Best of Israel + Turkey

From Your Home to Tel Aviv

• Depart on an overnight flight, from the international airport closest to your city, to Tel Aviv. [Dinner and breakfast included]

Tel Aviv

• Arrive mid-afternoon in Tel-Aviv.
• Be greeted and transferred to our hotel.
• Check in and enjoy hotel’s amenities and dinner.

Jaffa, Caesarea, Acre and Sea of Galilee

• Depart hotel in the morning, and visit Jaffa, one of the oldest cities in the world.
• Tour the Church of St. Peter
• Explore Jaffa's reconstructed Old Quarter
• Travel to Caesarea, the city built by King Herod over 2000 years ago.
• View ruins dating back to the Byzantine Empire.
• Continue to Haifa and visit Mount Carmel summit for a spectacular view.
• Visit the Carmelite Monastery and Stella Maris.
• Travel to Acre.
• Visit the Subterranean Crusader Quarter and the beautiful alleys to the Turkish Khan and the ancient harbor.
• Depart Acre to your hotel in Tiberias, located on the Sea of Galilee’s shore, for dinner and overnight.

Sea of Galilee, Golan Heights, and Caesarea Philippi

• Enjoy the Sea of Galilee’s wonders.
• Embark on a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee
• Explore the ruins of Capernaum.
• Visit Tabgha, the site of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes miracle.
• Tour the Church of St. Peter Primacy.
• Travel through the Hula Valley and ascend the Golan Heights.
• Visit Banias, where the ruins of the city Caesarea Philippi lie.
• Return to Tiberias via the Mount of Beatitudes, where the Sermon on the Mount took place.
• Overnight in Tiberias hotel.

Nazareth, Beit She’an, Jericho, and Jerusalem

• See Mary's Well, and continue through Nazareth, visiting the Church of the Annunciation.
• Visit Mount Tabor, on the way to Beit She'an Valley.
• Continue through to Jericho, believed to be the world's oldest walled city.
• Drive to Jerusalem for dinner and overnight.

Jerusalem

• Ascend the Mount of Olives and visit the Chapel of Ascension and Pater Noster Church.
• Visit the Garden of Gethsemane, as well as the Church of All Nations.
• Enter into the Old City.
• Visit the Pools of Bethesda and St. Anne's Church.
• Walk along the Via Dolorosa, past the Monastery of the Flagellation, and visit the Convent of the Sisters of Zion, and Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
• Walk through the Arab Bazaar to the Western Wall.
• Ascend to the Temple Mount, visiting the Dome of the Rock and El Aqsa Mosque.
• Visit Mount Zion, and explore where the Room of the Last Supper and King David's Tomb are located.
• Walk through Dormition Abbey and the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu.
• Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.

Qumran, Dead Sea, and Masada

• While driving towards the Dead Sea, we'll stop in the Judean wilderness and see St. George's Monastery.
• Travel past Qumran and reach the Ein Gedi Nature Reserve.
• Continue to Masada, and ascend by cable car to the mountaintop.
• Explore King Herod's remarkable fortress
• Finish the day on the shores of the Dead Sea, where you may "float" on the one sea where you cannot sink.
• Pass the site of the Inn of the Good Samaritan.
• Drive through the city of Bethany to Jerusalem for dinner and overnight.

Jerusalem and Bethlehem

• Drive to the Haas Promenade for a spectacular view of Jerusalem.
• Continue on to Bethlehem.
• Visit the Church of the Nativity and pass Rachel's Tomb.
• Visit Yad Vashem.
• Pass by Israel’s Parliament, the Knesset, and view the Menorah, which is the symbol of the State of Israel.
• Visit the Israel Museum and see the Dead Sea Scrolls at the Shrine of the Book, and the Holy Land model of Jerusalem.
• Drive to the beautiful village of Ein Karem, the birthplace of John the Baptist, and enter the Church of the Visitation.
• Return to the Jerusalem for the last night, and enjoy your Farewell.

Jerusalem and Istanbul

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Check-out of Jerusalem hotel.
• Enjoy a leisurely morning in Jerusalem before transferring to the airport where we will bid "Shalom" to Israel, and board our flight to Istanbul.
• Arrive at Istanbul’s Atatürk International Airport.
• After customs, we will be met by our local representative and transferred to the hotel, enjoying a panaromic city tour en route.
• Check to Istanbul hotel.
• Dinner at the Istanbul hotel

Istanbul, Hagia Sophia Church, Basilica Cistern, and The Ancient Hippodrome

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Today we begin with a visit to the world famousHagia Sophia Church which is now a museum. Constructed by Emperor Justinianos as a church at the beginning of the 6th Century, Hagia Sophiaremained the largest cathedral in the world for almost a thousand years and is considered the 8th Wonder of the World. The Church was converted into a mosque in 1453 and subsequently into a museum in 1935.
• Continue to the cascading domes and six slender minarets of the Sultan Ahmet Mosque (better known as the "Blue Mosque"), which dominates the skyline of Istanbul.
• In the 17th century, Sultan Ahmet I. wished to build an Islamic place of worship that would be even better than the Hagia Sophia, and the mosque named for him is the result.
• The two great architectural achievements now stand next to each other in Istanbul's main square, and it is up to visitors to decide which is more impressive. TheBlue Mosque was commissioned by Sultan Ahmetwhen he was only 19 years old. It was built near theHagia Sophia, over the site of the ancient hippodrome and Byzantine imperial palace (whose mosaics can be seen in the nearby Mosaic Museum). Construction work began in 1609 and took seven years. The mosque was designed by architectMehmet Aga. Sultan Ahmet was so anxious for his magnificent creation to be completed that he often assisted in the work. Sadly, he died just a year after the completion of his masterpiece, at the age of 27. He is buried outside the mosque with his wife and three sons.
• The original mosque complex included a madrasa, a hospital, a han, a primary school, a market, an imaret and the tomb of the founder. Most of these buildings were torn down in the 19th century.
• Walking through the ancient Hippodrome where the chariot races took place in antiquity, we will get to theBasilica Cistern, a wonderfully serie underground chamber built by Justinian in 537 AND and comprised of 336 columns.
• Come back to our Istanbul hotel.
• Dinner at the Istanbul hotel.

Istanbul, Topkapi Palace, Kasikci Diamond, Spice Market and Cruise Along the Bosphorus

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Today’s touring begins with a visit to the magnificent Topkapi Palace, the residence of the Ottoman Sultans for 400 years.
• Enjoy the exquisite collection of Chinese porcelain, the stunning Imperial Treasury including the "Spoonmaker's Diamond" aka the Kasikci Diamond, which is the third largest diamond in the world and the Topkapi Dagger.
• We leave the Palace and view the Egyptian Obelisks, which are the oldest historical works in Istanbul. These stones, which were made of pink granite, were constructed in year 390 in the era of Theodosius.
• Visit the Spice Market, followed by a cruise along the Bosphorus, which separates Asia from Europe.
• Our final stop is the Grand Covered Bazaar with 4000 tiny shops.
• Come back to our Istanbul hotel.
• Dinner at the Istanbul hotel.

Istanbul to Your Home

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Check out of our hotel.
• An early departure takes us from our hotel to the airport for our continuing flight home.
• We return home exhausted but exhilarated by 12 days exploring Israel and Istanbul