Three routes
through Outremer.

The principal pilgrim route in the kingdom led from the coastal port of Jaffa (where pilgrim ships from Europe disembarked) inland to Jerusalem, then south to Bethlehem, east to Jericho and the Jordan, and (for those who could afford it) onward to Mount Sinai. The route is short by modern standards but historically dense. Best done as a walking-and-driving combination.

Days 1–2 — Jaffa. The medieval port at the bottom of Old Jaffa; the Crusader-era fortifications visible in the Saint Peter's Monastery area; the Mediterranean coastline.

Day 3 — Drive Jaffa to Jerusalem via Latrun and Abu Ghosh. The Crusader churches at both sites; the Trappist monastery at Latrun overlying the Crusader Toron des Chevaliers; the Crusader church at Abu Ghosh (twelfth century, in remarkable condition, with surviving frescoes; identified in Crusader tradition as Emmaus).

Days 4–6 — Jerusalem. Three full days in the Old City, as the travel guide describes.

Day 7 — Bethlehem. The Crusader-era Basilica of the Nativity (the only major church in the Holy Land never destroyed by Crusader or Muslim violence; the Persians had spared it in 614, and so did every subsequent invader). The associated medieval cloister.

Day 8 — Jericho and the Mount of Temptation.

Day 9 — Qasr el Yahud and the Jordan. The traditional baptism site, on the Jordanian-Israeli border; Crusader-era pilgrim accounts describe this stop in detail.

Day 10 — Return to Jaffa or fly home from Tel Aviv.

The desert frontier of the kingdom — the lordship of Oultrejourdain — is in modern Jordan. The King's Highway, the old caravan road that the Crusader castles overlooked, is still in use as a tourist route. The castles are well-preserved, easy to access, and unjustly under-visited.

Days 1–2 — Amman. Recover; visit the National Archaeological Museum.

Days 3–4 — Kerak. The principal castle of Oultrejourdain. The town below the castle is worth a half-day in its own right.

Day 5 — Shobak (Montreal). The first castle of the lordship.

Days 6–7 — Petra. The Nabataean city; the Crusaders briefly held a small fort there (Wuayra) and an additional fortress at the top of the rock-cut monastery; both are visitable.

Day 8 — Aqaba. The Crusader Île de Graye (now Pharaoh's Island) in the bay is visible from the Egyptian shore. Fly home from Aqaba or drive back to Amman via Wadi Rum.

A specialist itinerary following the Hospitallers (Order of Saint John) from their mainland home through their Cypriot exile, their Rhodian sovereignty, and their Maltese state. The order is, today, still resident at the Magistral Palace in Rome, although that final stop is excluded from the route for the simple reason that the order's headquarters there is mostly open only by appointment.

Days 1–3 — Acre. The Hospitaller compound (open daily; the central Hall, the refectory, the dormitories, the dungeons all visitable).

Days 4–6 — Cyprus. Nicosia and Famagusta (the divided city; access to the northern half is via the Ledra Street crossing on day visits).

Days 7–9 — Rhodes. Old Town: the Palace of the Grand Master, the Street of the Knights, the cathedral of St John (now Süleymaniye Mosque), the medieval walls (walkable in their entirety).

Days 10–14 — Malta. Valletta, Mdina, and the Three Cities — the entire Hospitaller-built Maltese capital. The Co-Cathedral of St John, the Grand Master's Palace, the Sacra Infermeria, the auberges. Allow time for the National Maritime Museum at Birgu and for a day in Gozo.