Compare Jordan - Land of Contrasts by Petra Nights Tours vs Jordan Uncovered by G Adventures

Day 1: Amman Airport – Salt Hotel

Accommodation: Overnight Mountain Breeze Lodge.

Welcome to Jordan! Our representative meets you with a signage in front of the immigration Amman Airport. Say hello to your friendly, English speaking driver, who transfers you for around 60 km to the countryside lodge, close to Salt. Check-in, remainder of the day free.

Day 2: Salt Hotel – Ajloun Castle – Orjan Village – Jerash – Salt Hotel

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch Local Home

Pickup hotel lobby to drive 1.5 hours to our first destination. Ajloun Castle, known in Arabic as Qal’at Rabad, was built around 1184/85 by a general serving the famous Islamic leader Salah al-Din. Errected on higher grounds its purpose was to watch over the routes to the Jordan Valley and Syria. There is a small museum inside the castle and don’t miss the great view over the hilly landscape. Continue to the village of Orjan, surrounded by hills and olive trees, where you have lunch at a local home.

We continue to Jerash, once a member of the Decapolis, but its heyday had been under the Romans. It is considered as the best example of a Roman provincial city in the whole Middle East. A local guide will make history come alive. Explore the spectacular Forum, the Roman colonnaded street, the Nymphaeum, theatres and the Temple of Artemis. Return transfer to the lodge.

Day 3: Salt Visit – Dead Sea Beach – Dana Hotel

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Accommodation: Overnight Dana Guest House or similar.

Check-out and short ride to Salt, the former capital of Jordan. Nowadays home to around 89,000 people. The town has a different identity and architecture than other cities in Jordan. Here you walk along Hammam Street to see the highlights of the 19th century architecture of this period, yellow houses with long-arched windows in picturesque narrow streets. Well known is the Abu Jaber mansion, built between 1892 and 1906, reputed to be the finest example of a 19th century merchant house in the region. It had been transformed into the Historic Old Salt Museum. You have time to wander up and down the alleys in the old city and get different perspectives and views of the old houses. Drive to the shores of the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth. The salty water of the lake lets you float, not swim. The mud on the shores is supposed to have healing properties for the skin. After some leisure time at the beach we proceed 2 hours southwards to the village of Dana.

Day 4: Dana to Feynan Moderate Hike – Feynan Ecolodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch Bag, Dinner

Accommodation: Overnight Feynan Eco Lodge.

From the village escape today into the nature. The Dana Reserve is characterized by a chain of valleys and mountains which extend from the top of the Jordan Rift Valley down to the desert lowlands of Wadi Araba. Meet your local Bedouin guide and hike about 14 km downhill through sandstone gorges to Feynan. You will see along the trail the beauty and various landscapes of the area. The tour ends in Wadi Feynan, where 3,000 years ago copper had been mined and worked up. Dinner and overnight in the Feynan Eco Lodge, located in the middle of the desert. The lodge serves vegetarian food only, is powered by solar energy and lit in the evenings by candles.

Day 5: Feynan Free Morning – Little Petra – Petra Hotel

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch Bag

Accommodation: Overnight at 4* hotel like Petra Moon.

Free morning to discover more of the surrounding areas or sign up for one of the group activities the lodge offers. Possible is a hike or a Bedouin experience. A small fee might apply which goes directly to the local host families. Latest check-out from your room is 11:00.

A jeep ride takes you to th reception centre, where you meet your driver again and hit the road to Little Petra for about 2 hours. Little Petra gives you a glimpse what to expect in Petra. You enter the site through a narrow canyon which opens up to carved buildings, tombs and water channels. 15 minutes ride to your hotel in Petra.

Day 6: Petra Visit – Petra Hotel

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Overnight stay Petra Hotel.

Today visit the highlight of Jordan, the red rose city Petra! You are able to start as early as 06:00, but early birds, don’t forget to ask the hotel for a breakfast box the day before. Meet your local guide and pass the narrow canyon, the so called Siq, with its colourful sandstone. At the end you will be rewarded with a view of the most beautiful monument: the Treasury. Continue via the Street of Facades to the Royal Tombs and Pharaoh's Castle. After around 2 hours the guide says farewell to you at the restaurant area. You have free time to explore Petra on your own. The young at heart for instance have the chance to climb the 800 stairs to the 45 meters high Monastery El Deir. Return to the main gate to return to your hotel.

Day 7: Petra Hotel - Wadi Rum 3 hours jeep ride – Madaba Hotel

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Overnight 3* Mosaic City Hotel or similar.

Our day starts with a 1.5 hour drive to Wadi Rum. Embark a 4x4 and with your Bedouin driver uncover more of the vast desert. The rugged scenery, the changing colours of sands and mountains, the serene atmosphere will make you understand why Wadi Rum is one of the most impressing desert landscapes in the world. The setting had been used for Hollywood movies. You see canyons, red sand dunes, Nabatean rock inscriptions and a natural rock bridge formed over centuries. Say farewell to the desert and drive 3.5 hours to the town of Madaba, known as City of Mosaics.

Day 8: Madaba Hotel – Amman Airport

Meals: Breakfast

Depending on your departure time transfer to Amman Airport to say farewell to Jordan! If you booked an afternoon flight you have the possibility to explore Madaba on your own. Popular is the Greek Orthodox St. George’s Church with the 6th century mosaic map of Palestine. More Byzantine and Umayyad mosaic art can be seen in the Archaeological Park.

Day 1 Amman

Arrive at any time. Arrival transfer is included.

Arrive in Amman at any time, there are no planned activities. Meet your CEO this evening for a welcome meeting to learn more about the tour and plans for the following day, choose to head out for an optional dinner at a local restaurant with your CEO and the group. Amman is a very big city and there is not one central area to stay - hotels are spread out across various neighbourhoods within the city, often on busy streets without pedestrian walkways - getting around the city, for visitors and locals, is done by car. For this reason, to move around the city in your free time, you will have to take a taxi, please feel free to ask your CEO for recommendations and assistance.

Day 2 Amman

Journey to Jerash, which is home to one of the world’s largest and most well-preserved Roman ruins. After exploring the ruins, take part in a cooking class at a G Adventures–supported café run by local women and indulge in a traditional lunch. Travel back to Amman and visit the Jordan Archaeological Museum and the ruins of the Citadel.

Day 3 Amman/Wādī Mūsá

Head east towards Petra along the King’s Highway. Take in views of the Dead Sea from the summit of Mount Nebo. Arrive in Wadi Musa and listen to an archaeologist talk about the magnificent sandstone city of Petra.

Day 4 Wādī Mūsá

Get started early this morning and enjoy a guided walking tour of the jaw-dropping ruins of legendary Petra. Take some time to wander through the sandstone city on your own marvelling at the majesty of this special place. In the evening choose to see Petra in the glow of thousands of candles as you witness a Bedouin music performance.

The site is large so please be prepared for a lot of walking over sand and rocks for the entire day. Pace yourself, stay hydrated and be sure to have proper walking/hiking shoes.

Day 5 Petra/Wadi Rum

Travel to Wadi Rum in the morning and then enjoy lunch at our desert camp before setting out on a 4x4 excursion into the desert. Pick the perfect spot to watch the sunset and then return to camp for a typical Bedouin feast. Then admire the beautiful night skies on a desert night walk with a Bedouin guide.

Upon finishing breakfast the group will transfer to Wadi Rum to spend the night in a simple, but comfortable desert camp. This camp will provide insight into the traditional Bedouin way of life. The tents have ensuite facilities and are outfitted with sheets, pillows, a raised bed, towels, electricity, and thick blankets to protect against the desert cold. It’s truly a unique experience.

November – February: The desert can get very cold after the sun sets and it can be cool during the days. If you are visiting during the winter months you should pack warm comfortable clothing for daytime and especially the evenings (a jacket, hat, gloves and warm pajamas). September/October & March/April: evenings can still get chilly so you should bring something warm to wear. Daytime is usually warm and comfortable but you can bring a sweater or jacket just in case. May – August: the weather is very hot during the day and the evenings are usually comfortable and warm.

Day 6 Wadi Rum/Dead Sea

Spend the morning travelling to the Dead Sea, stopping along the way for lunch at a G Adventures–supported community café. Once at our hotel, take some time to relax beside the pool or soak in the mineral-rich waters of the lake.

At 423m (1,388 ft) below sea level, the shores of the Dead Sea are at the lowest land elevation on Earth. The sea is named because its salinity is so high (up to nine times that of the world’s oceans) that only a few microorganisms can live in its waters. The Dead Sea is a resort area, with chain hotels whose sole purpose are to allow access to the Dead Sea. This allows time to relax, float in the sea or opt to visit a spa. Dinner is in the hotel, as there are no local restaurants within the resort area.

Day 7 Dead Sea/Amman

Visit the archaeological remains of Bethany today and explore the churches and caves of this UNESCO World Heritage site. Travel back to Amman and enjoy an optional farewell dinner as a group.

Day 8 Amman

Depart at any time.

Check-out time from the hotel is normally mid-morning, but luggage storage facilities are available. We also encourage you to book a few additional nights if you want more time to explore the city.

Speak to your CEO about arranging your transfer to the airport (additional cost).