Odyssey of the Sea 88 March 2024 From Ft Lauderdale As you are aware, the past several trips have been on the rivers and coasts of the US. It is by far my favorite way to cruise. But each winter, I get into the Caribbean for a bit of sun. This year I booked on the Odyssey out of Ft. Lauderdale. Odyssey is a huge cruise ship. Royal Caribbean makes very large ships, Odyssey is 4th in size in their fleet, 1138 ft with 4198 passengers and 1600+ crew. It is big as an aircraft carrier. The Cruise industry is Booming as is Florida. I flew into Ft Lauderdale and stayed over on the beach. The marinas next to the hotel were full of multimillion dollar, super private yachts. Spectacular, Ft. Lauderdale has about $100. Million in new Construction and more super yachts than I have ever seen. The poor people ride around in a Mercedes the rest have Rolls and Bentley’s with a few Lamborgini’s. The Odyssey is a full blown recreation park with: Rock Climbing, Wave Runner, Bumper Cars, 2 Swimming Pools, a full Gym, Sky Diving, Tennis Courts and Water Slides. All of these are on the 14th-16th decks. Under the Recreation area is a full hotel with about 12 dining facilities. If you are into recreation, this is the way to go. The ship is spectacular, the food and crew are excellent. I had a cabin on deck 11 all the way forward over looking the bow. It was an excellent location- the best I have ever had on a huge ship. The next AM it is off to Odyssey. In past years, it took 21/2 hours to board. This time it took 20 minutes. The new terminal is full of technology and every thing moves fast. The ship itself must have 100 million dollars worth of the best technology. From the moment you drive up, you know this is going to be a spectacular trip. We settled in and went to a very calm Atlantic Ocean on a very comfortable Odyssey. This was an unusual trip we had 4 days at sea, a visit to the Royal Caribbean Private Island and stops in Aruba and Curacao just 18 miles from South America. It was a very young crowd with probably 500 little kids-Note kids under 10 travel free. I considered the passengers a herd. They spent the day mobbed on the recreation decks. If you wanted to get around, you moved around through the hotel. Our first stop was the private island. The herd trooped off to spend a day on even better recreation sites. From there two days at sea. After 1000 at sea we arrived in the deep Southern Caribbean at Aruba. Aruba is a treat. Clean, Friendly, Beautiful and prosperous. The island has nicknamed themselves the United States of the Caribbean. It looks a lot like Ft Lauderdale. Did you know back in the early 1900's the mined 300 million dollars worth of gold in Aruba. They built a fort where they processed the gold and armed it to keep the pirates out. The Atlantic side has a rough, rocky coast which is the National Park. It was an excellent stop. The next day was Curacao which is a spectacular, beautiful island. The roads are lined with huge bougainvillea bushes. They are 15-20 ft high and red, pink and gold. The area is beautiful and prosperous. Local guides really showed off the island. Then off again for 2 days on a calm Atlantic Ocean, the heard eating drinking and sleeping while their kids ran around the recreation decks. We arrived in Ft Lauderdale at the start of College Week. Since we had time to kill for a 4pm flight we went out to the Everglades park for a ride on the air boats and to watch alligator wrestling. At noon were in the airport- it was a Zoo. Thousands of college kids, screwed up flights and a mob. The PHL plane was delayed 2-3 hours, we changed gates 4 times and it finally arrived 40 minutes after it was to leave Ft. Lauderdale. They turned the flight around in about 30 minutes then off to PHL- at last. We got into a mobbed PHL and waited for baggage. That too was delayed. Finally to the taxi’s. They were all in use. Happily there was a private Limo available and I came home in style. -30-

This is one of the main churches for Christian pilgrimages. This is where Jesus Christ's path to sacrifice was concentrated, a particularly important fact during the periods when Jerusalem was dominated by Muslim occupation. This church was founded in the 4th century and contains the unction stone and the holy tomb. Most Christian cults are represented here, each with its own altar. There are also holy places that not everyone knows about. Thus, in the second room of the Holy Sepulcher by opening the small window you can touch the rock of Golgotha. Touching the rock is also possible upstairs, under the altar there. Pilgrims touch with articles of clothing the unction stone, soaked with oil and myrrh, where the body of Jesus Christ was prepared for the funeral. Of course, this church - a landmark of Jerusalem, is a "must" for everyone which visit Jerusalem.

Guys it’s wonderful trip ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ i want to give you advice, if you want to buy an souvenir gift just buy olive wood from OLIVART.. ask any souvenir shop in Bethlehem or Jerusalem to give you OLIVART products its very wonderful and all are made buy a christian artist called George Fakouseh he is from Bethlehem

We had a beautiful time. We saw so much. I would recommend to anyone who wants to see and explore Greece and culture. The tour allowed us to experience the ancient history, the highlights of the big and small towns, beaches and attractions. The operation of the tour was great and ensured all went smoothly and that we were able to relax and enjoy the holiday.

We had so much fun! It was wonderful! Our tour director was the best! He was so kind and genuinely caring, patient, knowledgeable, and just a wonderful! Thank you so much from our hearts.

The Mount of Olives is opposite the Temple Mount, which can be seen across the Kidron Valley. Follow in the footsteps of prophets, crusaders and kings. Admire the Old City from the sacred vantage point of this holy mountain, the Mount of Olives. You get a clear view of the Dome of the Rock and the Al Aqsa Mosque. The Mount of Olives will get a clear view of the Jewish cemetery, the oldest and best-known Jewish burial place on Earth.

The Church of the Holy Sepulcher is one of the holiest shrines in Christianity. It is in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. It is usually crowded with believers. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher can be entered from the Via Dolorosa, where Jesus suffered and was taken to Golgotha, where he was crucified. The 4th Century church commemorates the site of Christ's death and Resurrection. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher is a "must see" if you are in Jerusalem.

Nazareth is the childhood home of Jesus. It adjoins the Sea of Galilee. It has many quaint houses. These days, the majority of the population are Muslims, but many Christians also live here. In nearby Capernaum, the ruins of the old synagogue are said to be built on the home of St Peter, of whom Christ said "on this rock I shall build my Church." The Sea of Galilee is in the northern section of Israel, we had a wonderful time, especially following in the Shoes of the Fisherman

Very well organized and eventful trip full of great activities to see and participate in! Loved every minute

Dear Trip Advisor Team, I hope this message finds you well. I wanted to share some feedback regarding a recent tour experience I booked the Bethlehem and Jerusalem Day Biblical Tour from Tel Aviv on 9/18/2023 through Trip Advisor. First and foremost, I'd like to express my trust in Trip Advisor as a reliable platform for travel recommendations and bookings. I eagerly booked a tour that promised to explore the historic sites of Jerusalem, and I was pleased to find that the tour started with a pick-up at the designated location. Our journey began at the Wailing Wall, followed by a visit to the Via Dolorosa. Before heading to the Sepulcher, our guide took us to a Golde City Bazaar Dajani store, which he claimed was not only a convenient restroom stop but also a place to provide complimentary water. He went further to assure us that this particular store was recommended by Israeli tourism authorities, as stated in the pamphlet provided to us. During this stop, I became interested in purchasing a Jerusalem 5-point cross. After some negotiation, I was quoted a price of 3,500.00 shekels, equivalent to $914.79. However, when I requested a receipt for the purchase, I was informed that their receipt machine was out of order. Additionally, I was not offered or asked if I needed VAT documentation. To my disappointment, a few days later, I discovered a charge on my credit card for the exact amount of $3,500.00 from the Bazaar store. This has left me feeling unsettled and concerned about the credibility of the tour operator recommended by Trip Advisor. I'm sharing these details with the sincere hope that Trip Advisor can improve its recommendation process to ensure travelers have a positive and trustworthy experience. Your platform is valued by many, including myself, and I believe that addressing such issues will help maintain the high standard of trust and reliability associated with your brand. Thank you for your attention to this matter, and I look forward to hearing from you soon. Sincerely, Maria

Alessandra was amazing, so very kind, competent and just plain fun. Our local guides was also great. They made a great team and were so very welcoming, caring and supportive. They understanding of the local culture, history, and traditions added a whole new dimension to our travel experience and we could simply relax and immerse myself in the beauty and wonders of the destination.

Our Tour Guide was outstanding. His warm and welcoming demeanor created an inclusive atmosphere, where everyone felt comfortable and excited to explore together. The itinerary was an exciting cultural mix that was very well paced. This will be my travel company of choice from now on!

Worst tour company that we came across! Booked a 4days tour in Athens for a group size of 40 plus and on the day,was picked up by G.O Tour that went round picking other people. Click Tours did not informed us of this change in operator.Worst, on our 2nd day, was informed that another group of 30 people will be joining in for the balance 2 days. We ended up with 60 people in the tour with 1 guide who did not use whisper system. The guide was so long winded and took a long time talking,giving us no time to take photos!! Tour was messy and badly organised! Friend wrote to Click Travel to complain but no reply from them! We felt cheated for the tour!

The tour and our guide were excellent. We also appreciated that operator knows ins and outs of some of the sites, such as the best time to visit them to avoid crowds, good places to eat lunch, etc. Our driver was extremely competent and helpful as well. We enjoyed all of our stops. We loved it.

**TERRIBLE!** Do NOT book with this company! CLICK TOURS cancelled our tour and never contacted us to let us know. We purposely stayed at a hotel that was on their list of pick-up points. At the pick-up time there was plenty of people waiting to be picked up. A van came and did not call our name, so we showed them our tickets and they said that was a different company. The BEIN HARIM TOUR Services picked up their big group on time, but we still sat there just waiting. Funny, I should have known as when I purchased the tour through TripAdvisor I received a very curt (briefly rude) request to complete all the passport information. (NOTE: the website kept dropping the information so it was difficult to know if it went through properly.) When I replied to their request, I also asked a question about what time approximately we could expect to be dropped off at the hotel at the end of the tour. Of course, they never bothered to reply to me. At that point, I should have known something "off" with their customer service. However, still sitting there waiting at 6:30 AM to be picked up for our tour and nobody showed up. No emails were sent. We called their customer service, and nobody answered! So, we just kept calling until we received an answer. They answered after the second or third call and immediately knew who we were even though we never gave them our names. (At that point it was obvious he must not have had enough people signed up to make it worthwhile for him to give the tour.) Conveniently, "he had CoVID, but could reschedule us for tomorrow." Are you kidding me, miraculously I guess he could be healed in less than 24 hours! HORRIBLE! So disappointing as we had one full day in Tel Aviv before leaving on our cruise and we purposely arrived a day early for our tour of Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Do not let this happen to you! **DO NOT BOOK WITH THIS COMPANY!** They could have sent us an email or contacted us through TripAdvisor to advise us, but I think they just wanted to keep our money. We lost our tour, but thankfully booked securely through TripAdvisor we did not loose our money. TripAdvisor should stop doing business with this unreputable company!