The Best of Jordan

Amman Citadel

Best time to travel: April-May
Ease of travel: Moderate
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

Historical site, an L-shaped hill, that is one of the seven hills (jabals) that originally made up Amman
Evidence of occupation since the pottery Neolithic period has been found and the hill was fortified during the Bronze Age around 1800 BC
The hill became the capital of the Kingdom of Ammon sometime after 1200 BC
It was later occupied by various empires that of the Assyrians, Babylonians, the Ptolemies, the Seleucids, Romans, Byzantines, and the Umayyads
After the Umayyads came a period of decline and for much of the time until 1878 as the former city became an abandoned pile of ruins only sporadically used by Bedouins and seasonal farmers
Despite this gap, the Citadel of Amman is considered to be among the world’s oldest continuously inhabited places
Archaeologists have been working at the site since the 1920s, but a great part of the Citadel remains unexcavated

Best time to travel: April-June
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Ease of travel: Hard
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

Historical and archaeological city
The area around Petra has been inhabited as early as 7,000 BC, and the Nabataeans might have settled in what would become the capital city of their kingdom, as early as the 4th century BC
The Nabataeans were nomadic Arabs who invested in Petra’s proximity to the trade routes by establishing it as a major regional trading hub
In 106 AD, Petra fell to the Romans, who annexed Nabataea and renamed it as Arabia Petraea
Petra’s importance declined as sea trade routes emerged, and after an earthquake in 363 destroyed many structures
Because of the decline, the site was abandoned except for a handful of nomads
It remained unknown to the world until it was rediscovered in 1812

Best time to travel: March-May, Sept-Nov
Ease of travel: Hard
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$

Valley cut into the sandstone and granite rock
Wadi Rum has been inhabited by many human cultures since prehistoric times, with many cultures, including the Nabataeans, leaving their mark in the form of rock paintings, graffiti, and temples

Best time to travel: April-June
Ease of travel: Hard
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$

One of the most elaborate temples in Petra, a city of the Nabatean Kingdom inhabited by the Arabs in ancient times
As with most of the other buildings in this ancient town, including the Monastery, this structure was carved out of a sandstone rock face.
The structure is believed to have been the mausoleum of the Nabatean King Aretas IV in the 1st century AD
It became known as “Al-Khazneh”, or The Treasury, in the early 19th century by the area’s Bedouins as they had believed it contained treasures

Best time to travel: May-Oct
Ease of travel: Moderate
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

Elevated ridge that is part of the Abarim mountain range
Mount Nebo is mentioned in the Bible as the place where Moses was granted a view of the Promised Land before his death
The view from the summit provides a panorama of the West Bank across the Jordan River valley
The city of Jericho is usually visible from the summit, as is Jerusalem on a very clear day

Best time to travel: April-May
Ease of travel: Moderate
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

Amman’s Roman Theatre is a 6,000-seat, 2nd-century Roman theater
A famous landmark in the Jordanian capital, it dates back to the Roman period when the city was known as Philadelphia

Best time to travel: May-June
Ease of travel: Hard
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$

Jordan’s largest nature reserve, located in south-central Jordan, and founded in 1989
The area of Wadi Dana features wind-cut sandstone cliffs
The people of the Ata’ta (or Al Atata) tribe are the native inhabitants of Dana Biosphere Reserve
Their history in Dana dates 400 years, with human settlement in the area dating back more than 6000 years