12 Days / 11 Nights Program

Countries:
Egypt , Israel

Day 01
Arrive at Cairo airport, where a Biblical Vacation Tours representative will meet you and take you by minivan or bus to your hotel, where you will attend a brief orientation meeting` In the evening you will enjoy a traditional Egyptian dinner` (D)

Day 02
After breakfast, your day begins with a visit to some of the oldest structures on Earth at the Sakkara complex, where Egyptians first began building pyramids` The first of the pyramids was the Step Pyramid of King Djoser` From there you visit Memphis the oldest capital of Egypt, where Moses confronted the Pharaoh` You then continue to the Great Pyramids at Giza, including the Cheops Pyramid, which is one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world` Here you will also see the Sphinx, a large statue of a lion with a human head` You will have lunch during the tour` (B, L, D)

Day 03
Today we will drive to explore the Delta region of Egypt through which the holy family traveled` We start with Samanoud where there is a well where the Virgin Mary gave her child a drink from the well` We then travel to the neighboring city of Sakha where you will see the foot steps of infant Jesus` (overnight in Cairo)

Day 04
After breakfast, you will drive through modern Cairo and visit the Egyptian Museum, known for its Pharaonic antiquities` Visit Coptic Cairo and see the Hanging Church, which was built in the 4th century, and St` Sergius  church, where it is believed that the Holy Family stayed for two weeks after their flight to Egypt`

The Coptic quarter also has Ben Ezra Synagogue, Cairo s oldest Jewish synagogue, built on the place where Jeremiah is said to have stayed after fleeing to Egypt` It was here that the Genizah documents, which included manuscripts of interpretations of the Old Testament that have shed light on many biblical issues, were discovered`

After lunch, we will drive to old Islamic Cairo` We will visit the Citadel, where Egypt was ruled from the 12th to the 19th centuries, and see the Muhammad Ali mosque` (Dinner and overnight in Cairo)

Day 05
After breakfast, we will drive south and cross the Suez Canal by tunnel towards Mt` Sinai stopping at Moses Springs, traditionally thought to be the site where the bitter waters of Marah became sweet` We will also stop at Wadi Feran, or Elim:

Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water` Exodus 15:27

We will reach Mt` Sinai before sunset and check in at our hotel` We will need to rest up for the next day s early morning hike up Mt` Sinai` Dinner and overnight at St` Catherine`

Day 06
Hike up Mt`Sinai` After watching the sunrise, visit St` Catherine s Monastery` Many monks and scholars believe that the monastery s spiritual heart, the Chapel of the Burning Bush, was built on the exact spot where God appeared to Moses in the burning bush` then drive to Taba In cross to Israel`

Day 07
Cross Taba Border, Transfer to hotel at the Dead Sea`

Day 08
Visit in the morning Masada, Ein Gedi, travel through the Jordan River Valley to the Sea of Galilee`

Day 09
complete the highlights of all the biblical stories and see the Ancient Boat, Capernaum, Mount of Beatitudes, Cana, Nazareth

Day 10
Mt of Olives, Palm Sunday Road, Garden of Gethsemane, Mt Zion, Caiaphas House, Upper Room, King David s Tomb, Jewish Quarter including the Cardo`

Day 11
Herodian Mansion, Southern Steps, Western Wall, Via Dolorosa (including St Anne s Church, Pool of Bethesda, Ecce Homo, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher), Garden Tomb`

Day 12
Transfer from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv for final departure`