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Jordan in 15 days: Wadi Rum, Aqaba and the desert castles, day by day

Fifteen days in the south, then the east: a five-day trek in Wadi Rum with a Bedouin guide, the Jebel Burdah arch, the summit of Jebel Um Adaami, the ride out by camel, the Red Sea wrecks off Aqaba, the frescoes of Qusayr Amra and the oryx of Shaumari.

Compiled by Kylian Surget, updated on 02/10/2026

The red sand and sandstone massifs of Wadi Rum, a tiny 4x4 in the middle of the valley
  • 15 days
  • 22 places
  • 14 nights
  • sustained pace
Start
Wadi Musa (Petra), heading for Wadi Rum
End
Amman (Queen Alia International Airport)
Main transport
A five-day trek on foot with a support pick-up, then jeep and camel in Wadi Rum, two boat trips out of Aqaba, and a rental car for the rest, including 370 km from Aqaba to Azraq on day 43
Recommended season
March to May and October to November, the only good windows for walking in Wadi Rum: summer often tops 45 °C in the shade, and desert nights are cold in winter

What you get

  • The complete itinerary: 15 days sequenced Morning / Afternoon / Evening / Hotel
  • The card of every hotel, with the address and a direct booking link
  • Quota tickets, fixed-date tickets and surcharges flagged in advance
  • The country quick guide: weather, transport, formalities, budget
  • A PDF file of 22 pages

What the price does not include

  • Flights
  • Hotel nights
  • Tickets and admission fees
  • Travel insurance
  • On-the-ground assistance during your trip

The travel book preview

The free day in full, with its hotel card. This is the sample.

Day 8

From the desert to the Red Sea

Morning

Back by camel

Early breakfast at the camp, then back to Wadi Rum village by camel, one mount per person and the guide on his own. The slow pace of the animals in the sand, at dune height, is the truest way to leave the desert.

Afternoon

Aqaba, city of the Great Revolt

An hour's drive to the gulf. Aqaba fort, a 16th-century Mamluk caravanserai remodelled by the Ottomans, was taken in 1917 by the Arab troops and Lawrence: the founding episode of the Revolt. Next to it, the 130-metre flagpole flies the flag of the Arab Revolt, visible from Egypt and Israel, at the centre of Arab Revolt Plaza.

Evening

The Aqaba corniche

An evening stroll along the corniche, around the old port and the Cruise Pier: cafés, grilled fish and the lights of the four countries visible from the gulf, Egypt, Israel, Saudi Arabia and Jordan.

Good to know

Aqaba fort and the Great Arab Revolt museum take an hour, on the corniche. Aqaba is a special economic zone: checks on entering and leaving the city, keep your passport and vehicle papers to hand.

Hotel · Night 8

Bratus Hotel Aqaba

A hotel in central Aqaba, a few minutes from the corniche and the fort: air-conditioned rooms, early breakfast suited to dive departures, restaurants and shops within walking distance. Three nights on site.

Address
· corner of Prince Hassan Street and Al-Hussein Bin Ali Street, Aqaba
Website
· bratushotels.com (new tab)
Check-in
3:00 PM · Check-out 12:00 noon
Book this hotel (new tab)

Buy this itinerary

€39 incl. tax

that is €2.60 per day of travel

The buy button becomes active once the box is ticked.

  • Secure payment through Stripe, bank card, Apple Pay and Google Pay
  • Available immediately in your customer account: online reading with clickable booking links, downloadable PDF for offline use
  • Method: what is checked, and when

A hotel in the itinerary closed or impossible to find, a place to visit permanently closed?

Within 12 months of purchase, email contact@etaperia.com

Itinerary corrected within 7 days, or refunded in full. Terms in article 12 of the T&Cs, on top of the legal warranty (new tab)

€39 incl. tax · 15 days

Buy

A question before buying? Email Kylian, reply within 48 working hours.

The day-by-day rundown

14 stops, 610 km as the crow flies

  1. Day 1 From Humeima to the edge of the desert Humeima (Hawara) Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  2. Day 2 Siq Makharas, Um Ishrin and the dunes First day of walking Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  3. Day 3 The Jebel Burdah arch Climbing the arch Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  4. Day 4 Two arches and the long crossing The longest day of the trek Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  5. Day 5 The ridge of Jebel Khasch East-west traverse Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  6. Day 6 Um Adaami, the roof of Jordan The country's highest point Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  7. Day 7 Jeep, red dunes and Nabataean inscriptions The grand desert tour Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  8. Day 8 From the desert to the Red Sea Back by camel Free
  9. Day 9 Underwater museum and Cedar Pride Two guided dives Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  10. Day 10 Hercules, Japanese Gardens and Yellowstone Aircraft wreck and coral gardens Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  11. Day 11 Migrating birds and the drive east Aqaba Bird Observatory Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  12. Day 12 Black desert and Umayyad castles The tour of the desert castles Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  13. Day 13 Azraq marshes and the Shaumari safari Azraq Wetland Reserve Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  14. Day 14 The last qasrs and back to Amman Qasr al-Qastal and Qasr al-Mushatta Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  15. Day 15 Flying home Leaving Amman Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF

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Country quick guide and logistics

The essentials of the country, scannable in ten seconds.

Weather and when to go

  • Spring and autumn are the only good windows for walking: summer often tops 45 °C in the shade in Wadi Rum. In the hot season the long day 36 stage starts before sunrise.
  • Desert nights are cool all year and cold in winter: a warm sleeping bag, hat and windproof for the bivouacs on days 34 to 37, even in April.
  • In Aqaba a shorty wetsuit is enough all year for the dives on days 41 and 42. The bird observatory, on the morning of day 43, is at its best during the spring and autumn migrations.

Transport and permits

  • The rental car stays in Wadi Rum village or at the visitor centre from day 33 to day 40: inside the protected area only Bedouin 4x4s are allowed. A separate trekking bag is enough; the rest of the luggage can be left at the camp.
  • The trek on days 34 to 38 covers about 80 km on foot, with water and bags carried by pick-up and a ride back to the village over some forty kilometres of tracks on the last day; day 39 is by jeep and the morning of day 40 by camel.
  • The longest transfer of the stage: about 370 km and 4 hrs 30 from Aqaba to Azraq on day 43, along the Desert Highway then Route 5, with the tank filled before leaving Aqaba. The car is returned on the morning of day 47, full, before the flight.

Formalities and safety

  • The guide sets out the entry rules for French passport holders: passport valid six months beyond the return date, and a Jordan Pass that includes the visa and entry to the Wadi Rum protected area (5 JD per person without it). Keep the passport on you: the south is a border zone with checks, and Aqaba a special economic zone checked on the way in and out. Travellers on another passport should check their own conditions.
  • Two physical requirements to know before booking: the Burdah arch, on day 35, is reached by a grade 3 scramble with an exposed, unprotected final step, and the wreck of the Cedar Pride, at 27 m on day 41, calls for experienced divers with an up-to-date certification card.
  • The trek and the jeep and camel circuit are booked with Wadi Rum Desert Tours; the Shaumari safari on day 45 is booked in advance with the RSCN, with fixed departure times. No flying within 24 hours of the last dive, on day 42.

Budget and meals

  • The Jordanian dinar: 1 JOD is about €1.30. There are no cash machines in the protected area: withdraw in Wadi Musa or Aqaba before going in.
  • Bring cash for tips for the guide and the team, customary at the end of a trek. The three castles on day 44, Qusayr Amra, Qasr Al-Harranah and Qasr Azraq, are covered by the Jordan Pass.
  • Main items: the five-day trek and the jeep and camel circuit with Wadi Rum Desert Tours, the two boat trips with guided dives in Aqaba, the guided day round the desert castles and the three-hour safari at Shaumari.

Frequently asked questions

What exactly do I receive?

Your Étaperia itinerary, available immediately in your customer account after payment: readable online with clickable booking links, and downloadable as a PDF for the trip. Every day is sequenced Morning / Afternoon / Evening, with the hotel for each night, its address and its booking link, and timed-entry tickets flagged in advance.

How is this better than what an AI gives me?

A generative AI composes a plausible list in seconds, without saying what was checked or when. At Étaperia, every itinerary is compiled day by day, with the booking constraints spotted before it is too late to get them. The Method page says what is checked, against which source and on what date.

Can I adapt it to my dates and my pace?

Yes. The days are self-contained blocks: you can shift the departure, stretch a stage or skip a day without breaking what follows. Only timed-entry tickets require adjusting the dates accordingly, and they are all flagged.

What if a hotel or a place in the itinerary has closed?

Email contact@etaperia.com within 12 months of your purchase. If a hotel in the itinerary is closed or can no longer be found, or a place to visit has closed permanently, the itinerary is corrected in your customer account within 7 days, or you are refunded in full. A hotel fully booked on your dates, a seasonal closure or a change in opening hours or prices is not covered. This guarantee comes on top of the legal warranty of conformity; details in article 12 of the terms and conditions of sale.

Who is selling you this itinerary

  • Kylian Surget, sole trader, SIRET 927 587 709 00035
  • Consumer mediator: ANM Consommation
  • Payment handled by Stripe: Étaperia never sees your card number
  • Publisher, not a travel agency: you book flights, hotels and tickets yourself

In the same country

This module is one leg of the full itinerary: Complete Jordan itinerary: 47 days, hotels and bookings

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