
Indiana Jones himself couldn't squeeze more adventure into this journey
Jordan: Famous the world over for the ethic of hospitality of the Bedouin, Jordan, a gem of the middle east, delights and surprises. Jordan offers the traveler a piece of living history, to walk through and experience . While the evidence of Jordan's colorful history tantalizes the traveler, Jordan is closer to you than you'd think, if only from the images of it you've seen in films . Come with us to explore this country's treasures. We'll visit the Siq, the narrow, winding fissure between sandstone cliffs to the Treasury (that amazing building made so famous in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade) and the lost city of Petra, carved into the rose red Shara mountains by the Nabateans.
Dubai: a true taste of Arabia with a cosmopolitan lifestyle. In Dubai you'll find year round sunshine and un-crowded, clean sandy beaches. In this crime-free society yo 'll find a very warm & welcoming team & society awaits you in Dubai. While shopping may not be high on your list, you will find Dubai's tax free markets means bargains galore. Attractive traditional Middle Eastern gifts - coffee pots, rugs, silverware, jewelry, brass, and one of the world's greatest gold trading centers offering unbeatable value. Hong Kong is no longer able to compete with Dubai with the wide selection of low-priced international brand name products - audio equipment, VCRs, cameras, watches, fashions, perfumes and more, do not forget the award-winning Dubai Duty Free at the airport.
DAY 1 - Dubai- Thursday - Start in Dubai or Amman
Arrive at Dubai International Airport at the United Arab Emirate on the Arabian Gulf. Complimentary visa will be issued upon arrival for the following nationalities;UK, EU, Switzerland, Sweden, USA, Canada, Australia, NZ, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei. You are responsible for having a valid passport. Upon arrival, our local rep will meet you and escort you to your hotel.
DAY 2 - Dubai - Friday (BD)
Half Day Dubai City Tour:
Sample the historic sites and vibrant cosmopolitan life of Dubai on this comprehensive tour. The Tour begins in Jumeira, the picturesque palace and residential area of Dubai, also home to the famous Jumeira Mosque. The next stop is Sheikh Saeed House (former residence of ruling family). The Tour then continues to Al Bastakiya, the old part of Dubai, to reach the museum located in Al Fahidi Fort. All guests board the Abra (water taxi) to cross the Creek to the spice souk. Before savoring the sights and sounds of the fish, fruit and vegetable market, there is time to shop in the most famous landmark of Dubai – the Gold souk.
Evening Dhow Cruise Dinner:
For a fabulous relaxing evening join our fully fitted Arabian dhow for an evening’s cruise on the Creek. Enjoy a sumptuous feast of Arabic and Western cuisine while gently gliding past illuminated souks, banks and palaces.
DAY 3 - Desert Safari with dinner in the Arabian Desert - DUBAI: Saturday (BD)
Half Day Desert Safari (4 Wheel Drive):
Morning at leisure, enjoy beach activities. This tour departs in the afternoon across the desert of Dubai with several photo-stops during an exciting dune drive to the first destination a camel farm. The drive continues across the desert.
We stop to watch the beautiful sunset before reaching our campsite where you have the opportunity to do camel riding. After working up an appetite enjoy a delicious barbecue dinner and a shisha (the most famous Arabic Water pipe). We conclude the evening with a true 1001 Arabian Nights tradition and With a belly dancer performing her dance around the campfire before we head back to your hotel in Dubai or Sharja.
DAY 4 - DUBAI -East Coast Tour: Sunday (BL)
After breakfast, we head for Dhaid and then on to the Hajar mountains that offer a beautiful natural backdrop for Dubai. A stop at a local market, where the local shop for locally made pottery, fruits and carpets. We stop as well in Dibba and a brief stop at the colorful local fish market, always with the fresh catch from the Arabian Gulf. We drive along the coast passing by m enchanting small villages and fishermen wharfs, we arrive at Al Badiyah mosque, one of the earliest mosques built in the UAE, continue on to Khor Fakkan, a regional popular spot for diving and snorkeling, where there will be an opportunity to relax at the beach and have a refreshing swim. Stop as well as the Khor Fakkah souk. Continue to Fujairah where we stop at the renovated Fort. Before returning to Dubai, stop at the oasis of Bitnah and time to wander on the “Friday Market” in Masafi. Lunch is included enroute in a charming local restaurant.
DAY 5 - Dubai - PETRA: Monday (B)
Our staff escorts you to the airport for your flight to Amman (air fare is included & issued in Dubai). From Amman airport you'll drive to Petra, arrive at your hotel in Petra and overnight. Complimentary Jordanian visa fee (valid only for American, Australian, Canadian, EU, NZ, Singaporean & Japanese citizens. Passports must be valid for at least 6 month upon arrival).
DAY 6 - PETRA: Tuesday (BD)
We'll spend the entire day at Petra, the stunning desert city hewn by the Nabateans from solid cliffs of pink and violet sandstone. Petra was known in the bible as Sela, and rediscovered only in 1812. You'll feel like Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark as you penetrate into the city through a narrow sandstone gorge, the Siq, and wander among the Temple of the Winged Lion, tombs, Roman theater, and the imposing Treasury.
Petra has a lot to tell. The visit starts at the visitor’s center, where each person is assigned a Bedouin guided horse for the journey to the entrance of the lost city. After passing some tombs which are located outside the city, the visitor passes through the SIQ, an immense crack in the Nubian sandstone. It is a winding, one-kilometer-long fissure between overhanging cliffs that seem to meet more than 300 feet overhead.
Near the end of the passage, the SIQ, with great style, makes one last turn and out of the gloom in towering brightness appears Petra’s most impressive monument, el Khazneh - The Treasury. This is one of the most elegant remains of antiquity, carved out of the solid rock from the side of the mountain, is nearly 140 feet high and 90 feet wide.
Beyond el Khazneh the visitor is surrounded on both sides by hundreds of Petra’s carved and built structures, soaring temples, elaborate royal tombs, a carved Roman theater, large and small houses, burial chambers and much more. 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.” After that, we will return to the hotel to get prepared for a Moonlight dinner served at a Bedouin camp. This evening we have a fantastic traditional dinner under the stars in a Bedouin camp, at a site that dates back more than 2,000 years.
DAY 7 - Departure-Amman: Wednesday (B)
Our local rep. escorts you to the airport of Amman for your flight home. Or you may choose to add one of our extensions, and return later from Jordan or Israel at no additional air fare.
Rates per person in USD
| Deluxe | First Class | |
| Triple | US$ 3150. | US$ 2805. |
| Double | US$ 3210. | US$ 2955. |
| Single | US$ 4050. | US$ 3740. |
For Dec 15 - 31 arrivals: Please add %15 to any of the above listed rates
Prices include:
| Amman | Sheraton Al-Nabil Hotel, Hyatt Amman or similar Landmark Hotel |
Upgrade in Dubai |
| Dubai | Hilton Dubai JUmeirah, Sheraton Jumeirah, Le Meridien Mina Seyahi, JW Marriott or similar |
For The Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Madinat Jumeirah Royal Mirage - The Arabian Court Hotel: Please add: $650 Per person in double |
| Petra | Movenpick Petra Hotel, Marriott Petra Hotel, or similar |
For Burj Al Arab Hotel: Please add $3555 per person in double SUITE Including Rolls-Royce round-trip airport transfers in Dubai |
Sample First class Hotels:
| Amman | Golden Tulip Hotel, Imperial Hotel Amman or similar |
| Dubai | Novotel Dubai, Dubai Four point Sheraton, Qamardeen hotel Dubai |
| Petra | Golden Tulip Petra Hotel, or similar |
Not included:
Our second visit to the middle east had to be cancelled when the Egyptian revolution in February caused our flight to be cancelled. We rescheduled for November and added six more months to the ten months we'd already waited. Just before we boarded AirFrance for the flights from San Francisco to Cairo, came the Revolution Part 2. But that wasn't going to stop us. Our month included three stops in Cairo, Alexandria, Luxor, and Jordan as well.
The absolute highlight of the trip was Jordan… we'll have to go back there one day for sure and plan to overnight out on the desert in a tent.
Amman is a beautiful city, but Jerash, Mount Nebo and the King's Highway are not to be missed. The ethereal landscapes of Petra and Wadi Rum far exceed the cinematic splendor we saw originally in Raiders and Lawrence of Arabia. The boulevards of sandy dessert rimmed by sheer lavender, rose, peach and beige limestone cliffs and crags…mint tea with Bedouin tribesman at the edge of a terra cotta sandy dune will live forever in memory. Petra was simply beautiful beyond our greatest expectations…and both the Petra Kitchen dinner and our stay at the incredible Taybet Zaman Hotel with its' breathtaking views over the old Nabatean rose-red city added even more to our memory bank. Thanks for helping us to plan such an incredible adventure.
Chris and Michael