But in any event a pilgrim is ready to accept discomforts, inconveniences and hardships. Pilgrims pray along the way both coming and going. They bring with them only the bare necessities. Spirituality of Pilgrimage to the Holy Land, talks about how attitudes of tourism are unfortunately mixed with pilgrimages. A tour files in to a sacred place and the guide gives a short history of the site.
People look around for a few moments and then leave.
Perhaps a group could petition their guide to let them spend a little time at each of the holy places. It may be possible to return to some of the places after the tour, before the pilgrimage moves on to another location. When making arrangements for a group pilgrimage, one can let the agency know that pilgrims want to see fewer places and pray more. In visiting the Holy Land, it is very meaningful to read a Gospel passage which has to do with the location to be visited, both on the evening before going to each site, and while present there. When I was praying at the Cave of Bethlehem and tours came through, the first thing so many people did, before anything else, was to take pictures.