Archaeology of Jordan (8 Days) 

     Group flight from London to Amman OR meet coach at Amman airport OR meet at hotel in Amman.

     Drive north to the fabulous decapolis city of Jerash, lying in the pine valleys of the Gilead, with a stream running through the center which keeps it green even in summer. The ruins are incredibly well-preserved, and the oval plaza is one of the most beautifully-shaped monuments anywhere in the world.

     South along the King’s Highway, past Mount Nebo - the route taken by Moses as he looked out over the Holy Land, and on to Madaba to see the remarkable 6th century mosaic map, the earliest surviving of the Holy Land, with the walled city of Jerusalem at the centre, and depicting some wonderful details of life in the area of the Dead Sea and Jordan Valley (although the later iconoclasts have removed faces). Continue via Kerak, and along the Dead Sea to Wadi Feinan, where we stay amongst the mountains of this extraordinary, wild valley, in an eco-lodge within the nature reserve, surrounded by a fascinating archaeological landscape. Leave the coach for 4x4s to take us to the lodge, leaving your main luggage with the coach and taking an overnight bag with what you need until the next day.

     All day in Wadi Feinan. Feinan was a major source of copper from the Chalcolithic to the Late Roman period, and we explore ancient copper mines in the ravines. The huge slag heaps left from the Bronze Age were resmelted during the Roman period by prisoners on punishment details. Feinan’s water systems, irrigation ditches and channels date as far back as the Neolithic. Extensive remains are to be seen throughout the valley, from prehistoric houses to the ruinous Roman citadel. Rendezvous with the coach and luggage during the afternoon, and continue to our hotel near Petra.

     All day in Nabatean Petra, one of the great archaeological wonders. The approach to the site is famous - through a narrow siq, or water-channel - a secretive, winding passage which ends with the spectacular revelation of the tomb known as the Treasury. The site itself is huge, with more elaborate tombs cut into the red streaky rocks on all sides of the city. There are two ‘high places’ which involve a climb (on a path with rock-cut steps) to sites which were sacred to the Nabateans, with the most spectacular views out over the cliffs and valleys. Parts of the Classical city have an early Christian overlay, with churches with very fine Byzantine mosaics - still a place of pilgrimage for many.

     Another day in Petra - best to save the second climb for today, and explore more of the outlying tombs.

     Free day or optional excursion first to Neolithic site at Beidha, a complex, walled village and unique temple from the 7th millennium BC. Then continue south to take 4x4s through spectacular desert scenery at Wadi Rum, which marks the end of the exposed high plain before Arabia’s sandy empty quarter, eerie in its windy vastness. The area is famous for its association with T E Lawrence, who described it thus: "It was tamarisk covered: the beginning of the Wadi Rum, they said. We looked on to the left to a long wall of rock, sheering in like a thousand-foot wave towards the middle of the valley, whose other arc to the right was an opposing line of steep red hills." We cross this extraordinary terrain to examine some of the remarkable early rock art found here.

     Drive back to Amman to take group flights home, or travel independently, or extend your holiday.