Jerusalem Temple Mount & Dome of the Rock Tour

After being picked up from your hotel you’ll be taken to the Mount of Olives where you can enjoy the spectacular views of Jerusalem’s steeples, domes and towers as well as the Old City walls and Temple Mount. Pass by many beautiful churches on the mount on route to Kidron Valley that lies between the Mount of Olives and Old City walls. In Kidron Valley see the magnificent Tomb of Absalom; Tomb of Benei Hezir and the Tomb of Zechariah all dating back to the 1st century.
Continue on to the 16th century Dung Gate where the tour enters the Old City and takes you to Temple Mount, a site held sacred by Christians, Muslims and Jews. It was here that Solomon built the First Temple which was destroyed in 587BC. The Second Temple stood on Temple Mount from 516BC to 70AD. The Temple held the Ark of the Covenant where the ten commandments were kept. Today the mount is home to the magnificent Dome of the Rock built in 687AD; the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam and the Dome of Chains. You can see these impressive structures and learn about Temple Mount’s incredible history. On occasion Temple Mount is closed to visitors, if so the tour will visit the Tower of David instead of Temple Mount.
Next, we visit the Davidson Center an archaeological site alongside Temple Mount. Here you can see excavated artifacts and architectural structures from various historic periods including the First and Second Temple Periods, Byzantine, Muslim and Crusader eras. Among the archeological finds at the Davidson Center are walls from the First Temple Period; steps leading up to Temple Mount; a Second Temple era street; ritual baths and more. The tour comes to an end when you are returned to your hotel.