Fifteen hundred travelers have walked a newly charted 111-kilometer trail from the Mediterranean coast to the Jaffa Gate following an initiative backed by Israel’s Tourism Ministry.
The Way to Jerusalem route leads visitors across a five-day path from Jaffa Port designed to evoke centuries of pilgrimage, The Times of Israel reported. Organizers trace paths historically used by Jewish travelers during the First and Second Temple periods, Christian Crusaders, and Muslim pilgrims of the Ottoman era.
Former security official Golan Rice conceived the project after walking segments of Europe’s Camino de Santiago network. While the route appeals primarily to Christian visitors from abroad, organizers built the path to accommodate travelers of various faiths.
“The connotation of the word ‘pilgrim’ is Christian in Israel today, but we are aiming for a journey where Muslims, Christians and Jews can feel attached along the same path,” Rice said. “This is the true way to Jerusalem.”
Walking Through Central Israel
A group of 13 journalists and travel operators representing nine countries and territories traversed the itinerary in late October 2026. Their route passed through Jaffa, Rishon LeZion, Ramle, Tel Gezer, Latrun, Abu Ghosh, and Ein Kerem.
Participants stayed in hotels and skipped specific segments due to time limits and physical demands. For Father Joshan Rodriguez, a Catholic priest from the Archdiocese of Bombay, India, the trek marked his inaugural journey to Israel.
“I didn’t know anything about Israel before this trip — or at least the modern Israel, not the biblical version that we talk about in religion,” Rodriguez told The Times of Israel. “This was a beautiful interreligious experience as we walked along a path taken by Arabs, Jews and Christians across the centuries.”
Rice and guide Yael Tarasiuk Nevo structured the trek around simplicity, humility, and gratitude. Travelers collected stamps in trail booklets at synagogues, monasteries, mosques, and local cafes while bypassing commercial hubs like Jerusalem’s Mahane Yehuda market.
Finishing the Journey
On the final day of the hike on October 29, 2026, Tarasiuk Nevo instructed her group to remove their shoes and pour water over their feet at a central Jerusalem rest stop before entering the Old City in silence.
Upon reaching the Jaffa Gate, participants received their final passport stamps surrounded by Tourism Ministry officials and photographers. A concluding ceremony followed at the Tower of David Museum.
“This is supposed to be the culmination of our journey, but I feel like with the closing of this trip, something new has started,” Rodriguez told The Times of Israel. “This has opened up a whole new world for me, and there is so much more to discover.”
“Arriving in Jerusalem itself was not the destination,” he said. “It’s a starting point.”
