Amman
Amman is a modern Arab city rather than one of the great cultural centres of the Middle East; it has never rivalled Damascus or Cairo as a grand Islamic city of antiquity.
Amman is a modern Arab city rather than one of the great cultural centres of the Middle East; it has never rivalled Damascus or Cairo as a grand Islamic city of antiquity.
Southern Jordan has a totally different feel from the north and holds some of the country's most dramatic desert landscapes.
The balmy winter climate and idyllic setting on the Gulf of Aqaba, ringed by high desert mountains, make this Jordan's aquatic playground.
The King's Highway - known in Arabic as At-Tariq as-Sultani (Rd of the Sultan) - is of great historical and religious significance.
This easy-going town is best known for its superb and historically significant Byzantine-era mosaics.
The deeper you go into the desert, the closer you come to God.
The area to the north of Amman is the most densely populated in Jordan, with the major centres of Irbid and Jerash, as well as dozens of small towns dotted in among the rugged and relatively fertile hills.
The ancient Crusader stronghold of Karak (or Kerak) lies within the walls of the old city and is one of the highlights of Jordan.
Irbid is a university town and, perhaps as a consequence, is one of the more lively and progressive of Jordan's large towns.
Offering some of the most extraordinary desert scenery you'll ever see, Wadi Rum (admission per person JD2, children under 12 free, per vehicle JD5) is a definite highlight of any visit to Jordan.
The Dead Sea is at the lowest point on earth and has such high salinity (due to evaporation) that you just bob about on the surface like a cork.
There are several reasons to visit the Dead Sea region, not least for a float in the sea itself, especially if you're not visiting the Israeli side.
The ruins at Jerash (6351272; adult/student & child under 15 JD5/2.
The oasis town of Azraq ('blue' in Arabic) lies 103km east of Amman.
The Dana Nature Reserve (adult/student JD6/3) is one of Jordan's hidden gems, as well as its most impressive ecotourism project.
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