After a year filled with quarantines, travel restrictions, and lifestyle changes, I am sure I am not the only travel enthusiast who is really looking forward to turning the page on the year 2020. In an effort to brighten my own spirits, and hopefully yours as well by getting your mind on happier things like traveling, I decided to give an early preview of the big trip that I am planning for the year 2021. As you probably figured out from the title, I am planning a big trip to the Middle East next year and I could not be more excited. That is why I have decided to share this post on my Middle East travel plans.

In addition to the Holy Land, we plan on seeing the Great Pyramids, Petra, and some of the other notable highlights of this amazing region of the world. Seeing the Holy Land and the Rose City Of Petra have been dreams of my father’s for years, so it will be great to be able to see him fulfill those dreams and to do it with him.

As many frequent visitors to my blog know, I had plans this year to visit Portugal and Greece that got postponed because of COVID-19. In fact, many of my travel plans for 2020 got changed because of the pandemic. If you would like to read about what I had planned for 2020 versus what traveling I was actually able to do in this pandemic, I have included a few articles that I wrote below for you to review. The plan is to still make it to Portugal and Greece at some point, but I am prioritizing this trip so that I can go with my family.

READ MORE:
My Travel Bucket List – 2020 Edition

READ MORE:
Summer National Parks Road Trip

In this Middle East travel plans post, I am going to outline some of the top things that we would like to see while touring Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and Egypt. This will be the first of many posts that I create on the subject as I begin the planning process for our trip. If you have been to the area and have some suggestions for us, I would absolutely LOVE to hear them. I would be especially interested in hearing which tour company you used and what your experience was like. Not only will the information help me plan my trip, but I am sure that other readers would be greatly appreciative as well!

Israel and Palestine

For many travel enthusiasts, visiting the Holy Land is near the top of their bucket list. Regardless of your faith, this area of the world is one of the most historically important and culturally rich parts of the world. That’s why, when I started putting together some ideas for my Middle East travel plans, the Holy Land was near the top of the list. One of the countries that we plan on visiting when we visit the Holy Land is Israel. To be able to see the important religious sites of three of the world’s most popular religions would be a deeply moving travel experience. I have accumulated a list of the places that I would like to see when I visit below for you to review. If you have any additional recommendations, I would love to hear them!

• The Temple Mount (Jerusalem)
• The Western Wall (Jerusalem)
• Qasr el Yahud (Jerusalem)
• Al-Aqsa Mosque (Jerusalem)
• The Southern Wall (Jerusalem)
• Mount Zion (Jerusalem)
• Mosque of Omar (Jerusalem)
• Four Sephardic Synagogues (Jerusalem)
• Dome of the Ascension (Jerusalem)
• Via Dolorosa (Jerusalem)
• Western Wall Tunnels (Jerusalem)
• The Tomb of Samuel – Nebi Samuel (Jerusalem)
• Church of Holy Sepulchre (Jerusalem)
• Mount of Olives (Jerusalem)
• Dome of the Rock (Jerusalem)
• Jaffa (Tel Aviv)
• Masada (Southern District of Israel)
• Baha’i Shrine and Gardens (Haifa)
• Church of the Nativity (Bethlehem)
• Church of Saint Catherine (Bethlehem)
• Herodium (Bethlehem)
• The Church of Annunciation (Galilee)
• Mary’s Well (Galilee)
• Mount Tabor (Galilee)
• The Church of Saint Joseph (Galilee)
• Greek Catholic Synagogue Church (Galilee)
• The House of Peter (Sea of Galilee)
• The Sea of Galilee (Sea of Galilee)
• Mount of Beatitudes (Sea of Galilee)
• Tabgha (Sea of Galilee)
• Basilica of the Annunciation (Nazareth)
• Yad Vashem (Mount Herzl)
• Kfar Hana

Jordan

Another destination in the Middle East that I have long been part of my Middle East travel plans is the country of Jordan. Not only are there a lot of holy sites to tour in Jordan, but it also has some archeological sites and landscapes that are world-renown. In particular, I am very excited about seeing Wadi Rum and the Rose City of Petra. Wadi Rum, which is also known as the Valley of the Moon, is a large valley that has been cut into the sandstone and granite in southern Jordan. It is a spectacularly beautiful landscape that I absolutely cannot wait to photograph. I am also very excited to visit Petra, which is one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. I cannot wait to take a tour of this amazing place and photograph some of the most popular spots. I will definitely be creating a photography prep guides for these amazing places in Jordan and visitor guides as soon as I get back from visiting them.

Egypt

The final destination that is part of my Middle East travel plans that we will be exploring in the Middle East is one of the most renown travel locations in the world. Egypt is a country that is extremely rich in both its history and its culture and I am beyond thrilled to be able to visit during this trip. In addition to the Great Pyramids, which is one of the Original Seven Wonders of the World, I am also very excited to be able to tour Cairo and its amazing museums, and take a cruise on the infamous Nile River. Again, I will be posting a lot of great information about what we plan on seeing in Egypt when I start to do the planning for this trip. Also, like I am doing with the sites in Jordan, I will also be publishing photography guides and visitor guides for the top sites in Egypt in the coming months as well. So please, keep a look out for those articles if you are interested!

Don’t Forget to Subscribe to My Adventures!