What is the Journey to Bethlehem experience like?
You will register/check in for your journey in the church. When your tour group is called, you’ll continue outdoors to an interactive Judaean village. You will then join your guide as your journey continues. You will visit the Magi as they follow the Star. You will go into the court of King Herod and bear witness to his evil surmising about the “new” King. You’ll see the faithful shepherds abiding in their fields by night and hear the angel choir as they announce with song the birth of their King. Then, you’ll visit the inn that had no room for Joseph and Mary. You’ll then continue to the stable and see the “babe wrapped in swaddling clothes.” And before your journey ends, you’ll also learn about Jesus’ life and ministry while He lived among us.
Preparing for your Journey
We can’t predict what the weather will be like for our weekend. We normally will hold the outdoor experience unless it is raining, snowing heavily, or it is icy. If it’s cold, windy, or snowing lightly, we’ll still have the outdoor experience. Be sure you dress appropriately for the weather on the evening you come. There is no heat at any of the stations along the journey, and only a few are covered. Wear shoes that are comfortable for standing and walking over uneven ground.
If you are not able to walk over uneven ground or stand for long times, we would suggest that you attend our indoor event on Friday evening. The outdoor event is not easily accessible via wheelchair and there will not be any electric cart option this year.
In the event that weather keeps us from holding the outdoor experiences, we’ll provide one or two indoor versions of the journey that evening. It is still a very powerful story, even inside. If you’ve registered for tickets, we’ll let you know if we cancel an outdoor experience via the email you used to register. You can also check our website that evening to see if we’ll be having the outdoor journey or holding an indoor event.
Free tickets
If you’ve joined us for our JTB experience in the past, you know that it’s a great event that is worth a wait to experience. But this year, we’d like to help make your visit more streamlined. We’re offering free timed tickets for the journey. All you have to do is click the link on the right and you’ll be taken to our ticketing system. You can pick an available time slot(s) that works best for you or your family. Then we ask that you arrive at least 15 minutes before your tour time to allow you time to park and get registered. The tours take about 50 minutes from start to finish, and there are light refreshments served after the tour in the church. If you have young children under three years old, you don’t need to reserve a ticket for them. But we do ask that any children over three have a ticket so that they have room to see and hear throughout the tour.
If you’re bringing a large group (over 10 people), please contact us in advance via email and we’ll work to find tour slots that are close together for your group. Do not try to register with the ticketing system for a large group.
If you would like to join a Spanish tour (the guide will speak Spanish and translate the scenes for you), please contact us directly (via email) and we will let you know what time to come for the Spanish tour. When you email us, let us know if you would like to come on Saturday or Sunday evening.
Si desea unirse a una gira en español (el guía hablará en español y le traducirá las escenas), contáctenos directamente (por correo electrónico) y le informaremos la hora de la gira en español. Cuando nos envíe un correo electrónico, háganos saber si desea venir el sábado o el domingo por la noche.
For further information about tickets and tour timing or if you have any other questions, feel free to email us and we’ll get back to you as quickly as possible.