Jordan Tour Report - Family Adventure Holidays Worldwide
Mark Rowe - Crusaders and Camels Trip April 2008
After discovering that Petra was voted the second new Wonder of the World last year, I was keen to visit Jordan, and was delighted to get the opportunity to join a Families Worldwide tour there. I joined several families on our 'Crusaders and Camels' trip. There were three families, with children's ages ranging from eight to 14. I arrived very late in the evening and meet up with them the following morning as we they headed to the spectacular setting of the old crusader castle at Kerak.
Before that we had a photo opportunity at the Dead Sea where the salt crystals at the shore show how much the sea is shrinking (it has lost 50 metres in recent history, and will eventually evaporate completely). The crusader castle of Kerak was in great condition with lots to see. Then we headed to Wadi Rum for a real desert experience - the highlight of the trip for me. We also saw the ancient, rock-cut city of Petra, and the Red Sea port of Aqaba. Jordan definitely has plenty of adventure to offer, with the camel trek, 4x4 desert safari, Petra, and our snorkelling trip at Aqaba being the highlights. I managed to take almost 2,000 photos and now have the task of editing them! You'll see a few of these below...
The Itinerary*
- Day 1 - Arrived in Amman, transferred to Ma'in Janna Spa Hotel.
- Day 2 - On to Kerak Crusader Castle, and then Wadi Rum.
- Day 3 - Full day at Wadi Rum, Camel Trek and 4x4 jeep safari.
- Day 4 - Transfer to Petra, free afternoon. Evening at Petra's kitchen.
- Day 5 - Full day at the Petra site. Horse ride in, guided tour, buffet lunch, the group went their own seperate ways to discover Petra in the late afternoon, and then meandered back to our hotel.
- Day 6 - Departed Petra for Aqaba. Mini Tour of Aqaba. Afternoon spent on boat trip, which included reef snorkelling, and an onboard BBQ lunch. Evening at 'Ali-baba' restaurant.
- Day 7 - Flew back to at Amman airport, and said farewell to the group, who transfered to London. Transfer to the 'Dead Sea Spa Resort' hotel.
- Day 8 - Floating in the dead sea, and spent the rest of the day by the pool.
- Day 9 - Excursion to baptism site, transfered to Amman Hotel. Afternoon exploring Amman.
- Day 10 - Flew back to London
* This itinerary is slightly different to that published in our brochure (as I joined the group after their trip started and left later).
Wadi Rum
Wadi Rum was a beautiful setting, and we all immediately went exploring a nearby mountain range. Fantastic views all around, and some great silhouette photos as the sun went down. We all decided on a TWO hour Camel trek rather than one hour, which everyone loved, and included lots of dune jumping! The 4x4 safari was a great adventure, with wonderful vistas of weathered mountain ranges looking like they were dripping with orange icing. We saw Nabbatean wall carvings, Aladdin's cave, a herd of VERY cute mountain goats, a mushroom rock formation, and also visited a Bedouin camp, where we were privileged to ask them questions about their lifestyle. We were most surprised by the temperature, as it was gorgeous sunshine, but not too hot. We returned to the camp as the sun was going down. The children had already pulled their beds out of the tents and lined them up so they could sleep under the stars. We then did the same, and fell asleep whilst staring into the universe. I counted 3 shooting stars.
Petra
On the first day in Petra, we went to Petra's kitchen, which was a great experience. This involved the adults and older children doing all the vegetable chopping, frying and boiling, and the younger kids making dough, kneading it, and making traditional cheese and thyme pastries. We then sat down to eat. It all tasted great! The following day we had a full day at the site of Petra, which started with a horse ride to the Siq (the narrow gorge that serves as the entrance to the site). The first carved monument is the much photographed 'Treasury' (Photo top left), which was received with a few 'wow's! Our guide had lots of information about the site. The group separated after lunch and we all made our way back at our own pace.
Aqaba
In Aqaba everyone decided that they liked the look of the boat trip to the reef, which included snorkelling, and a BBQ lunch on board. The Red Sea has some of the best coral reefs on the planet, and whilst snorkelling we saw Parrot fish, Clown fish, Zebra fish, Wrasse, Brain corals, Fan corals and also an army tank! In the evening we all had dinner together at the Ali-baba restaurant, following by a wander around the market, with the kids making their own sand bottles with lovely coloured sand patterns in.
Dead Sea
Floating in the Dead Sea is a very bizarre experience! You bob about a bit like a cork, with most of your head and limbs out of the water. We also indulged in a full body Dead Sea mud pack, which is full of lovely healthy minerals. The Dead Sea spa resort has five swimming pools, for different age groups, with aqua-slides and more.
Food and Drink
The food was very good at all places we ate, with the Bait Ali camp BBQ, and the restaurant buffet within the Petra site being two of the best. There are plenty of opportunities to get bottled water throughout this tour.
Suggestions: Families with young children may want to take a few breakfast bars for breakfast in the desert camp, as the camp breakfast mainly consists of pitta bread and mezza.