Nazareth Project Inc.
Partnering with Nazareth Trust in Nazareth and surrounding areas
(717) 290-1800
Nazareth Project Inc.
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The tour will include Nazareth, Bethlehem, Jerusalem and other important historical sites in Israel/Palestine. While in Nazareth the tour will visit Nazareth Hospital, Nazareth Academic School of Nursing and Nazareth Village — important partner organizations of Nazareth Project. The tour will focus on historic sites, current realities and reasons for hope in present day Israel/Palestine (including the Galilee, the West Bank, Jerusalem and many other sites near Jerusalem).
NPI works with a North-American travel company to plan the international travel bookings and arrange local transportation, lodging and tour guides via a Palestinian-owned tour company in Jerusalem. International Travel arranged for NPI by Pilgrim Tours, Inc.
The tour host was Wayne Speigel who is a pastor and a member of the NPI Board.
Wayne has served as lead and interim pastor in several Mennonite congregations in eastern PA and Virginia and has been on the boards of charitable organizations and in Mennonite denominational leadership. He has studied in Israel/Palestine on several occasions.
Ibrahim Emtanis, a native of Nazareth who now lives in Jerusalem, was the local tour guide. Ibrahim has been a licensed tour guide in Israel since 2013. He graduated from the Israel School of Tourism at the University of Haifa. He speaks fluent English and Hebrew, with Arabic being his mother tongue. Ibrahim has a wide knowledge of the various Middle Eastern religions and sects including Christianity, Judaism, Samaritan, Islam, Druze, Baha’i, and Ahmadi’. He specializes in Holy Land Christian Pilgrimage tours. Ibrahim graduated from Nazareth Baptist High School.
Day 1: Depart Newark (or home airport) for Tel Aviv, arriving the next morning.
Day 2: Meet our guide upon arrival at the Tel Aviv airport. Visit Caesarea Maritima to view the ruins of the harbor city built by Herod the Great. Lunch is on your own. Continue to Jerusalem. Old City walking tour as time allows. Dinner and overnight at the Ambassador Hotel.
Day 3: Drive to the Mt of Olives for a panoramic view of Jerusalem. Then visit the Israel Museum and see the Dead Sea Scrolls, Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial, and the model of Jerusalem circa 70 AD. Continue to Bethlehem to enjoy a traditional Palestinian lunch of Musakhan (included). View the Shepherd’s Field and the Church of the Nativity. Dinner and overnight at the Ambassador Hotel.
Day 4: Drive south to Masada, Herod the Great’s desert mountain palace/fortress. Enroute, view Qumran where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in caves. Stop at En Gedi, the desert oasis where David hid from Saul. Lunch is on your own. Time permitting, we will stop at the Dead Sea. Return to Jerusalem for dinner and overnight at the Ambassador Hotel.
Day 5: Spend the day exploring Jerusalem. Visit the Western (Wailing) Wall, the Temple Mount including the al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock and the Southern Steps. Walk along the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Lunch is on your own with time for shopping within the Old City. Dinner and overnight at the Ambassador Hotel.
Day 6: Visit the Garden Tomb, Pool of Bethesda, St. Anne’s Church and the Garden of Gethsemane. Drive to Mt. Zion and the Church of St. Peter Gallicantu commemorating Peter’s denial of Jesus. Lunch on own in Jerusalem and then drive to Jericho for a visit. Arrive late afternoon in Nazareth. Dinner and overnight at the Golden Crown Hotel.
Day 7: Today explore the Galilean hillside including the Mt. of the Beatitudes, Tabgha and the Church of the Loaves and Fishes, Church of the Primacy of Peter, Capernaum and the remains of an early Jewish synagogue. Enjoy a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee and a lunch of St. Peter’s Fish (included). Dinner and overnight at the Golden Crown Hotel.
Day 8: Tour the Nazareth Hospital and Nazareth School of Nursing. Lunch (included) at Nazareth Village followed by a tour of the Village, a recreation of a first century village. Continue to St. Gabriel Church built over an ancient well commonly known as Mary’s Well. Walk through the old city to the Church of the Annunciation. End the day with a visit to Mt. Precipice. Dinner and overnight at the Golden Crown Hotel.
Day 9: Visit Cana, site of the first miracle of Jesus. Drive through the beautiful Hula Valley and north to the ancient ruins of Tel Dan, then on to Banias, the spring of Caesarea Philippi at the foothills of Mt. Hermon where Peter confessed Jesus as the Christ. Lunch is on your own. Return for dinner and overnight at the Golden Crown Hotel.
Day 10: Visit the Nazareth Peace Centre at Nazareth Bible College. Meet Dr. Rula Mansour and engage her in conversation about her work. Lunch is on your own. Possible afternoon or evening time with a Jewish family. Dinner and overnight at the Golden Crown Hotel.
Day 11: Enjoy free time to explore the old city of Nazareth. Lunch is on your own. Possible afternoon or evening visit with Palestinian families. Prepare for a morning departure/return to the U.S./Canada. Dinner and overnight at the Golden Crown Hotel.
Day 12: Transfer to the Tel Aviv airport and return home.
For more information or if you have questions please contact Howard Good at howardgood@nazarethproject.org or by phone at 717-475-8737.
Photos courtesy of www.freeisraelphotos.com.