Israel & Jordan 2025 | Best of the Holy Land | Dr. Frank Turek

If taking the group airfare, your flights depart New York/JFK nonstop on Royal Jordanian 8:20 PM.

You will arrive in Amman at 2:30 PM, transferring to the Kempinski Ishtar Dead Sea. You will arrive early enough to enjoy a beautiful sunset and welcome. Enjoy the evening with a spa treatment or warm soak to refresh from the long flight. The Kempinski Ishtar Dead Sea Resort is the finest hotel in all of Jordan. Located on the Dead Sea, it has a beautiful view of both Israel and Qumran.

You will have breakfast at the hotel. You may choose to rest or prefer to swim in the Dead Sea or a massage or treatment this morning. You will depart the hotel at 11:00 AM. Quickly, you will see the Bible come alive. You will arrive at the Land of Reuben, the Arnon River (Deut 12:24-37, Joshua 12, Numbers 21) at Wadi Mujib or the border of Moab. Next, rarely seen Bab edh-Drhra – Sodom with its 20,000 tombs near the Dead Sea. You are in the area near where Lot and his family lived. You will continue to the Southern part of the Dead Sea and visit the active archeological site of Zoar (Lot’s city of refuge). It is important to note how and why it is believed that the only survivors of Sodom and Gomorrah escaped to this city. You will continue south coming into the area of Bozrah, Isaiah 63:1-6 and Micah 2:12. Bozrah prophetically links to Petra as the place of not only the Israelites past refuge during the Exodus but the future times of trouble. Petra is your final destination and goal on your southern journey today. As you arrive in the area of Petra, you will first stop at Wadi Musa and see the site of the second Exodus miracle of Moses where the earth opened to produce life-giving water for the Israelites. You will overnight at the beautiful Movenpick.

You are in ancient Petra, a city with distinctive, colorful, rose-colored, walls, which was the capital of Edom. Petra is also known as Selah and Mount Seir where God sent Esau who claimed this wilderness for his family. The unfaithful children of Israel were NOT to enter The Promised Land (besides Caleb and Joshua), so many of them died here during the remaining 38 years of the Exodus. This mysterious enclave of tombs and water sources has everything the Israelites needed for their future stay, and have had everything for their past stay. Historically and prophetically, you will be involved in discussions of these topics during an hour-long in-depth walking tour. Towards the end of the day, your focus will be turned to the last portion of the Siq, which became home to the Early Church – see their baptismal and simple churches. After a spectacular lunch in the basin, you will be driven to the Arabah and see the area where the Israelites journeyed through Sier and Kadesh. Afterward, you will cross the border into Israel and arrive in Jerusalem before dinner.  You will check into your lodging—the Leonardo Boutique Luxury Hotel near Jaffa Gate.  [BLD]   

October 7: You will have time to sleep late this morning and enjoy a leisurely breakfast. Eli Shukron joins your tour this morning. Your first visit will be the important Mount of Olives and then you will walk with your group down Palm Sunday Road. At the bottom, you will enter a quiet private area of the Garden of Gethsemane (where Jesus wept) and enjoy a special time of worship and teaching with Frank. Afterward, you will take the path along Absalom’s Pillar and through the Kidron Valley to see a different view of the City of David, Silwan, and the walls of the Old City. You will walk across the hanging bridge and come to the simple Peace Garden for a picnic lunch. The garden is very near the place where Judas hung himself. It is here that the community turned an area near the Field of Blood into a place of peaceful solitude. You will then take a short walk through the Old City and enjoy dinner at Notre Dame, which has a spectacular view of the Old City Walls at night.

You will have time to sleep late this morning and enjoy a leisurely breakfast. Eli Shukron joins your tour this morning. Your first visit will be the important Mount of Olives and then you will walk with your group down Palm Sunday Road. At the bottom, you will enter a quiet private area of the Garden of Gethsemane (where Jesus wept) and enjoy a special time of worship and teaching with Frank. Afterward, you will take the path along Absalom’s Pillar and through the Kidron Valley to see a different view of the City of David, Silwan, and the walls of the Old City. You will walk across the hanging bridge and come to the simple Peace Garden for a picnic lunch. The garden is very near the place where Judas hung himself. It is here that the community turned an area near the Field of Blood into a place of peaceful solitude. You will then take a short walk through the Old City and enjoy dinner at Notre Dame, which has a spectacular view of the Old City Walls at night.

After breakfast, you will leave the hotel for one of our most exciting visits—the City of David. Eli will guide you through the intricacies of this archaeological treasure. You will be able to see the current work and learn what the future may hold. At the end of your visit, you will visit Temple Zero, the place where Abraham would have paid the tithe to Melchizedek. You will then venture outside to the Pool of Siloam. During your time on this section of archeology, you will also visit Hezekiah’s Tunnel and then the Southern Steps and Archaeological Park. You will enjoy a special lunch at the railway station. You will end your day with a visit to the Israel Museum and the Shrine of the Book. Your group will dine together this evening.

Eli and Frank will escort and accompany you up to Temple Mount this morning. You’ll be able to stand beside the Golden Gates – where our Messiah, King Jesus, will be entering. After your time here, you will visit the site of the Miracles at the Pools of Bethesda and then have a time of solitude for yourself at the Western Wall, which is the remaining wall of The Temple. Then you will have free time to have a bit of a break and lunch on your own to enjoy an Israeli traditional lunch sandwich. Lastly, you will have a unique viewpoint of the city as you walk with your group along a portion of the Ramparts of The Old City. Eli will explain to you precisely where Herod would have spoken with Jesus at the time of his pronouncement of death. There will be time to visit the traditional Church of Holy Sepulchre and Jewish Quarter with Eli as he provides information regarding their key antiquities. You will have dinner on your own this evening, although the group remains together. We will walk to the Yehuda market where you may select your own dinner. This visit will be something you will always remember. It is a huge fruit-and-flower market in which every delicacy of the Mediterranean is represented, accompanied by lively music and wonderful fellowship and camaraderie. You will overnight in Jerusalem tonight.

This morning you will embark on a bus journey to visit the very important site of Shechem. It is here that you will see the Joshua standing stone, see the mountains of Ebal and Gerazim, which means “blessings and curses.” Afterward, you will continue to Shiloh with its momentous archaeological findings—both past and present. Your lunch stop will be at a lovely, nearby winery. Late this afternoon, you will enter Bethlehem to visit the caves of the Shepherd’s Fields. You will worship as a group in the caves and then have a special dinner at a restaurant called The Tents, in Bethlehem. You will then return to Jerusalem overnight.

You will join the group on the bus again this morning and drive to Gilgal. Gilgal, which is close to Jericho, Ai, and the place where Joshua entered The Promised Land was the base location for the Israelites for all of their early battles in The Land. It is between Jericho and Gilgal that Joshua was told by God to remove his sandals, as he was “on Holy ground.”  You will have a unique and special visit to see Rahab’s wall in Jericho and, schedule permitting, visit a reclusive botanist who creates the oils for the temple. You will stop for lunch along the way and then drive to the Qumran overlook and have an afternoon visit at Masada. You will then be driven to what will be your beautiful home for the next three nights, Sea of Galilee The Setai with its private, plunge pools. You will be served dinner upon arrival.

You will have time on the lake this morning together with your group. You will have breakfast at the hotel and then be driven to Magdala where Eli will explain this ancient Jewish synagogue. Afterward, you will be driven to the site of the Nazareth overlook onto the plains of Armageddon and Megiddo.  You will have lunch on your own today. (***Note: In the event that the Golan Heights is opened to tourism once again, you may also be visiting Caesarea Philippi). You will return to the Sea of Galilee for dinner and overnight.

After breakfast, you will depart for Capernaum, which is the town where Jesus spent a great amount of his ministry time. You will visit the Mount of Beatitudes for a teaching by Frank and Eli. You will stop along the shore for a fish lunch and then you will board the boat for a time of worship and fellowship on the Sea of Galilee. On your return to the Setai, you will stop at a delightful winery, followed by dinner at the Setai Hotel.

You will have breakfast prior to your crossing back into Jordan with your group late this morning. You will visit the rarely seen, yet important, site of Deir Alla (Biblical Succoth) where the Bal’am Inscription was found. You will also be very near the place where Jacob wrestled with the angel in Gilead. Next, you will have lunch, followed by a spectacular visit to Mount Nebo to see into The Promised Land, see the mount of Baal Peor, Shittim where the Tabernacle sat, and view the Mediterranean Sea and the Dead Sea in the distance. There will be a discussion of the importance of the 3 mountains that Bal’am was requested to curse Israel, located right below us at Shittim. The scripture will come alive before your very eyes. You will then visit Bethany Beyond the Jordan where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist, see the cave where Jesus spent time with his Apostles, and stand in the field of Elijah where he was swept into heaven and where Elisha took over his mantle. You will have a late, farewell luncheon at Tawaheen and then be driven to the airport for your 8:30 PM flight home (quick change of airplane in Doha).

You will arrive at New York/JFK at 9:00 AM.

The optional extension flight departs Amman to Cairo at  8:10 PM, arriving in Cairo at 9:30 PM. Overnight at the beautiful Four Seasons Hotel on the Nile River.

You will have breakfast this morning, and meet your Biblical archaeological, Bible scholar, and Egyptologist guide. You will depart from the hotel this morning and visit the original Egyptian Museum where you will develop a strong understanding of the timeline and the Patriarchs’ influential visits to Egypt. Next, you will be driven a short distance to the nearby Grand Egyptian Museum for lunch. After lunch, you will visit the magnificent museum to see some of its new and important artifacts, one of which is a statue of what is said to be Moses and his birth mother. Your day will be completed by visiting one of the oldest antiquities in Egypt – the Pillar of On. You will discover its source and a secret message by Yahweh. You will dine as a group at our hotel this evening and have time to relax.

Today, you will travel to Memphis, Sakkara, and Fayoum – the lands of Joseph and Biblical antiquity. It is here that the Book of Genesis comes alive! You will have an opportunity to walk amongst the straw bricks of Joseph’s storehouses and see the canal and lake that he built. Your time near Memphis and Sakkara includes a rare visit to the mysterious Serapeum where it is said that the Nephilim were entombed long ago. You will have a break for lunch and then enter the also New National Museum of Egyptian Civilization, where all the Mummies from Biblical times may be viewed. You will dine this evening, once again, at our lovely hotel.

You will have an interesting drive through the countryside and alongside the Nile River this morning. First stop, Tanis: This is the land of Goshen where the Hebrews lived as slaves. You will see the very early archaeology and understand the very inception of the Exodus route. Your break for lunch will be at the Suez Canal – on the Bitter Lakes and entrance to the Red Sea.  You will return to Cairo to prepare for your flight home tomorrow.

Early this morning, you will transfer to the Cairo airport for your nonstop flight to New York/JFK at 6:20 AM, arriving in New York the same day at 10:55 AM.