Jordan & Egypt

You will stay in the 4-star Hotel Bristol or similar in Amman, the 4-star Petra Moon in Petra, the 5-star Movenpick in Aqaba, the 4-star Helnan Newbiew Bay Resort Hotel or similar in Nuweiba, and the 4-star Safir Hotel or similar in Cairo. All bedrooms have private facilities and air-conditioning.

Hotels will be confirmed in your final documents.

Day 1: UK/Amman

Depart on your scheduled flight to Amman, the capital of Jordan. On arrival transfer to your hotel for a three-night stay.

Day 2: Amman

Morning city tour of Amman (known in biblical times as Philadelphia), including the Roman amphitheatre and the magnificent citadel. Afternoon visit to Jerash, the most beautifully preserved Roman city in existence.

Meals: Breakfast / dinner

Day 3: Amman

Today we have included a fascinating full-day excursion. This morning we visit Mount Nebo from which Moses sighted the Promised Land. You will then visit Madaba to see the remarkable centuries-old stone mosaic of the Holyland. Then continue to the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth, where you can enjoy the unique experience of floating in its waters (weather permitting), before returning to Amman.

Meals: Breakfast / dinner

Day 4: Petra

Today you travel south along the Kings Highway with its breathtaking views of mountains and canyons until you reach Kerak. Here you will visit the ancient fortress, the largest and most impregnable of the chain of fortresses built by the crusaders. Evening arrival in Petra where overnight accommodation has been arranged.

Meals: Breakfast / dinner

Day 5: Aqaba

Today, we include a full-day walking visit to Petra – ‘the rose red city half as old as time’. Petra was once a fabulously wealthy city on the caravan trade routes to the east. The people of Petra carved their dwellings and civic buildings out of the sandstone to create a magnificent city like no other before or since. As new trade routes bypassed Petra, the city fell into decline and was abandoned in the 4th century, before being rediscovered for the west by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt in 1812. The city is concealed beyond a long narrow gorge (the Siq) and you will be guided through this corridor of rock into the lost city. Petra is truly one of the world’s most extraordinary sights and a memorable experience, particularly the first glimpse of the magnificent Treasury Building at the end of the Siq. We then drive to the resort of Aqaba for a two-night stay.

Meals: Breakfast / dinner

Day 6: Aqaba

Free to enjoy Aqaba. There will be an optional morning jeep excursion into the desert of Wadi Rum, immortalised by Lawrence of Arabia. You’ll have the chance to take tea with the nomadic Bedouin.

Meals: Breakfast / dinner

Day 7: Nuweiba

Take the ferry across to Nuweiba in Egypt on the Red Sea, where two nights’ accommodation has been arranged. The afternoon is at leisure.

Meals: Breakfast / dinner

Day 8: Nuweiba

We take the drive to St. Catherine’s Monastery. A handful of Greek Orthodox monks still live in this ancient fortress and monastery, built in the 6th century at the foot of Mount Sinai. The collection of icons and jewelled crosses is priceless.

Meals: Breakfast / dinner

Day 9: Cairo

Depart Nuweiba for the drive to Cairo, through the dramatic countryside of the Sinai Peninsula. En route we visit the world-famous Suez Canal. Four nights’ accommodation has been arranged in Cairo.

Meals: Breakfast

Day 10: Cairo

Today we include a full-day tour of some of Egypt’s famous monuments, including Dahshur, Saqqara and Memphis, the former capital of Old Egypt. This afternoon, you continue to the great Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx.

Meals: Breakfast

Day 11: Cairo

Today you will visit Cairo’s world-famous Egyptian Museum, home to a rich store of remains and treasures, and the Khan El Khalili Bazaar.

Meals: Breakfast

Day 12: Cairo

Discover Cairo’s magnificent Citadel and the Sultan Hassan Mosque on our included excursion today. We then offer the opportunity to visit Coptic Cairo, a historic part of the old city.

Meals: Breakfast

Day 13: Cairo/UK

Morning at leisure before we transfer to Cairo airport for your return flight to the UK.

Meals: Breakfast