Jordan Active Adventure Itinerary

Day One: Amman
At the Queen Alia International Airport, your guides will greet you and transfer you to the Four Seasons hotel at Western Amman. After your long flight, we will leave you to rest for a little while. In the evening, we will gather at the lobby and head to the heart of Amman for a nice welcome dinner at one of Amman’s favorite restaurants. You will get introduced to a delicious variety of Jordanian/ Arabic foods.
At dinner, your guides will brief you about the program, answer any questions you may have and make sure you are prepared for your Jordan adventure. We then return to our hotel and retire for the night.

Meals: Dinner
Destinations visited: Amman
Accommodation: Four Seasons -Amman
 
Day Two: Al Shobak Crusaders Castle – Off-road biking – Petra by Night
This morning we transfer south to Al Shobak village which is located on the Kings’ Highway (3hr drive). We’ll stop to explore the remains Al Shobak Castle – another castle in the great chain of Crusader fortresses which stretches across Jordan. The stronghold, known as Mount Realis (Montreal), was constructed in 1115 CE by Baldwin I. Nearby the castle we’ll enjoy a nice picnic lunch before we mount our bikes on a charming off-road track that contours around the edge of the Eastern Plateau and owns magnificent views to the Great Rift Valley.
Back on an asphalt small road (rare traffic), we’ll enjoy a 10 km downhill cycling with spectacular top view of the white rock domes of Beida. At the bottom we reach Little Petra where we end our cycling route for today. We’ll explore the site of Little Petra before we transfer to Wadi Musa and settle in at our hotel.
Dinner will be served at the hotel. You may choose to eat independently if you wish or join your guide as a group. Later at 8 PM we gather to head down to Petra and enjoy Petra by Night tour lit by over 1500 candles.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Destinations visited: Al Shobak Castle, Little Petra & Petra by night Accommodation: Taybet Zaman or Beit Zaman hotel -Petra
Distance cycled: 35 km / 22 mile 
 
Beida means white in Arabic, the area got this name from the white rock around it. It is around 10 Km to the north of Petra. Little Petra is a site located in Beida. It was one of the main commercial areas of Petra, the entry and exit point for the trade routes to the north and north-west. It was inhabited by the Nabataeans and has lots of tombs, water containers and channels. It has a small path that leads to some of the inside area, Siq al Bared, the scale of this area and the fact that it is a continuation of Petra gave it the name of Little Petra.

The King’s Highway twists and winds its way through the heart of Jordan, connecting Madaba, Karak, Tafileh, Shobak and Petra. The King’s Highway is the world’s oldest continuously used communication route, and is mentioned early in the Bible. In Numbers 20, Moses requests the king of Edom to allow his people to "travel along the king’s highway and not turn to the right or to the left until we have passed through your territory.

Day Three: Petra
Leaving the Monastery, we start our “backwards” Petra tour descending 850+ stairs (which we would otherwise be climbing if we hadn’t taken the backtrail hike avoiding the main tourist traffic) to come down to the basin of Petra and proceed with our guided tour visiting the Daughter’s palace, the theatre (entirely carved out in the mountainside and accommodates more than 8500 people), the court, the Treasury (the most famous monument in Petra which was built to impress) and then walk out through the Siq (narrow deep gorge that is the main entrance to Petra).
We then go back to our hotel to rest before we gather again in the evening for a group dinner at one of our favorite local restaurants in Wadi Musa.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner Destinations visited: Petra Accommodation: Taybet Zaman or Beit Zaman hotel -Petra

Petra is one of the world's heritage sites and one of the world's new 7 wonders. An ancient rock city was the capital of the Nabatean Kingdom. Built around 2,300 years ago, the imposing rose-stone palaces are an impressive testament to the power and influence of the Nabateans, who controlled trade around the area in the 3rd century BC. Petra is surrounded by hills in which tombs have been carved into the pink sandstone. The site includes some 800 structures. The Victorian traveler and poet Dean Burgon gave Petra a description which holds to this day ¬"Match me such a marvel save in Eastern clime, a rose-red city half as old as time." Yet words can hardly do justice to the magnificence that is Petra.
 
Day Four: Wadi Rum
This morning is free for you to rest and recharge your energy. You may choose to have lunch at the hotel or head down to town to grab a bite.
A 2 hour drive in the afternoon takes us to Wadi Rum. We head to the mud flats of Disi-a vast flat field with hard ground in the middle of the desert-where we set off on a charming bike ride and enjoy the beautiful scenery of the colorful sandstone massive desert mountains. At the end of this circular route, we stop for a little refreshment before we head to Rum village, meet our Bedouin host, mount the jeeps and enter deep into the Wadi Rum Protected Area to reach our Bedouin campsite which has a great location to watch one magical sunset.
We come to settle in at our campsite then meet for a feast on a well-deserved 'Zarb' - a traditional Bedouin dish of meat and vegetables cooked underneath the desert sand. 
 We will gather around the campfire and get to know our Bedouin hosts, exchange banters and learn something about their exceptional culture.
Whether you would like to spend the night inside your Bedouin goat-hair tent or take your mattress out to sleep under a canopy of twinkling stars, the choice is yours.

Meals: Breakfast & dinner
Destinations visited: Wadi Rum
Accommodation: Bedouin campsite -Wadi Rum Distance cycled: 27 km / 17 mile (circular route)

Wadi Rum is a valley cut into the sandstone and granite rock in south-west Jordan. It has been inhabited by many human cultures since prehistoric times and is dotted with massive rock formations. It is virtually untouched by humanity and its destructive forces. Here, it is the weather and winds that have carved the imposing, towering skyscrapers, so elegantly described by T.E. Lawrence as "vast, echoing and god-like".  Much of David Lean's Lawrence of Arabia was filmed in Wadi Rum.

Day Five: Wadi Rum
Waking up to the silent desert, breakfast will usually be served by 7 a.m. accompanied fruits, tea and nescafe. You may of course pocket a snack for later. After breakfast, we will get in the jeeps for the short drive to Jebel Burda passing through a wide valley with magnificent cliffs and sand dunes. Reaching the trailhead by the foot of Burda we start our mountain trek towards the famous rock bridge of Burda. This route involves some relatively easy scrambling across open rock slabs and through a maze of alleys. Our guide will lead us through the best route to a small plateau and into a hidden gulley which offer an awesome view of the bridge above. Then we climb a short steep wall while being safeguarded by a climbing rope and walk over the rock bridge to enjoy awe-inspiring views across the whole desert region.
Descending back we have the option of an alternative route, again crossing wonderful open slabs and scrambling down in a steep groove. Back at the mountain foot after a 3-hour round-trip, we meet our crew who has chosen a shaded spot for us to have lunch and a siesta before we proceed with our Jeep tour of Wadi Rum exploring some of the desert's attraction sites such as Lawrence Spring, Lawrence House remains, Al Khazaali Canyon and stop at one of the big sand dune for an opportunity to take-off our shoes climb up and run down its soft sand. Sounds childish, but lots of fun!
Then we will find a good spot to watch another enchanting sunset before heading back to the camp, gather wash up then gather around the campfire, have dinner cooked in the ember of fire and spend another peaceful desert night.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Destinations visited: Wadi Rum
Accommodation: Bedouin campsite -Wadi Rum 
 
Day Six: Aqaba – Feynan
This morning we'll say farewell to Rum and depart in harmony with its slow pace; riding, camels back to Rum Village-some 2 hour trek.
A 45 minute drive takes us to Aqaba to spend a couple of hours at the Red Sea. We’ll check into the Royal Diving Center beach facility where we can swim, snorkel, scuba dive or just relax on the beach with a cold drink in hand.
Later in the afternoon, we travel north for approximately 2 hours along Wadi Araba (part of the Great Rift Valley) towards Feynan Eco Lodge – rated one of the world’s top 50 eco lodges by National Geographic magazine.
Around two kilometers before we reach the lodge, we’ll dismount our vehicle and walk to the top of a gentle outcrop to watch another dramatic sunset then walk to our candle-lit eco lodge, check into our rooms for a little rest before we gather again around a nice healthy dinner of various vegetarian local recipes, and spend the night enjoying the tranquility of the place.

Meals: Breakfast & dinner
Destinations visited: Aqaba & Feynan
Accommodation: Feynan Eco lodge

Feynan, is located in the Araba Valley, within the boundaries of Dana Biosphere Reserve. It was one of the largest copper works in the ancient Near East. Copper production in feynan reached its peak under the Edomites (during the 9-5th centuries BCE) when mining and smelting techniques attained high professional level and probably influenced the economic and political power of the Edomites. Giant mounds of more than 200,000 tons of slag attest to copper productions on an industrial scale. One can imagine endless caravans of pack animals carrying juniper beams from the uplands to stoke the furnaces. What remain today are runs of Byzantine churches, an aqueduct and a water reservoir and smelting furnace. The site has been exploited since the Early Bronze Age (middle of the third millennium BCE), the Iron Age 9-5th centuries BCE, the Roman Period 2-4th centuries and Byzantine churches and Christian and Islamic graves.

Feynan Eco Lodge: Set among the arid mountains of Wadi Araba, the Feynan Eco-lodge forms the western gateway of the Dana Biosphere Reserve, and provides a special experience in desert accommodation. The lodge has a unique arabesque desert design and uses environment-friendly technologies, including solar power. At night, most of the lodge will be lit by candles, making it a very romantic destination.

Day Seven: Feynan – Dead Sea
After breakfast, we'll mount our bikes from the lodge heading to the ancient copper mines of Feynan. A short hike will lead us to the mines for an opportunity to see how vast deposits of copper were discovered, mined and processed at Feynan by ancient civilizations thousands of years ago and what an important supply center Feynan was for the Roman Empire.
Back on our bikes we explore Feynan’s local villages. Off-road tracks lead through Bedouin communities to the two nearby villages, where we can weave in and out of the narrow roads and gain an authentic sense of the daily activities and life of the villagers. We then ride back to the lodge for lunch. 
 On the road again, we head to the Dead Sea – the world’s lowest spot with the highest concentration of oxygen – to spend two nights and the region’s most luxurious resort, the Kempenski Ishtar.
There you can experience the special buoyancy experience – floating in the world’s saltiest lake, and enjoy the resort’s amazing spa and different facilities.

Meals: Breakfast & lunch
 Destinations visited: Feynan & Dead Sea
Accommodation: Kempenski Ishtar – Dead Sea
Distance cycled: 27 km / 17 mile (two-way route)

The Dead Sea is famous geographically as "the lowest point on earth," lying some 400 meters below sea level. It is 75 kilometers long and from 6 to 16 kilometers wide. It is fed by the Jordan River, but it has no outlet. As its name suggests, the Dead Sea is entirely devoid of plant and animal life. This is due to an extremely high content of salt and other minerals—350 grams of salt per kilogram of water, as compared to about 40 grams in the world’s oceans. This concentration is caused by a rapid rate of evaporation. These natural elements give the waters of the Dead Sea certain curative properties, recognized since the days of Herod the Great over 2000 years ago.

Day Eight: Dead Sea
(continue your stay at the Kempenski Ishtar Resort)
You can also choose to undertake interesting optional activities around the Dead Sea area ¬your guides can explain your options and help you plan and arrange. For example, you may choose to visit Mount Nebo and the Mosaic town of Madaba, take a bike ride from Madaba to Mukawir village followed by an pleasant local interaction opportunity over a meal with a local family, or you may even choose to undertake an amazing canyoning adventure through the magnificent river canyon of Wadi Mujib, etc…

Meals: Breakfast
Destinations visited: Feynan & Dead Sea
Accommodation: Kempenski Ishtar – Dead Sea

Day Nine: Dead Sea -Departure
Today we’ll be transferring to the airport, say goodbye and wish you a pleasant journey back home or to your next destination.
Meals: Breakfast Accomplished: Absolute Total Satisfaction and a Great Sense of Real Adventure Accomplished!