We wish to thank Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia for some of the information on our web pages. We share images and information with Wikipedia. We also donate to Wikipedia, & would suggest that others do the same. Samaria, or Shomron was an ancient city in the Land of Israel. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Israel in the 9th century BC and 8th century BC. The ruins of the city are located in the Samaria mountains and are under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority. It is also known as; Sebastia, Sebastiya, Sebastiyeh, Sebastos, Sebustiyeh, Shamir, Shomeron, or the "house of Khomry." When we study the geography & history of Samaria, we learn that the hill that Samaria is located upon, was in the tribal territory of Manasseh, but not significantly inhabited, until the time of King Omri (Ahab's father). From (1 King 16:24-28), we learn that Omri bought the Hill of Shemer for two talents of silver and made this his capital. Then, for about 160 years, the city was the capital of the northern kingdom, becomong about 150 acres in size, (about the same size as Jerusalem in Hezekiah's time). Since Samaria is located on a hill, with very steep slopes on all sides, it was able to withstand numerous sieges by the Arameans (2 King 6), the Assyrians for about 3 years (2 King 17), and the Hasmoneans for one year. Then from (1 King 16:32; 2 King 10:18) we learn that His son Ahab was married to the Phoenician princess Jezebel, and they made Baal worship widespread in Israel. Ahab built a temple of Baal here which was later destroyed by Jehu, as well as the priests of Baal. During the time of Alexander the Great, a tower which connected to a Hellenistic wall, protected the acropolis. The tower is considered to be the finest Hellenistic monument surviving in Palestine. Then Herod the Great, rebuilt the city and named it after the emperor Augustus. (Augustus' name in Greek is Sebaste). Six hundred columns lined a half-mile street of Herodian Sebaste. It also had a Roman forum. Along the edge of the forum, archaeologists excavated a Roman basilica. Herod also built a large stadium on the northern slope of the city. On the acropolis of Samaria, and upon the top of the location of several of the earlier administrative buildings of the Israelites, Herod the Great built a monumental temple dedicated to Sebaste. During the process, he destroyed much of the earlier remains of the Israelite period.

The easy way to get to Samaria or Sebaste, Israel, is to fly into the Ben Gurion International Airport. The airport is at the junction of the Haifa, Jerusalem, Dan, and Tel Aviv metropolitan areas. The Ben Gurion International Airport, (IATA: TLV, ICAO: LLBG), also referred to by its Hebrew acronym Natbag, is the largest and busiest international airport in Israel. It was named the best airport in the Middle East by the ACI organisation.[ The airport is located near the city of Lod, 15 km (9 mi) southeast of Tel Aviv. It is operated by the Israel Airports Authority, a government-owned corporation that manages all public airports and border crossings in the State of Israel. The Ben Gurion International Airport is considered one of the world's most secure airports, with a security force that includes both police officers and IDF soldiers. There are several hotels in or near Jerusalem. There are several Guided Tour Agencies offering standard city, and historical tours of Jerusalem, Israel and the surrounding areas. After arranging your flight we would suggest getting your hotel and then letting them arrange tours of the area for you. If you call the hotels Concierge Services ahead of your arrival, all of this can be pre-arranged for you. I do this all the time. It is safe and it works!!! I have never experienced a problem doing it this way! I have links to Priceline.Com on our page so that you can arrange your flight and hotel in the Jerusalem, Israel area.