11 Day Israel Tour with Pastor Jonathan Burris

Pack your bags and bring your sense of wonder—your life-changing journey to the Holy Land begins!

Accommodation: In Jerusalem

Upon arrival at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, your tour guide will meet you and direct you to your luxury bus. From here, you will travel to your accommodation and enjoy your first Israeli dinner, followed by a restful evening.

Accommodation: Near the Sea of Galilee

After breakfast, view an ancient boat found in the Sea of Galilee, then take a memorable boat ride across its waters. Along the boat ride, your guide will point out various places along the Sea that are mentioned in the Gospels.

Visit Magdala, the hometown of Mary Magdalene, and one of the most exciting archaeological sites in Israel today. Then walk a portion of the Jesus Trail (Wadi Hammon).

Explore Capernaum, the heart of Jesus’ ministry, and stand among the ruins of a later synagogue built on the very site of the original 1st-century synagogue where Jesus once taught. Reflect on His teachings and His proclamation of the gospel of the kingdom (Matthew 4:13, 23).

Ascend the peaceful Mount of Beatitudes which overlooks the Sea of Galilee and see the traditional site where Jesus preached His most famous sermon: the Sermon on the Mount. You will also view the traditional site of Job’s Cave.

Finally, visit the Primacy of Peter, where Peter professed his devotion three times to the risen Christ and stand on the shore of the Sea of Galilee where Jesus commanded Peter to “Feed my sheep.” (John 21). Here you will see springs of water flowing into the cove. Fishermen have frequented this area for thousands of years.

Accommodation: In Jerusalem

After a traditional Israeli breakfast, begin your day at the Mount of Olives, where you will take in a breathtaking view of the Temple Mount and the Eastern Gate. This is the very place where Jesus ascended into heaven forty days after His resurrection (Acts 1:9).

Walk the Palm Sunday Road, retracing Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem.

Visit Dominus Flevit, where Jesus wept over the city, and then spend time in prayer beneath the ancient olive trees in the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed the night before His crucifixion (Matthew 26:36).

Continue through the Kidron Valley, passing the tombs of Absalom and the high priest Zechariah. On Mount Zion, visit the Upper Room, the site of the Last Supper (Mark 14:12), and explore St. Peter in Gallicantu, built over the ruins believed to be the house of Caiaphas, the high priest, where Jesus was held in the morning hours before His crucifixion.

As you walk through the Jewish Quarter, see the Cardo, a well-preserved Roman street, and the Broad Wall built by King Hezekiah.

After lunch, walk to the plaza and stand before the revered Western Wall, a sacred site where Jewish worshippers have prayed for centuries.

As one of Israel’s most significant landmarks, it serves as a place of deep spiritual connection, where visitors tuck handwritten prayers into the crevices between the ancient stones.

For Orthodox Jews, this is the closest they can approach the Temple Mount until a new temple is built.

As you walk towards the ancient City of David, you will view the famous Southern Steps, where Jesus and His disciples walked and where Peter preached on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2).

Explore the ruins of the City of David where you will see remnants from the time of King David. Then descend to the Pool of Siloam, where Jesus healed the blind man (John 9:1-11). For the adventurous, you may choose to walk through King Hezekiah’s water tunnel!

Accommodation: In Jerusalem

Start your day with a visit to the Temple Mount, where the Jewish Temple once stood before its destruction in 70 A.D. Here, you will see the Dome of the Rock, built over the rock where Abraham prepared to sacrifice Isaac, and the site of Ornan’s threshing floor, purchased by King David (1 Chronicles 21:18-26).

Due to the volatile relationship between Jewish and Muslim world, the Dome of the Rock and Temple Mount area have been the source of much controversy over the years.

From the Temple Mount, gaze at the Eastern Gate, where Jesus will one day make His triumphal entry (Ezekiel 43:1-4). Walk through St. Stephen’s Gate, now known as the Lions Gate, traditionally believed to be near the site of Stephen’s martyrdom (Acts 7). This is the only gate in the eastern wall of the Old City of Jerusalem.

Visit the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-31), where Jesus performed the Sabbath miracle healing of the lame man, and experience the incredible acoustics of St. Anne’s Church which dates back to the time of the Crusades.

Walk the Via Dolorosa (the Way of Suffering) to the Antonia Fortress (Ecce Homo), where Jesus was brought before Pontius Pilate (Luke 23:1-11). Visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the traditional site of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. Afterward, spend some free time enjoying shopping in the Old City.

From Jerusalem, you will then travel north to the region of ancient Samaria of the Bible. You will then visit ancient Shiloh, the place the Tabernacle resided for 369 years and where Hannah prayed for a son. (1 Samuel 2:1-10).

Then it’s on to ancient Bethel (time permitting), the place Jacob saw a ladder to heaven. It was this sacred place that God made a land covenant to Jacob (Gen. 28:13-14). It was here where the tabernacle resided as well, and where Jeroboam erected an altar and golden calf, as he did in Dan (1 Kings 12:28-31). On your journey back to Jerusalem, you will drive by the site of ancient Ai, the second city Joshua and the Israelites destroyed.

You will bring home with your souvenirs, photographs, memories, new friendships and an unforgettable experience. Shalom!