Your pilgrimage begins as you depart the USA on an overnight flight.

You will be welcomed to the Holy Land by our airport representative and transferred to your Bethlehem hotel. Enjoy dinner before retiring for the night.

Travel to Ein Karem to visit the shrine of visitation and birthplace of St. John the Baptist and where the Virgin Mary visited Elisabeth prior to our Lord’s birth (Luke 1:26-40). In Bethlehem, visit the birthplace of Jesus, which is marked by the Basilica of the Nativity, and kneel at the place of his birth in the Grotto of the Nativity (Matt. 1:18-25). Celebrate Mass in Bethlehem and visit Shepherd’s field, where the Angel of the Lord proclaimed the good news of the birth of the Savior (Luke 2:8-18).

After breakfast, we visit Bethany, the town where Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. Celebrate Mass in Bethany. We then drive to visit the Qasr El-Yahud baptismal site on the River Jordan, which the Vatican recognizes as the authentic site of the baptism. There, we renew our baptismal vows. We pass through Jericho, with a view on the Mount of Temptation, the place where Jesus spent 40 days and 40 nights in the desert. Drive to the Dead Sea, where we can float on the mineral-rich water.

Journey north and visit the Franciscan Wedding Church at Cana, the site of Jesus’ first miracle as He changed water into wine (John 2). Continue on to Nazareth, Jesus’ boyhood home (Matthew 2:23), and celebrate Mass in the Grand Basilica of the Annunciation. You will also see the house of the Holy Family, St. Joseph’s Workshop, and St. Joseph’s Church. Stand atop Mount Precipice, where Luke describes how Jesus was rejected by those in the synagogue after He taught them. Filled with anger, they “led Him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast Him down headlong” (Luke 4: 29).

Enjoy beautiful Capernaum, the center of Jesus’ ministry, and visit the synagogue located on the site where Jesus taught (Matt. 4:13, 23). Sail across the Sea of Galilee, reflecting on the gospel stories of Jesus calming the storm. Listen to Jesus’ words from His Sermon on the Mount at the Mount of Beatitudes (Matt. 5-7) and celebrate Mass at the Church of the Beatitudes. At the Church of the Multiplication, the location of the feeding of the 5,000, explore the Church of the Loaves and Fish (Luke 9:10-17). Also, we will visit St. Peter’s Primacy, where Jesus bestowed church leadership upon Peter (John 21:9). In Magdala, once home to Mary Magdalene, visit a recently discovered first-century synagogue.

This morning drive to Mount Tabor, the Mount of the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8). From the top of the mountain, there is a wonderful panoramic view that extends from Mount Hermon in the north to the hills of Samaria in the south. Celebrate Mass at the Church of the Transfiguration. Continue west to Haifa. In Haifa, ascend Mount Carmel, where we will visit Stella Maris, a Carmelite Monastery. The monastery is located above the cave where Elijah, the prophet, once dwelled. In Emmaus, you’ll see where Jesus appeared to two disciples after His resurrection.

This morning, drive to the top of the Mount of Olives, the place from which Jesus ascended into heaven forty days after His resurrection (Acts 1:9-12), for a majestic view over all of ancient and modern Jerusalem, the center of the biblical world. Visit the Pater Noster Church and the Chapel of Dominus Flevit (Jesus wept) before walking down the “Palm Sunday Road” to the Garden of Gethsemane and the Church of All Nations (Basilica of the Agony), where Christ prayed on the night of His betrayal (Luke 22:40-46). Celebrate Mass at the Church of All Nations. Next, we drive to the Upper Room, revered as the location of the Last Supper (Mark 14:12-26), and the Dormition Abbey on Mount Zion. Afterward, we will visit the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu (government house of Caiaphas), where Jesus was imprisoned the night of His arrest (Matt. 26:57-65).

Experience a walking tour within the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem, visiting the Pools of Bethesda, where Jesus healed the man who had been crippled for 38 years (John 5:2-9), and the Church of St. Anne where there is an opportunity to sing a hymn before walking along the Via Dolorosa (Way of the Cross) from Pilate’s Judgment Hall to the empty tomb in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Celebrate the Mass of the Resurrection at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Afterward, we will visit the Western Wall and enjoy a final meal before returning to the USA.

Depart on an extension or return to the USA