Best Things to Do in Aqaba

The Jordan Discovery tour was an exceptional week, we had a brilliant time. The itinerary is well-balanced, with a mixture of history, culture, hiking, spectacular scenery and relaxation. There were plenty of opportunities for local experiences like an Ottoman bath, snorkelling in the Red Sea (those are at an extra cost) and camping in the desert.

We were a group of 14, and the bus was comfortable (although if you have long legs don’t sit in the front seats!) and the wifi worked really well inside the bus with only a few blank spots in more rural areas. There was also unlimited water provided for 7 dinars per person.

The hotels were comfortable, with probably the best being the Toledo Hotel in Amman. Don’t expect luxury, but the rooms were clean and they did the job. The breakfasts left a little to be desired, with limited options even for meat-eaters at some of the hotels. I’m vegan so I was very limited (I ate a lot of toast) but that wasn’t a surprise. At the restaurants we went to there were good vegan/vegetarian options like houmous, bread, aubergine, salads, chips (fries), vegetable dishes etc. and it was all very tasty but became quite samey after several days in a row.

I saw on the website that it’s advisable to bring a sleeping sheet for camping in Wadi Rum and water shoes for the Dead Sea. Because of the Israel-Palestine war everywhere we went was uncrowded, even Petra (I went in April 2024) and this meant we were upgraded to twin tents in Wadi Rum and sheets were provided, but I’d imagine they’d come in handy in the communal tent. I definitely recommend water shoes for the Dead Sea as the salt is very sharp underfoot. It’s also a good idea to bring good earplugs for the early morning calls to prayer if you don’t pray. And there were a few hours of downtime in Wadi Rum where there was no wifi or signal so I recommend taking a book or something in your overnight bag for that night.

While in Petra, I’d recommend the walk up to the Monastery, but be prepared for a bit of a tough walk especially if it’s hot. And when I was there in April 2024 the walk up to see the Treasury from above was closed, but this wasn’t advertised so check before you plan around hiking this trail.

Our guide Musa was excellent, he really made the trip. He was hugely knowledgeable and passionate about his country, and gave us lots of interesting information not only about the places we visited but the history, geopolitics, economy, religions and societies of Jordan and the wider region. His English was impeccable and he was also kind and patient with the group (especially admirable as he was fasting for Ramadan) - we couldn’t have asked for a better tour leader.

Overall the trip was a great way to see lots of highlights of Jordan in a relatively short space of time. Everything ran very smoothly, communication with Explore and with our guide was easy, and all the logistics worked perfectly. I’d highly recommend the trip!

A superb trip. ‘Explore’ at its best. A varied itinerary with different experiences every day ranging from exploring iconic historic sites to snorkelling over spectacular coral reefs in the Red Sea, from sampling the sights, sounds and tastes of downtown Amman to ‘camping’ in the desert at Wadi Rum, from enjoying a number of excellent meals featuring local specialties to floating in the Dead Sea. Each day different, each day full of surprises.

And above all, a super local tour guide, Abdallah Alhlalat. He was a constant source of information wherever we went who, despite the demands of fasting during Ramadan, always kept us well informed, answering all our questions, showing us much that was beyond the remit in our itinerary and caring for our wellbeing throughout. Two illustrations: even after we’d returned to the UK we were still exchanging correspondence about the identity of a flower that we’d come across at Wadi Rum and secondly, we’ve realised that we learned more about Jordan from Abdallah than we did from reading 332 pages of ‘Lonely Planet Jordan’.

This was about my 25th Explore trip and would rate the leader Abdallah as one the absolute best! He made a good itinerary superb and a good adventure excellent. A real Explore classic made exceptional by a gifted leader.

Petra