-visit place for any visitor or pilgrim. It is the same place where John baptized Jesus Christ (5th day on our tour)