Heritage of Israel, Jordan & Egypt

Day 1 is arrival day. Touring begins the next day, so you can arrive at any time on any flight to Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv. Upon arrival to Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv, you will be met by our representative and transferred to your hotel in Tel Aviv. Overnight in Tel Aviv.

CTO's tour guide will pick you up from your hotel. Visit the port city of Jaffa (Joppa) where we will take a short walking tour in picturesque alleys of the old, fortified town. Pass by the house of Simon the Tanner and marvel at the views from the hill top. Drive north along the coastal road - Via Maris, to the archaeological ruins of Caesarea, built by Herod the Great in honor of Augustus Caesar. From here we go on to visit Megiddo where the book of Revelations mentions a great battle at the place called "Armageddon", an ancient city inhabited continuously for more than five millennia (6000-500 B.C.). Drive eastwards, towards the Sea of Galilee, descending to Tiberias, regarded as one of the four Holy cities in Judaism, where the Jewish Talmud - the primary source of Jewish religious law - was compiled, with tombs of Rabbis scattered across the city. Overnight in Tiberias.

Drive to the southern part of the Sea of Galilee to visit the Yardenit Baptismal Site. Visit the sites on the north shore, the stage for many of the events in Jesus' life. Drive along the shore of the sea to Capernaum – known as “His Town”, the center of Jesus’ ministry, where he spent much time healing the sick and performing miracles. On to Tabgha, the site of Christ’s miracle of feeding the 5,000, visiting the Church of Multiplication, where the mosaic floor depicts a basket with loaves and two fishes and the Church of the Primacy of St Peter, commemorating Jesus' reinstatement of Peter as chief among the Apostles. Continue to the Mount of Beatitudes overlooking the sea, where Jesus preached the “Sermon on the Mount” and it is believed that he picked his 12 apostles. Ascend to the Golan Heights for a panoramic view of the peaks of Mt. Hermon and the rugged Golan plateau. Visit Banias (Caesarea Philippi), one of the sources of the River Jordan, where Jesus took his disciples, revealing his purpose and His Church before his last trip to Jerusalem, and where Simon identified Jesus as the Messiah. Return to Tiberias for another night in town.

• Through remarkable scenery of the Dead Sea, we travel to Masada which is situated on an isolated cliff in the Judean Desert. The site was declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001. • Ascend by cable car to the fortress, which was the last stronghold of the Jewish zealots in their war against the Romans. Visit the excavations, King Herod’s palace, the synagogue, bathhouse and much more. Enjoy the breathtaking view of the Roman camps and the Dead Sea below. • Visit the site of the Qumran Caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. • Nearly 1,300 feet below sea level, the Dead Sea is the lowest point on the earth’s surface. Bring your swimsuit as if weather permits it is possible to “float” on the salty, mineral-rich, water. • Return to Jerusalem for an overnight.

• Visit Yad Vashem the official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, established in 1953, located at the foot of Mt. Hertzl. • Visit the Israel Museum’s Shrine of the Book with the famous Dead Sea Scrolls, then on to the beautifully renovated model of the Herodian city of Jerusalem, dating back to the time of the Second Temple. • Enjoy Ein Karem; a picturesque village in the south western outskirts of Jerusalem. This small village has great significance in Christian traditions, since this is where, according to tradition, John the Baptist was born. • Visit Bethlehem - the birthplace of Jesus at the Church of the Nativity and Manger Square. • Return to your Jerusalem hotel.

• Enjoy the spectacular panoramic view of Jerusalem - the holy city for each of the world’s three great religions – Christianity, Judaism and Islam, from atop the Mount of Olives. • Visit the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus spent his last night and was betrayed by Judas. • Just outside the Old City, visit Mount Zion, with the traditional tomb of King David and the Room of the Last Supper. • Enter the Old City of Jerusalem where you will see the Western Wall and the actual site of the Second Temple, the Temple Mount. • Walk the Way of the Cross, the Via Dolorosa, to Calvary and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, housing both the traditional site of Crucifixion and the Tomb of the Resurrection. • Return to your hotel for overnight.

• Drive from Jerusalem to the Sheikh Hussein border crossing for procedures to enter Jordan. • Proceed to Jerash - city of the Decapolis, located about 45km north of Amman in the fertile heights of the Gilad. Visit the ancient Roman city with colonnaded streets, the baths and the hill of the top Temple etc. • Drive to Amman for a panoramic city tour of the Jordanian capital. • Overnight in Amman.

• Drive to Mount Nebo, from where Moses viewed the Promised Land. From there you will see the Jordan Valley, Jericho and the Dead Sea • Continue along the Desert Highway to Wadi Musa, the modern village of Petra. • Enter the site of Petra and walk, or ride on horseback to the "Siq" (Canyon). • Walk through the "Siq" to the red rock city, the ancient capital of the Nabateans from 3rd Century BC to 2nd Century AD. • Visit the most interesting carved monuments such as the Treasury (El Khazneh - a tomb of a Nabatean king) then the field of tombs, obelisks, the altar etc. From this point you can view the whole of the rock city. • After the visit, return to Wadi Musa. • Overnight in Petra.

• Drive from Jerusalem to the Sheikh Hussein border crossing for procedures to enter Jordan.• Proceed to Jerash - city of the Decapolis, located about 45km north of Amman in the fertile heights of the Gilad. Visit the ancient Roman city with colonnaded streets, the baths and the hill of the top Temple etc.• Drive to Amman for a panoramic city tour of the Jordanian capital.• Overnight in Amman.

• Drive to Mount Nebo, from where Moses viewed the Promised Land. From there you will see the Jordan Valley, Jericho and the Dead Sea• Continue along the Desert Highway to Wadi Musa, the modern village of Petra.• Enter the site of Petra and walk, or ride on horseback to the "Siq" (Canyon).• Walk through the "Siq" to the red rock city, the ancient capital of the Nabateans from 3rd Century BC to 2nd Century AD.• Visit the most interesting carved monuments such as the Treasury (El Khazneh - a tomb of a Nabatean king) then the field of tombs, obelisks, the altar etc. From this point you can view the whole of the rock city.• After the visit, return to Wadi Musa.• Overnight in Petra.

• After breakfast drive south to the towering mountains and rock formations of Wadi Rum, which mesmerised Lawrence of Arabia.• Drive through the stunning desert landscapes in open Bedouin trucks, visiting the Lawrence Spring and Khazali Canyon.• Drive north to Madaba to visit the remains of the Byzantine church with its ancient mosaic floor map, the oldest surviving original cartographic depiction of the mosaic map of the Holy Land and Jerusalem.• Overnight in Amman.

• Transfer from your Amman hotel to Queen Alia International Airport, Amman• Flight from Amman to Cairo.• Upon arrival to Cairo International Airport, you will be met by our representative who will be holding a sign with your name on, at passport control. Our representative will assist with passport and visa formalities, after which you will be escorted to meet your driver who will transfer you to your hotel.• Overnight in Cairo.

• Begin the day in the capital city starting with a tour of the Egyptian Museum with the treasures from the Tut-Ankh-Amun burial site.• Continue to the Citadel to enjoy a spectacular view of Cairo.• Visit the Alabaster Mosque, which adds a wonderful picture-postcard element to Cairo’s skyline.• You will be given some time at leisure for shopping in the famous Khan-el-Khalili bazaar which is a labyrinth of cobbled alleyways. This vast bazaar tempts the senses with spices, perfume and glittering gold, silver and brass.• Overnight in Cairo.

• Visit Memphis, the ancient capital of the Old Kingdom of Egypt and home of a colossal Statue of Ramesses II and the Alabaster Sphinx. • Continue to the “Cemetery City” of Sakkara and view the Step Pyramid of King Zoser, the oldest of all Pyramids. • In the afternoon you will visit the Great Pyramids of Giza, the only present-day survivor of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. • Nearby, the mystical Sphinx surveys the plains of Giza. The 20m high man-animal Sphinx, created as a “living image of the sun-god”, built by Chephren to guard the entrance to the Pyramids. • Overnight in Cairo.

• Transfer to Cairo Airport for a flight to Aswan. • Visit the Aswan High Dam, a huge rock-fill dam, which captures the world’s longest river. • Visit the Philae Temple dedicated to the goddess Isis. • In the afternoon embarkation on your Nile cruise ship. • Enjoy a ride on a Felucca (traditional wooden sailing boat) on the Nile, sailing past the lush Botanic Garden on Kitchener’s Island, Elephantine Island and the Aga Khan’s Mausoleum on the west bank. • Overnight on-board Nile Cruiser.

• Mid-day, cruise to Kom Ombo to visit the Temple of Sobek and Haroeris, dedicated to the crocodile god and the falcon-headed god. • Thereafter the cruise continues along the Nile to Edfu. • Overnight on-board Nile Cruiser.

• Transfer through Edfu to the famous and best-preserved ancient Greek-built Horus temple, dedicated to the Falcon God and built on a rise to escape the annual flooding of the Nile. • Return to your Nile Cruiser and enjoy the changing scenery as you cruise to Esna and cross through the Esna Lock. • Continue cruising to Luxor. • Visit the Luxor Temple, discovered beneath the shifting desert sands and originally joined to the Karnak Temple by an avenue of Sphinxes. • Overnight on-board Nile Cruiser.

• Travel to the West Bank and visit Thebes Necropolis and the Valley of Kings, a vast City of the Dead for generations of Pharaohs, where magnificent tombs were carved into the desert rock, richly decorated and filled with treasures for the afterlife. • Visit the Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut. • See the Colossi of Memnon, which is all that remains of the Temple of Amenophis, destroyed by the annual flooding of the Nile. • Visit the Karnak Temple. • Transfer to Luxor Airport for flight to Cairo and transfer to Cairo hotel. • Overnight in Cairo.

• Transfer to Cairo Airport for departing flight.