Day 1 - Amman

Scheduled flight to Queen Alia International Airport in the south of Amman - transfer with our tour manager in our private executive coach to the 4* Bristol Hotel in Amman for a two night stay.

Day 2 - Jerash & the Dead Sea

Drive north of Amman to the Greco-Roman Decapolis city of Jerash, an ancient city boasting an unbroken chain of human occupation dating back more the 6,500 years, where we visit sights such as the ruins of the Triumphal Arch, the Amphitheatre, the Forum and the Hippodrome as well as walking down the Street of Columns, the Roman Cardo and the Oval Market - included lunch at the Dead Sea Spa, at 1,306 feet below sea level, the lowest spot on earth - enjoy the bizarre and delightful experience of ‘floating’ on the surface of buoyant waters, four times saltier than regular seawater.

Day 3 - Madaba, Mount Nebo & Kerak

Head to the south of Amman to the ancient Moabite city of Madaba where we see a selection of the mosaics for which the city was famous during the Byzantine period and visit the well known Saint George's Church with the 6th century mosaic map of the Holy Land - Mount Nebo is the site of Moses’ last camp after the Exodus and the summit from which he surveyed the Holy Land before his death - visit the 4th century memorial church for Moses and the simple Franciscan chapel covering the remains of the original 4th century church and 6th century basilica - continue south through Wadi Mujib to Kerak, the 12th century crusaders’ castle used to control the ancient caravan roads from Egypt to Syria, which after Saladin’s defeat of the crusaders at Hittin in 1187 passed into Moslem hands - continue to the 4* Taybet Zaman Hotel near Petra for a three night stay.

Day 4 - Petra

The vast rose-red city of Petra was carved into the sheer rock face by the Nabataeans, an industrious Arab people who settled there more than 2,000 years ago, turning it into an important junction for the silk, spice and other trade routes that linked China, India and southern Arabia with Egypt, Syria, Greece and Rome - enter the city through the Siq, a narrow 1 kilometre gorge with 80 metres high cliffs with a variety of colours and formations - towards the end of the Siq catch your first glimpse of the early 1st century Al-Khazneh, known as The Treasury, a massive façade, 30m wide and 43m high, carved out of the sheer, dusky pink, rock face and dwarfing everything around it - choose between returning to the hotel to relax or spend more time exploring Petra.

Day 5 - Wadi Rum

Morning free to relax in the hotel - head south from Petra to Wadi Rum for pre-booked four by four wheel drive jeeps to explore the Land of Lawrence of Arabia, an unusual desert terrain that resembles a pastel pink lunar landscape, with towering limestone and granite cliffs shooting out of the sandy desert floor.

Day 6 - Amman guided tour

Return to Amman for a city tour visiting important sights of the Greco-Roman Empire - visit the Jordan Archaeological Museum at the Citadel and both the Jordan Museum of Popular Traditions and the Jordan Folklore Museum at the Roman Amphitheatre - return to the 4* Bristol Hotel for a two night stay.

Day 7 - Desert Castles

The Desert Castles, Qasr Amra, Qasr Kharaneh and Qasr Azraq, built by the early Islamic Umayyad Caliphs in the 7th and 8th centuries AD are some of the best preserved examples of Umayyad art and architecture, including fortifications, baths, mosques, water and agricultural systems, mosaic floors and painted wall frescoes.

Day 8 - Amman

Transfer to airport for our scheduled flight back home.

Four nights at the 4* Hotel Bristol in Amman. Ideally situated in the heart of the business and diplomatic district for seeing the sights of the city, the hotel features a restaurant and outdoor pool. Three nights in the 4* Taybet Zaman, a village style hotel 12 km away from the rose-red city of Petra featuring indoor and outdoor pools, health centre and Turkish bath. At both hotels we stay on half board basis and all rooms are en-suite.

Single room supplement £169

Insurance

Gratuities

Remember this itinerary is just our suggestion. Tailor make this tour exclusively for your group to suit your members’ budget or preferences. You could:

• stay at 5* hotels
• with fewer or different excursions
• for more (or fewer) days
• bring your own specialist lecturer
• include all entrance fees and gratuities