We will pick you up from your hotel in Tel Aviv, Netanya, Herzliya, or Jerusalem and embark on a day filled with history and spirituality contrasted against the modern-day city of Jerusalem.
You will have a view of the Mount of Olives and Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus spent his last night before the crucifixion. You will exit the bus and enter the walls of the Old City by foot.
You will take the narrow winding streets through the Armenian and Jewish Quarters. You will walk the excavated Byzantine-era Cardo road which is dated at 1,500 years old.
You will proceed to the Kotel, also known as the Western Wall or the Wailing Wall.
Many mistakes this location for the holiest place in Judaism, however that would be the Temple Mount.
The Western Wall is the closest place to the Temple Mount where Jews are allowed to pray.
This is a site where modesty is observed.
The men and women have different sections, and you may approach the wall to offer your prayers.
Feel the ancient stones beneath your fingertips and feel free to place handwritten notes between the cracks.
Many share the custom of walking backwards from the Kotel, so as not to turn their back to it.
After this, you will continue on to another meaningful experience for many: walking the Via Dolorosa, which is known as the path that Jesus walked during the crucifixion and is marked by the Stations of the Cross. You will end this portion of the tour at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where Jesus was crucified, buried, and is believed by Christians to have been resurrected.
Following this portion of the tour, you will proceed to Yad Vashem, where you will explore a more recent event in history: The Holocaust. Whereas many Holocaust museums across the country leave people in despair, Yad Vashem’s final message is one of hope and looking to the future, ending on a balcony with a panoramic view of Jerusalem.
Please note that on Saturday’s and Jewish holidays, Yad Vashem is closed. Thus, on these days you will instead visit the Tomb of King David, the Room of the Last Supper, and Dormition Abbey.
After your tour, you will be returned to your point of departure.
