About Jordan

PETRA: The ancient city of Petra is one of Jordan's national treasures and by far its best known tourist attraction. Located about three hours south of Amman, Petra is the legacy of the Nabataens, an industrious Arab people who settled in southern Jordan more than 2000 years ago. Admired then for its refined culture, massive architecture and ingenious complex of dams and water channels, Petra is now a UNESCO world heritage site that enchants visitors from all corners of the globe.

Much of Petra's appeal comes from its spectacular setting deep inside a narrow desert gorge.

The site is accessed by walking through a kilometer long chasm (or siq), the walls of which soar 200 meters upwards. Petra's most famous monument, the Treasury, appears dramatically at the end of the siq.

Used in the final sequence of the film "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade", the towering facade of the Treasury is only one of myriad archaeological wonders to be explored at Petra.

Various walks and climbs reveal literally hundreds of buildings, tombs, baths, funerary halls, temples, arched gateways, colonnaded streets and haunting rock drawings - as well as a 3000 seat open air amphitheatre circa, a gigantic first century Monastery and a modern archeological museum, all of which can be explored at leisure.

A modest shrine commemorating the death of Aaron, brother of Moses, was built in the 13th century by the Mamluke Sultan, high a top mount Aaron in the Sharah range

AQABA: Aqaba, with its clean sandy beaches and transparent waters, is an ideal location for both relaxation and water sports. Sunbathing, swimming, para-sailing, water skiing and jet skiing, are just some of the activities to partake in. Famed for its preserved coral reefs and unique sea life, this Red Sea port city was, in ancient times, the main port for shipments from the Red Sea to the Far East. The Mameluk Fort, One of the main historical land marks of Aqaba was originally a Crusader Castle, rebuilt by the Mameluks in the sixteenth century.

Square in shape and flanked by semicircular towers, the fort is marked with various inscriptions marking the later period of the Islamic dynasty.

DEAD SEA: Within the folds of the Jordan Valley lies the Dead Sea, more than 400 m below sea level and the lowest point on earth. Rich in minerals that have seeped from adjacent wadis, the Dead Sea, as well as having exceptionally buoyant water, is believed by many to have curative powers. The nearby waters of Hammamat Ma'in, where a thermal spa has been built, are thought to be similarly imbued. The Dead Sea itself is flanked by mountains to the east and rolling hills of Jerusalem to the west, giving it an almost other - worldly beauty. Although sparsely populated and serenely quiet now, the area is believed to have been home to five Biblical cities: Sodom, Gomorrah, Adman, Zebouin and Zoar