10 Day Classic Tour

of Jordan

Amman – Al Balad - Jebel Al Qal'a - Jerash – (Ar Rabad Castle) – Umm Qais (Gadara) - Madaba – Greek Orthodox Church of St. George – Mount Nebo – Bay of Bethany Baptism Site – Dead Sea - Karak Castle - Petra - Siq Al Barid (Little Petra) - Al Beidha – Wadi Rum

Day 1

Queen Alia International Airport - Amman

Welcome to Jordan!

You will be met on arrival at the airport and transferred to your hotel in Amman for dinner and stay overnight at a hotel in Amman.

Day 2

Amman – Jerash – Ajlun (Ar Rabad Castle) – Umm Qais (Gadara) – Amman

Today we will be sightseeing north of Amman taking in Hellenistic-Roman City of Jerash, Ajlun Castle, and Umm Qais (Gadara).

Jerash, is located 48 kilometers from Amman, has been dubbed the 'Pompeii of the East' due to it being one of the world's largest and most well-preserved sites of Roman architecture outside of Italy.

Jerash's colonnaded streets, baths, theatres, plazas, and arches remain in exceptional condition and make the city an extremely interesting place to look around.

Next, we will visit Ajlun to see the 12th Century Saracen Castle built by one of Saladin's lieutenants and used in the military campaign against the Crusaders before driving to Umm Qais, situated 110km north of Amman and once known as Gadara (which means fortification).

Umm Qais was once one of the most brilliant ancient Hellenistic-Roman cities of the Decapolis and, according to the Bible, the spot where Jesus cast out devils from two demoniacs (mad men) into a herd of pigs.

Umm Qais is on a broad promontory 378 meters above sea level that enjoys a magnificent view over the Golan Heights, Lake Tiberius (Sea of Galilee) , and Jebel al Sheikh in both Lebanon and Syria.

We return to our hotel in Amman for dinner and an overnight stay.

Day 3

Amman – Madaba – Greek Orthodox Church of St. George – Mount Nebo – Bay of Bethany Baptism Site – Dead Sea

After breakfast at our hotel we check out and drive to Madaba, Mount Nebo, the Bay of Bethany Baptism Site, and the Dead Sea. 

It is only a short drive from Amman to Madaba, which is a Christian town and holds some amazing mosaics within its churches.

We shall see the most famous mosaic, which is housed at the contemporary Greek Orthodox Church of St. George and which depicts the Holy Land.

This is a wonderfully vivid 6th Century mosaic map, comprising two million pieces of colored stones showing the entire region from Jordan , Palestine in the north, and Egypt in the south.

It is fun to spend a while picking out the various cities and admiring the little vignettes the artist incorporated into the map.

From Madaba we will drive 10km up the hill to reach Mount Nebo, a very important Christian site, recently visited by the Pope. It was here, on the edge of the ridge overlooking the Dead Sea, that Moses first caught sight of the Holy Land, having led his people from Sinai. It is said that Moses also died and was buried here.

The West Bank city of Jericho is usually visible from the summit of Mount Nebo, as is Jerusalem on a very clear day.

We will visit the Bay of Bethany Baptism Site, the site where John the Baptist is said to have baptized Jesus before driving down to the Dead Sea, at 400 meters below sea level, the lowest point on earth.

We arrive at our hotel in the Dead Sea in time for dinner and stay at this resort for three nights.

Day 4 & 5

Dead Sea

We have two full-days to enjoy the Dead Sea resort at our leisure. This is plenty of time to float in the mineral-rich water and to relax on the private beach.

The therapeutic sticky black-mud treatment, packed full of minerals and nutrients, comes highly recommended.

Day 6

Dead Sea - Karak Castle- Petra

This morning we take breakfast and then spend a few more hours relaxing at the Dead Sea before checking out of our hotel around lunchtime.

We will drive down the King's Way to Petra breaking up the journey by stopping en-route in Karak to view the 12th Century Crusader Castle.

Karak Castle soars above its valleys and hills like a great ship riding waves of rocks.

It is a typical crusader fortress, with dimly lit stone-vaulted rooms and corridors leading into each other through heavy arches and doorways. In truth the castle is more imposing than beautiful.

The ruins of the upper level are attributed to the Crusader period, and the staircases leading to the underground level of the upper courtyard provide access to Mamluk architecture complexes, most of which were probably associated with a palace.

From Karak we continue on to Petra , stopping briefly when passing Dana Nature Reserve to observe the beauty of this massive valley basin.

From Dana it is a drive of a little more than 30 minutes to reach our hotel in Petra where we will take dinner and spend the next two nights.

Day 7

Petra

Petra is a treasure of the ancient world and definitely a highlight of any trip to Jordan.

It is hidden behind an almost impenetrable barrier of rugged mountains and boasts incomparable scenes making it perhaps the most majestic and imposing ancient site still standing today.

It is the legacy of the Nabataeans, an industrious Arab people who settled in southern Jordan more than 2,000 years ago and who carved their new capital out of the rose-red Sharah Mountains.

The site contains refined culture, massive architecture and an ingenious complex of dams and water channels.

For our first hours at the Petra site we will have an English speaking guide who will show us round the numerous highlights including the Treasury (El-Khazneh) which has an intricately carved façade that glows in the sun, the amphitheatre, and the Royal Tombs.

For the remainder of the day you will be able to wander at your leisure; one monument leading to the next for kilometer after kilometer.

The sheer size of the city and quality of the beautifully carved facades at Petra is staggering, almost overwhelming and there are over 800 individual monuments in total, including buildings, tombs, baths, funerary halls, temples, gateways, and colonnaded streets to admire, mostly carved from the kaleidoscopic sandstone by the technical and artistic genius of its inhabitants.

At the end of the day you will walk back past gift shops where you can buy a souvenir or gift to accompany your treasured memories.

Day 8

Petra – Siq Al Barid (Little Petra) - Al Beidha – Wadi Rum

After having breakfast at our hotel we drive to Siq Al Barid (Little Petra) , a suburb of the main ancient city.

Little Petra provides an atmospheric summary of Nabataean architecture.

The area was once a caravanserai stop for the capital and comes complete with its own mini-Siq, a 350 meter fissure in the rock crammed with tombs, triclinums, water channels, and cisterns.

It is still easy to imagine the sounds and smells of the old days when traders, caravan masters and drovers lived and traded here. We drive a short distance on to Al Beidha , or 'the white one' on account of the color of its rock.

Al Beidha contains the remains of a Neolithic site, dating back to 7,500 BC which makes it one of the earliest known co-operative villages on earth.

Mediterranean trees such as Oak, Juniper, Carob, and Pistachio thrive in this small sandy valley.

We will have lunch before driving on to Wadi Rum, to eat the traditional, freshly prepared, Jordanian dinner provided by our great Bedouin hosts and staying overnight in a deluxe campsite with clean comfortable beds and hot showers.

Day 9

Wadi Rum – Amman – Al Balad - Jebel Al Qal'a

After a sustaining buffet breakfast we enjoy a Jeep Safari amongst Wadi Rum's enchanting pink and white desert sands.

Visiting Wadi Rum is a journey to another world, where one can escape the worries of everyday life and return to nature and the simple life. In this immense space, man is dwarfed into insignificance.

Vast, silent and timeless, Wadi Rum possesses one of the most beautiful desertscapes in the world. Rock carvings mark the passage of ancient tribes in pre-history.

Thamudic inscriptions, burial mounds, ancient megaliths, ruined buildings abound, Nabataean rock carved stairways, dams, and temples can still be found throughout the area.

Wadi Rum is perhaps best known because of its connection with Lawrence of Arabia and we follow in the enigmatic British officer's footsteps as we drive through the surreal moonscape.

Late afternoon, we will transfer back to Amman where there will be ample opportunity to explore Jordan's capital, to dine in one of the city's many fine restaurants and visit some of its urban highlights before staying the night in a convenient local hotel.

Day 10

Amman – Queen Alia International Airport

Depending on flight schedules, we may have time for a city-tour of Amman on this, our final morning.

We will drive you to the airport in plenty of time for check-in for your departure home.