Day 1: Depart home country
Evening departure on an overnight transatlantic or connecting flight toward Tel Aviv. Use the flight to read the Gospel passages tied to the journey ahead and to rest before a full first day in-country.
Group sends off with an opening commissioning prayer at the airport gate.
Day 2: Arrive Tel Aviv · transfer to Galilee
Land at Ben Gurion Airport, meet your guide and coach north to the Sea of Galilee region (about 2 hours). Settle in, with a gentle orientation walk by the lakeshore at dusk. Keep the first evening light to ease jet lag.
Opening Mass / devotional service and a blessing of the pilgrimage.
Day 3: The Sea of Galilee
A full, rich day around the lake: the Mount of Beatitudes (allow an unhurried hour for the Sermon on the Mount), Tabgha's Church of the Multiplication and the Primacy of Peter, and Capernaum, Jesus' ministry base. Cap it with a wooden-boat ride across the calm water — give this at least 45 minutes to truly sink in.
Mass at the Mount of Beatitudes; Scripture reflection and shared prayer aboard the boat.
Day 4: Nazareth, Cana & the Jordan
Visit the Basilica of the Annunciation and the village of Nazareth (half a day does it justice), then Cana of the first miracle. Drive to Mount Tabor for the Transfiguration church, reached by winding shuttle. Close at the Jordan River baptismal site.
Married couples may renew their vows at Cana; renewal of baptismal promises at the Jordan River.
Day 5: Galilee to Jerusalem via the Jordan Valley
Journey south through the Jordan Valley, pausing at Jericho (Mount of Temptation views) and the Qumran caves of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Float in the Dead Sea — allow time to change and rinse. Ascend to Jerusalem for a first, moving view of the Holy City.
Read the Psalms of Ascent as the coach climbs to Jerusalem; prayer of arrival overlooking the city.
Day 6: Jerusalem — Mount of Olives
Begin atop the Mount of Olives for the panorama over the Old City, then walk the Palm Sunday road down to Dominus Flevit and the Garden of Gethsemane with its ancient olive trees and the Church of All Nations. Visit St Peter in Gallicantu. Reserve the afternoon for stillness.
A Holy Hour of quiet prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane after the crowds thin.
Day 7: Jerusalem — the Via Dolorosa
The heart of the pilgrimage: pray the Stations of the Cross along the Via Dolorosa through the Old City, ending at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre — Calvary and the empty tomb. Lines can be long, so allow a full morning. Later, the Western Wall and the Jewish Quarter.
Walk the Way of the Cross as a group, station by station; Mass within the Holy Sepulchre complex (booked early).
Day 8: Bethlehem & Ein Karem
Cross to Bethlehem for the Church of the Nativity and the silver star marking Christ's birthplace, the Shepherds' Field, and the Milk Grotto. Afternoon at Ein Karem — the Visitation and the birthplace of John the Baptist. Expect queues at the Nativity grotto.
Mass at the Shepherds' Field chapel; pray the Magnificat at the Church of the Visitation.
Day 9: Mount Zion & departure
A final morning on Mount Zion: the Upper Room (Cenacle) of the Last Supper and Pentecost, and the Dormition Abbey. Free time for last prayers or shopping before the transfer to the airport.
Closing Mass at or near the Upper Room, with a renewal of the group's faith commitment before flying home.
