Jordan in a week: Amman, the Dead Sea and Petra

Jordan is about the size of Portugal, and much of it is desert. Yet it packs in an extraordinary range of sights for its size. There are Roman cities, Crusader castles, biblical sites, the rose-red city of Petra, the red desert of Wadi Rum, the Dead Sea and the coral reefs of the Red Sea. The distances between them are short by the standards of the region, and a week is enough for a well-planned first visit. Jordan is also one of the most stable and welcoming countries in the Middle East, with a long tradition of hospitality to strangers.

Amman

Most visits begin in Amman, the capital, a city of white stone houses spread across a series of hills. It is a largely modern city, but an ancient one too. On the highest hill, the Citadel has the remains of a Roman temple of Hercules and an Umayyad palace, with views across the city. Below it, a great Roman theatre is cut into the hillside, still used for performances. The downtown streets around it are full of shops, cafés and food stalls.

The food is a good reason to linger. Mansaf, the national dish, is lamb cooked in a sauce of fermented dried yoghurt and served on rice, traditionally eaten from a shared platter at celebrations. Falafel, hummus and fresh flatbread are everywhere, and knafeh, a sweet pastry of cheese and syrup, is a local passion.

The King's Highway

From Amman, the route to Petra can follow either the fast Desert Highway or the slower, older King's Highway, which winds along the top of the hills east of the Dead Sea. It is one of the oldest continuously used roads in the world, a trade route mentioned in the Bible. The sites along it are reason enough to take the slow road.

Madaba is a market town with a sixth-century mosaic map of the Holy Land in its Greek Orthodox church. Mount Nebo, nearby, is the traditional site from which Moses viewed the Promised Land, with a view across the Jordan Valley. Kerak has a massive Crusader castle on a ridge, a warren of vaulted halls and passages built in the twelfth century and later fought over by Saladin. The road crosses deep canyons, including the great gorge of Wadi Mujib, on its way south.

A note on getting around. Distances in Jordan are manageable, but public transport between the main sites is limited, so most visitors travel with a tour, a driver or a hire car. A combined pass sold by the Jordanian tourism authorities covers the visa fee, for visitors who meet its conditions, and entry to Petra and many other sites, and it is worth looking at before booking.

Petra, Wadi Rum and the Dead Sea

Petra, the city carved from the rock by the Nabataeans, is the climax of any trip to Jordan, and it deserves at least a full day, better two. The narrow gorge of the Siq leads to the Treasury, and beyond it lie the tombs, theatre, colonnaded street and the long climb to the Monastery. Wadi Rum, the great desert valley further south, is the place for a night under the stars in a Bedouin camp.

The Dead Sea, at the lowest point on land on earth, is the place to end. Its water is so dense with salt that you float effortlessly, and the black mud on its shores is famous for smearing on the skin. Don't shave the day before, and keep the water out of your eyes.

Explore Worldwide's Jordan Discovery, eight nights, includes Amman, Jerash, Madaba, Mount Nebo, Kerak, Petra, Wadi Rum, Aqaba and the Dead Sea.

Travelsphere's Jordan's Ancient Wonders, seven nights, includes Amman, Jerash, Mount Nebo, Madaba, the Crusader castle of Shobak, Petra and Siq al-Barid, Wadi Rum and the Dead Sea. Just You's Jordan, a Land of Ancient Treasures and Empires, seven nights for solo travellers, covers much the same ground.

Spring and autumn are the best seasons. Summer is very hot, especially at Petra and in the desert, and winter can be cold and wet in the hills, with occasional snow. Dress modestly away from the resorts, and accept the offers of tea: it is how Jordan says welcome.