Israel, Jordan and Egypt 17 Day Tour

Arrival at Tel Aviv International Airport. A Noah Tours representative will meet you after passport control and accompany you to your transfer to your hotel.

After breakfast drive through Jaffa, an ancient port city and the oldest part of Tel Aviv. Continue on to the ancient city of Caesarea which was built by King Herod the Great while driving along the beautiful Mediterranean coast. We will then proceed to Haifa, passing by Mt. Carmel to see the famous Bahai Gardens. From Haifa, we will drive to Nazareth and the Church of Annunciation. Pass by Cana, where the miracle of Jesus turning water into wine took place. End the day with an overnight in Tiberias/Galilee Sea.

Start the day with an exciting boat ride on the Galilee Sea. Continue to visit Biblical Magdala and its most recent excavations and discoveries. See the Ancient Synagogue, mentioned in the Bible, from the Period of Jesus. Ascend up to Mt. Beatitudes, where Jesus gave the «Sermon on the Mount». Continue the day in Capernaum, known as «The Town of Jesus», and visit the synagogue and Peter’s house. Take a lunch break with a delicious St. Peters fish lunch. Next, we will visit Tabgha, the place where the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes took place. You will also have the amazing opportunity to see the famous mosaic under the altar of the ancient church of Tabgha. Proceed to the Golan Heights and have an overview from above. End the day at your hotel in the Galilee Sea for your overnight.

Begin the morning by driving along the Jordan River to the Qasr El Yehud Baptismal Site. Explore Qumran and see the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. Travel to Masada, where you will take a cable car to the fortress. The history of the famous Jewish fortification will unfold before you: the palaces built by King Herod, the synagogue, and the bathhouses used by the Jews. Descend Masada by cable car and drive to the Dead Sea for some relaxation and a dip in the Dead Sea. Overnight at a Dead Sea hotel and spa, you can take advantage of the spa facilities.

Check out of the hotel and begin your journey to Jerusalem, ascending through the Judean Desert. Continue to the Mount of Olives, once covered with olive groves and today home to an ancient Jewish cemetery, where you will enjoy a magnificent panoramic view of Jerusalem. Visit the Temple Mount (subject to availability), where King Solomon’s Holy Temple once stood and where the Dome of the Rock is located today. Entrance is subject to availability and local regulations. Continue to the Western Wall Plaza, one of the holiest sites in Judaism. Continue to Mount Zion. Visit King David’s Tomb and the site of the Last Supper, also known as the Upper Room or Cenaculum. If time permits, we will visit Yad Vashem, the Holocaust memorial, and conclude the day with an exciting tour of the Mahane Yehuda Marketplace (Shuk) and experience life as an Israeli. Return to your hotel in Jerusalem for check-in. Finish the day back in Jerusalem for check-in and overnight.

The morning will begin with a visit to Bethlehem to see the Church of the Nativity at Manger Square, an overview of the Judean Desert and Shepherd’s Field, a visit to a local, authentic Christian Family souvenir shop, and an opportunity to experience a local lunch in Bethlehem. After lunch, we will return to Jerusalem and pass by the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed and his disciples slept the night before his crucifixion.  We continue into the Old City’s Muslim and Christian Quarters, then walk through the Jewish Quarter, passing the Cardo, an ancient Roman-period street. We will walk where Jesus walked and make our way down Via Dolorosa (Stations of the Cross). Enter the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where Jesus was crucified. The day will conclude with a visit to the Arab Bazar in the Old City, ending at Jaffa Gate. Return to the hotel in Jerusalem for an overnight.

Today, we will begin with a short city tour of New Jerusalem; we will pass by the Israeli parliament, the «Knesset,» and, if time permits, stop by the famous menorah. We will visit the Israel Museum, Israel’s national museum, where you will see the Dead Sea Scrolls and a Model of the Second Temple. Finish the day with a visit to the Garden Tomb, a peaceful site cherished by many Christians as a place of reflection on the crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Overnight in Jerusalem.

After breakfast, transfer to Allenby Border, where a Noah Tours representative will meet you on the other side and take you to the beautiful city of Petra. Overnight in Petra.

Drive to Petra and enter the Rose City of Petra through the Siq, a narrow passage through the mountains that has inspired people for centuries. Travel up to the treasury which suddenly appears at the end of the gorge, leaving the visitors breath-taken by its size, colour, and beauty. Continue into the heart of this ancient city carved into the mountains, passing hundreds of tombs and monuments and a spectacular Amphitheatre, which once held 3,000 spectators. Stop for a sit-down lunch before leaving Wadi Mussa – the new town of Petra. Drive to Amman. Overnight in Amman.

Early transfer to Amman Airport for your flight to Cairo. We begin our day with a tour of the ancient city of Memphis which lies some 12 miles south of Cairo. The ancient city is now an open-air museum testifying to the magnificence of its four thousand years of history. Near Memphis lies the necropolis of Saqqara, a vast, ancient burial ground, featuring numerous pyramids, including the world-famous Step Pyramid of Djoser. We then proceed to the Great Pyramids and the Sphinx located, on the Giza Plateau. The Great Pyramids of Giza are considered one of the seven wonders of the world. The Valley Temples surrounding the pyramids provide an insight into dominating religious motives of the era. Overnight in Cairo.

Visit the New Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM), featuring a fantastic display of ancient Egyptian civilization. Next, see the Mosque of Mohammad Ali, the Citadel, the old city, and the Ben Ezra Synagogue also known as the Geniza Synagogue. Its storerooms were found to contain over 2,000 medieval manuscripts, a collection known as the Cairo Geniza. After, visit one of the oldest and most famous Coptic Churches in Egypt, the El Mullakah Church (Hanging Church). Continue to the City of the Dead, a four-mile-long grid of tombs and mausoleums where people live and work amongst their ancestors. End today’s tour at Bazaar Khan el-Khalili. Overnight in Cairo.

With an early morning drive from Cairo to Alexandria, start by visiting Catacomb Kom El Shoqafa, the largest and most important burial site in Egypt. Next, Pompey’s Pillar, a memorial column made out of red Aswan granite erected by the Roman ruler of Egypt in honour of Emperor Diocletian. Conclude at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, a major library and cultural centre located on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It is a commemoration of the ancient Library of Alexandria that was destroyed centuries ago. Overnight in Cairo.

Early morning flight to Aswan. Embark before lunch at 12:00 PM on the Sonesta St George Cruise. Lunch on board. Visit the High Dam, Philae temple & Sail on the Nile by Motor Boat. Afternoon tea. Captain’s Welcome Cocktail Dinner on board. Overnight on the cruise. Optional tour to Abu Simbel.

Breakfast on board. Sail to Kom Ombo. Visit the Temple shared by two gods Sobek and Haeroris in Kom Ombo. Sail to Edfu. Lunch on board. Visit Edfu Temple. Dinner on board. Sail to Esna. Overnight on the cruise.

Early morning sail to Luxor Breakfast on board. Visit the West Bank, the Valley of the Kings and Queens, the temple of Queen Hatshepsut at El-Deir El-Bahari and the Colossi Memnon. Lunch on board. Afternoon tea. Dinner on board. Overnight on the cruise.

Breakfast on board. Disembark at 08:00 am. Visit East Bank (Karnak and Luxor Temples). See the Karnak Temples, which are the largest Pharaonic temple complex in the world, with some parts constructed by Ramses II. Continue to the Temple of Luxor, another startling temple that was established around the 14th century BC. After the tour transfer to Luxor Airport for your flight back for your overnight to Cario.

After breakfast, check out of the hotel and drive to Cairo Airport for departure.