Passage to Petra

Welcome to Jordan and the start of an amazing adventure. Arrive in Amman and enjoy an included transfer to our hotel. The remainder of today is at your leisure.

Today we tour the citadel and Archaeological Museum of Amman, before we take a walk through the bustling local souk to enjoy typical Jordanian street treats of falafel and hummus at the country's most popular local street stand. As the pictures on the wall will prove, the unglamorous food stand was a great favourite of the late King Hussein.

Leaving Amman we stop first at Mt. Nebo, the site from which Moses saw the Promised Land. Having led the Israelites for 40 years through the wilderness, Moses finally saw them from this breathtaking vantage point. This amazing panorama includes the Jordan River Valley, the Dead Sea, Jericho and the spires and domes of the Mt. of Olives and Bethlehem on the Judean hills just across the wide valley. Later, we visit Madaba en route to Petra where we see the Church of St George, the Madaba Archaeological Park, Apostles Church and Madaba Museum.

Our next port of call is Um ar-Rasas, one of Jordan's World Heritage sites and once an important stop on the busy caravan routes. The impressive mosaic floor of the St. Stephen Church features medallions commemorating all the early Christian pilgrimage sites of the region, and the extensive ruins also include one of the area's earliest Stylite towers, where a Byzantine hermit lived atop the tower and preached to the pilgrimage visitors.

Our final stop of the day is Petra. Consider doing the Petra by Night excursion (approx. USD$25 payable locally) for a tantalizing candlelight stroll through Petra's Siq…. a romantic preview of things to come. (B)

We begin the day with a walk through the mysterious mile-long Siq, the narrow gorge with towering sandstone walls leads into the ancient capital city of the Nabatean trading empire. Explore the Khazneh (the temple of Indiana Jones fame), Theatre, colonnaded street and museum. After lunch, we climb to ad-Deir (the Monastery), Petra's largest carved façade.

This evening, why not try your hand at our Petra Kitchen Add-on to join fellow travellers for a cuisine course at the local Petra Kitchen, where you help prepare a memorable Jordanian feast. (B)

This morning we have the opportunity to join our guide for a return visit to Petra along the “secret way” of al-Madras, with visits to the High Place of Sacrifice and Wadi Farasa.

At lunchtime, we stop at the Wadi Musa souk to pick up delicious shawarma sandwiches or fruit and veggie snacks from the local produce souk before making the scenic drive to Wadi Rum. A vast, silent landscape of ancient riverbeds, pastel coloured stretches of sandy desert and amazing rock formations known as jebels that rise from the desert floor, the deserts cape of Wadi Rum represents some of the most stunning countryside on our planet.

This desert is home to the once nomadic Bedouin people who would roam the desert tending to their flocks of goats. Most Bedouins now are village based although they still rely on goats to provide milk, yoghurt and cheese. Quite often Bedouins will return for a period of the year to their original nomadic lifestyle. Boarding 4 x 4 jeeps, we take a safari through the sand dunes, getting up close and personal to the surrounding scenery of Wadi Rum. We enjoy a magical evening under the brilliant stars of the desert night sky, including a scrumptious traditional Jordanian dinner. (B/D)

After breakfast at the campsite, we head north along the Desert Highway to visit Shobak Castle, which is perched dramatically on a hill top and was built by the Crusader King Baldwin I in 1115. After exploring the castle we descend some 1300 meters to the Dead Sea, the lowest point on the earth's surface. More than 400 meters below sea level, the mineral-rich Dead Sea is the world's original health and beauty spa. Drift out and bob in the waters and slap on some of the famous black Dead Sea mud to give your skin an invigorating boost.

For departures between April and October we head up the King's Highway to Wadi Mujib. Here, we embark on a moderate–paced two hour trek along the Siq Trail. Measuring 500 metres in depth and spanning 4 kilometres across, the impressive Wadi Mujib is one of Jordan's most remarkable natural features.

This dramatic canyon features sheer rocky walls and sparkling waterways that range from puddle height to depths that are perfect for swimming (chest height or deeper) depending on the rainfall. When the water level is high you should be prepared for having to climb up ladders, clamber across boulders and be happy to wade through water.

The canyon is just one feature of the Mujib Biosphere Reserve, the lowest nature reserve in the world, home to a surprising diversity of wildlife and plant species. For those not interested in taking the full hike, you can walk part of it or wait by the Visitor Centre till the group returns. After our trek we make our way to the Dead Sea. (B)

Hotel check out and included onward transfer to Amman Airport. Departure transfers are offered at 04:00, 07:00, 12:00 and 23:00 on day 6. If you would like a departure transfer at any other time or a transfer with post tour accommodation this can be arranged for an additional cost, please enquire.

If you have extra time and wish to head back to Amman, why not book our 2 day end in Amman add on? Perfect for those who wish to spend more time in Jordan's ancient capital, Amman. (B)