Jerusalem & Bethlehem Full-Day Private Guided Tour from Tel Aviv

Overloaded with churches and home to the oldest continually used cemetery in the world, the Mount of Olives holds particular interest to religious pilgrim travelers to Jerusalem, but even the non-devout can appreciate the spectacular Old City panoramas from the peak. This sacred hill is believed to be the place where God will begin raising the dead on Judgement Day. For Christian believers, this is also where Jesus ascended to heaven after his crucifixion and subsequent resurrection. The Church of the Ascension on the top of the mountain dates from 1910 and has the best views across Jerusalem. Walking down the slope, you come to the Church of the Pater Noster built next to the site where, according to tradition, Jesus instructed his disciples. Farther down, the Church of Dominus Flevit is claimed to be built over the site where Jesus wept for Jerusalem, and farther along is the onion-domed Russian Church of Mary Magdalene.

Temple Mount

Follow in the footsteps of centuries of pilgrims, & enter one of the holiest sanctuaries on Earth. Lauded by both Jews and Muslims, this is the site where Abraham (father of all three monotheistic faiths) is said to have offered his son up as a sacrifice to God, where Solomon built the First Temple for the Ark of the Covenant, and where the Prophet Muhammad is said to have ascended to heaven during his early years of preaching Islam. Haram Al-Sharif is a place of deep significance (& contention over ownership) for those of faith. The wide plaza, above the old city, is centered around the glittering Dome of the Rock, which is Jerusalem's most iconic landmark. Beneath the golden dome is the sacred stone both Jews and Muslims believe to be where Abraham offered his son to God and where Muslims also believe the Prophet Muhammad began his journey to heaven. The southern side of the plaza is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque. First established in 705 CE, it's among the oldest mosques in the world.

For Christian pilgrims, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is Jerusalem's holiest site and is said to have been built on the site where Jesus was crucified. The site for the church was picked by Saint Helena–mother to Constantine the Great–during her tour of the Holy Land. She was the one to announce to the Byzantine world that this spot was the Calvary (or Golgotha) of the gospels. The original church (built in 335 CE) was destroyed by 1009, and the grand church you see now dates from the 11th century. Although often heaving with pilgrims from across the world, the church interior is an opulently beautiful piece of religious architecture. This is the ending point for the Via Dolorosa pilgrimage, and the last five Stations of the Cross are within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre itself. The interior contains various holy relics, and the quarters inside the church are owned by different Christian denominations.