For Christians like myself, Israel is a place that is near and dear to our hearts. However, for those that have not had the opportunity to travel to the Holy Land there are many aspects to Israel that may come as a surprise.

I had an opportunity to sit down with Larry Ritter, Founder and President of Christian Holy Land Tours. He shared exciting insight about Israel and let us in on why he is so passionate about Israel. Our conversation was as follows:

Honnie Korngold: Larry, please tell me how you started your company?
Larry Ritter: It’s a personal story. Back in the early eighties my wife and I decided to take a trip to the roots of our faith and go to the Holy Land, to Israel. We came back from that trip with our lives changed. It was an extremely emotional experience. One day, at our kitchen table, we decided to take a trip to the Holy Land with the congregation that we belonged to so we could share what we experienced with others. A short time thereafter we fell in love with what we were doing and we formed a company called Israel Tours. Later, we expanded into Christian Holy Land Tours because we found that more and more of our friends wanted to go to the Holy Land. We were able to do that with our congregation and many congregations in our area.

Honnie Korngold: So what was it about that first experience that really touched your heart?
Larry Ritter: First of all, to see that prophecy was being fulfilled, that there was a state of Israel and the Jews were returning home. And it also touched my heart to walk in the footsteps of our Lord. To walk where Jesus had walked. It really brought home that the real guidebook to the Holy Land was the Bible - the Bible itself. No matter where you open the Bible, you could find that place within the Holy Land. And that’s what made it a life-changing experience for me.

Honnie Korngold: So when you came back from that first trip, what did you share about what you’d experienced there?
Larry Ritter: I experienced the engagement of my faith to really understand the depth of what was inside me and to know that what I believed in was real.

Honnie Korngold: How did you share your passion for taking people to Israel?
Larry Ritter: I came back with such enthusiasm for what I had seen. There’s a Hebrew word called meshugine, which means a little bit crazy. I became a little bit crazy for the Holy Land and I had to share that experience with everybody. I don’t think that without visiting the Holy Land you really feel and understand the extent of what our faith is.

Honnie Korngold: So for someone who’s never been to the Holy Land before, and for those that might be a little apprehensive, what would you say to encourage them that this is really something that they have to do?
Larry Ritter: Well, first I would let them know that no tourist has ever been hurt in the Holy Land. Everyone that’s gone has come back with a wonderful experience and has come back safely. There is no safer place than the Holy Land because your Lord protects you when you’re in the Holy Land.

Honnie Korngold: There’s so much to see there, can you give a few suggestions for someone taking their first trip to go to Israel?
Larry Ritter: I think that by going to the Holy Land you need to not only experience the historical and the biblical, but you need to experience the modern state of Israel and see the prophecy coming true and see what the land of Israel has contributed to the world. Whether it’s in the sciences and agriculture, you also need to see where Jesus walked. You need to see Bethlehem. You need to see Nazareth. You need to see the Sea of Galilee and experience where all the miracles took place. Going to the Holy Land is an experience that opens your eyes to what is truth and what we believe.

Honnie Korngold: What would you say is one of the biggest misconceptions that someone might have about taking a trip to Israel?
Larry Ritter: I think a big misconception is the cost. It is not expensive at all to go to the Holy Land. But I think that people are wary because they feel they won’t be safe. That is the biggest drawback to getting people to go. What you see on the news, what you see on the cable channels is not the way it is there. Life goes on in Israel, in the Holy Land every single day. People go and come and live normal lives. This is something you need to see for yourself. If you speak to anybody who’s been to the Holy Land they will tell you that: you must go, and that it’s a safe place to go.

Honnie Korngold: What would someone experience when coming in contact with the people of Israel - someone that’s taking a trip and is going for the first time?
Larry Ritter: You’ll experience warm, friendly people who love Americans, who love the Jewish and Christians in America, who support Israel, and who will open their homes, their lives and their friendship up to you. Israel is the most warm, friendly, courteous, and hospitable country in the world.

Honnie Korngold: Give me an example of a traveler’s typical first two days on a trip?
Larry Ritter: Well, after the flight, we give you a little time to adjust and orientate yourself. So the first day we normally bring you into the Holy Land and then we go to the modern city of Tel Aviv, which is celebrating its hundredth anniversary this coming year. Then, we give you a city tour and next the Port of Jaffa, which was the entrance point for millions of pilgrims over the centuries. Get orientated, have a welcome dinner and relax the first evening and the next day we head up north. We go to Caesarea, Haifa, Nazareth, and all the way up to the Sea of Galilee. That would be a normal first two days in Israel.

Honnie Korngold: What highlights do people share with you about their trips.
Larry Ritter: Many people have an epiphany of their belief when they come to Israel. People can’t believe that Israel is such a modern place. Israel is a very, very modern state, but a lot of people come expecting to see camels in the streets and desert. Getting to Jerusalem is the highlight for everybody. Going to the old city of Jerusalem, walking the alleys and streets of old Jerusalem, going to the Western Wall, going to where the holy temple was at one time is a wonderful experience that people really enjoy.

Honnie Korngold: Travel with Spirit encourages people to seek mountaintop experiences with God. Can you recall a recent a trip where you witnessed that first hand?
Larry Ritter: I’ve had many trips where people go with their minister or their pastor who have had life-changing experiences on top of Mount Gilboa, which has historic significance. And on Mount of Olives in Jerusalem people have eye-opening experiences. It’s throughout the country; it’s not just one place. Different places touch different people at different times and I can guarantee you that anybody who goes is going to have that life-changing experience. And that experience of reaching and touching and speaking directly to God. After all, you’re in the home office!

Honnie Korngold: Can you share some of the recreational opportunities available in Israel.
Larry Ritter: In Israel, you have the opportunity to swim in the Med, The Dead, the Red and the Kinneret. Israel has any type of recreational activity you might think of. What we like to do is take you on the mighty Jordan River - a little canoeing or rowing down the Jordan River is a great experience, but you will have an opportunity to swim, to run in the footsteps of Jesus if you’re a runner, or just walk into the city, but there are all types of recreational activities in the state of Israel.

Honnie Korngold: Are there things you offer on your tours that enable people to experience something as they would have in biblical times?
Larry Ritter: We give people an opportunity to experience how people lived in biblical times by eating in the desert as Bedouins did and still do, and as our ancestors did while traveling across the desert, also in Jerusalem there’s a biblical evening where people serve in costume and we get to eat with our hands - which the kids really love - and we get to taste a biblical Middle Eastern dinner.

Honnie Korngold: What make Christian Holy Land Tours unique?
Larry Ritter: What sets our company apart is we are a family-owned business. My wife, my daughter, and myself are active in the business on a daily basis. On our staff, we have an educator who lives in the biblical city of Tacoa, who custom designs the itineraries. We are constantly updating our programs based on new discoveries in the Holy Land. And new discoveries are a daily occurrence as well. But what sets us apart is that we care and we want you to have the experience of your lifetime and share it with others. This is a mission and a love in our lives that we must share the Holy Land with as many as we possibly can.