News

·         Visit lost city of Petra on exploration of ancient lands

·         Tour Mount Nebo, where Moses saw the Holy Land

·         Visit Bethany, the site of Jesus’ baptism

Lawrence of Arabia was there, as well as the Emperor Hadrian, Moses, John the Baptist and Jesus Christ – and now guests on Saga’s tour of the ancient sites of Jordan can appreciate the awe-inspiring beauty of a land steeped in four millennia of history.

The adventure, Ancient Petra and Arabian Deserts, takes in the Wadi Rum ‘Moon Valley’ associated with T.E. Lawrence and the Arab Revolt of 1917-18, and where scenes in the 1962 Peter O’Toole movie were filmed, as well as Bethany, recorded as the site of Jesus’ baptism by John.

The city of Jerash, where a triumphal arch was built in honour of a visit by the Roman leader Hadrian in AD 129 and Mount Nebo, from where Moses saw the Holy Land, are also on the itinerary.

There’s an opportunity to float in the salty Dead Sea, tour the Jordanian capital Amman and visit the once lost city of Petra, one of the new seven wonders of the world.

Lunch in a Bedouin tent is a highlight of the journey to Wadi Rum, reached by a four-wheel drive vehicle, and where the huge dunes and rocks hold traces of early civilisations, including ancient carvings on the crags.

Petra, known as the ‘rose-red city’, was built in a canyon from 800 BC to 100 AD, with the only entrance through a narrow cleft of rock, but fell into disuse in the 6th century and was only rediscovered in 1812.

The tour of Amman features towering Citadel Hill, where Herod the Great built a temple to Hercules in 30BC, and surviving Roman ruins include a theatre that could seat 6,000, while at Jerash, damaged by an earthquake in AD 749, the well-preserved ruins include a Roman Forum, two theatres, a hippodrome and the ‘Street of Columns’, where ruts made by chariot wheels remain in the paving stones.

The city is also the base for an excursion to Jordan’s 7th and 8th century desert castles, including small palaces and the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Qusair Amra.

Guests stay in Saga-rated 4Q and 5Q hotels ­­– the AlQasr Metropole Hotel in Amman for three-nights, the Movenpick Petra Resort Hotel for two nights and the Movenpick Dead Sea Resort and Spa for three nights.

For details call free on 0800 056 0464 or visit saga.co.uk/Jordan

Eight nights from £1,699 per person departing London Heathrow on February 27, March 13, September 18, October 9 and November 6, 2019.

Price includes VIP door-to-door chauffeur service‡, return flights, airport taxes, accommodation, eight breakfasts, two lunches and two dinners, porterage, tour manager, optional travel insurance and additional cancellation rights, or a discount if passenger has own insurance. 

 ‡ Private chauffeur service up to 75 miles each way, shared chauffeur service from 76-250 miles