Discover Jordan

You will be met at Queen Alia International Airport (AMM) and be whisked to a luxury hotel in the centre of Amman. Drop your bags and refresh with a quick dip in the rooftop pool overlooking the city below. Come late afternoon, our Local Insider will greet you – they will accompany the group throughout the trip. Meet your fellow travellers at 5pm over a welcome drink before hitting the town for a street food tour. Taste Arab bites – from piping hot falafel dipped in silky hummus to honey-drenched desserts from the best hole-in-the-wall joints in the city.

After fuelling up on breakfast, you’ll be driven 20 minutes to Zarqa (the Blue City) to visit Haddad, the first winery in Jordan, founded in 1953. On this half-day tour, learn about the family’s winemaking history and enjoy tastings from oak barrels. After a light Levantine lunch by the vineyards, you’ll be taken back to Amman. Next, a city tour taking in the archaeological marvels in the capital, the Citadel, Roman Theatre and Jordan Folklore Museum. Top off the evening with more wine tasting from a variety of local grapes. Get an early night, the hiking begins tomorrow.

After an early breakfast and a transfer to Dana, you’ll begin a hike on the circular Shaq al Reesh trail with views of the most dramatic rocky landscapes in the country. The 3km (2mi) trail traverses from Al-Barrah, through long, deep canyons. Expect to get sweaty. In the evening, you’ll be treated to a cooking class in a local family’s home in Umm Sayhoun. Learn how to whip up a traditional Jordanian meal, from appetisers through to dessert. Rest your head for the night in a fully furnished tent at a Bedouin camp, lit by a blanket of stars.

Lace up your hiking boots, today you’ll enter the Unesco World Heritage site of Petra, a 2,000-year-old, pink Nabataean city. Taking the ‘back door’ route to avoid the crowds, you’ll trek through the Wadi Ghurab sandstone mountains to the exquisite carved monastery. Descend the ancient staircase into Petra. Next, hike along the sky-high Umm Al-Biyara trail from Qasr al Bint to the summit (and back), before veering towards your wilderness campsite at the base of Mount Haron, the highest peak in the area. Don’t miss the snake monument: a stone pillar capped with a coiled serpent that guards Petra.

Wake before dawn to summit Mount Haron, said to be the burial site of Aaron, the brother of Moses. The hike is 15km (9mi) and will take around six to eight hours (round trip). You’ll be rewarded with a 360-degree view from the top as the first sun rays peek over the horizon. Continue on to the Siq trail through a narrow gorge carved into sandstone rocks. Spot the magnificent Treasury of Petra (voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World). Afterwards, flop at your hotel with a mint tea on the terrace.

Squeeze in a pre-breakfast swim in the gorgeous indoor pool at the hotel. Today you’ll leave Petra behind for Wadi Rum, also known as the Valley of the Moon. It was the filming location for Star Wars: the Rise of Skywalker (2019) and Lawrence of Arabia (1962). Here, you’ll meet a local Bedouin family, your welcoming hosts for the night. Learn how to make Arabic coffee, bake bread, cook goat meat in the desert and even milk a camel. Stay in a remote wilderness camp in tents at the foot of basalt mountains.

Start the day by helping local shepherds herd their goats at sunrise. Next, breakfast before heading north, where you’ll hike for an hour towards the beautiful canyon Um Ishreen, then on to Barrah Canyon: a 5km (3mi) long corridor of cliffs that change colour with the movements of the sun. Lunch will be served in the desert. Come afternoon, you’ll arrive in the port town of Aqaba on the Red Sea. Enjoy a sunset boat trip with views over Jordan, Israel, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Swim and snorkel off the boat, surrounded by tropical fish. Tonight, stay in a luxury resort in Aqaba.

If you'd like, you can spend the morning snorkelling in Aqaba with an ecofriendly purpose. The Snorkeling for a Clean Sea Experience invites you to explore the beautiful Red Sea coral reefs while picking up plastic waste as you go. After lunch, you’ll be driven north – through the Jordanian desert – to the Dead Sea for well-deserved R&R. Enjoy floating in the mineral-rich saltwater. Then, sink into a mud bath to deep cleanse your skin after a week of dusty outdoor adventure and enjoy a local spa treatment. Bed down tonight at your hotel after a celebratory final dinner.

Wake up in a chalet 410m (1,345ft) below sea level in the Mujib Biosphere Reserve, the lowest nature reserve on earth. It’s your final day – spend your time as you like. Enjoy the rugged landscape with a short hike along the fast-flowing river at Mujib, spotting rare birds and plants on the way, or take another dip in the Dead Sea. At midday, hop on the airport transfer back to Queen Alia International Airport (AMM) and say farewell to the group – or join our neighbouring Immersive Israel trip.