The PERFECT 7-Day Travel Guide for visiting JORDAN: Petra, Wadi Rum, Dead Sea & MORE!

In this video, I'm taking you with me on a seven-day journey across the most beautiful country in the Middle East, Jordan. From ancient cities carved into sandstone and otherworldly desert landscapes to floating in the Dead Sea and exploring vibrant local culture, I decided to travel through this Middle Eastern country on a guided itinerary with Arabian Wanderers to see as much as possible in just one week. So if you're planning a trip to Jordan and want to know what are some must-visit places, or wondering how to organize a seven-day route, this video is your complete travel guide. Let's get straight into it. Having been picked up at Amman Airport by my Arabian Wanderers guide the day before and resting at the hotel for the remainder of the day, we headed to the north of Jordan for our first full day of exploration. After a two-hour drive, our first stop was Umm Qais, also known as Ancient Gadara. The city was built using stunning black basalt stones and is known for its remarkably well-preserved Roman ruins, including colonnaded streets, theaters, and stone terraces. Walking around here, you can really see how organized this Roman city was. You've got a very straight road, which was the main thoroughfare, and you've got Roman columns on either side. And I've even spotted some of the old drainage channels and old shop fronts. What really makes this place special is the view. This historic site sits high on a hilltop overlooking several countries at once — Israel, Palestine, and Syria. On a clear day, you can see the Sea of Galilee stretching out into the distance. The next stop on our journey was Jerash. Jerash was seriously one of the highlights of this trip and easily one of the best-preserved Roman cities outside of Italy. Just look at the size of these columns compared to me. They are huge. Wow. Walking through Jerash feels like stepping straight back in time, with its towering columns, grand theaters, and long stone streets still incredibly intact. These are the ruins of a Roman amphitheater, and I just can't believe how well-preserved they are. Like, the front of it is just incredible. So you've got all these rows of seats where people would have been watching the spectacle. Just standing here in this amphitheater, you can almost imagine people living their everyday lives here and coming here to enjoy a concert or somebody maybe reciting poetry or something very romantic. From the iconic Oval Plaza to the Cardo Maximus, this city gives you a real sense of how Roman life once unfolded here. After an incredible day exploring some of the best Roman ruins I've seen outside of Italy, it was time to return to the hotel and get some rest. The next morning, we started local, exploring the capital city of Amman, in my opinion, one of the most underrated cities in the Middle East. Our first stop was the Citadel. Exploring the Amman Citadel is like walking through layers of Jordan's history all in one place. Here, you'll find ruins from multiple civilizations, including the Roman Temple of Hercules and the Islamic Umayyad Palace, each telling a different chapter of Amman's past. Sitting on the highest hill in Amman, this ancient site offers panoramic views over the entire city, including the ancient Roman amphitheater which sits between Jordan's modern-day streets. It's the perfect place to understand where Amman began and how history and everyday life continue to exist side by side in Jordan. After exploring the Citadel, we headed to downtown Amman, where it was time to sample some of the delicious local Jordanian cuisine with my Arabian Wanderers guide. One of the things you must try when in Jordan is the street food snack falafel, made from chickpeas blended with herbs and spices before being shaped into small balls and fried in hot oil. It's crispy and packed full of flavor. Wow, taste some of the falafel. Trying the creamy hummus and full is also a must. Delicious dips made from local chickpeas and kidney beans and topped with the local olive oil. Wow, delicious. Exploring downtown Amman is where the city really comes alive. It's busy, vibrant, and full of everyday local life. Walking through the souks, you'll find stalls piled high with dates, nuts, spices, and fresh produce. And it's one of the best places to stop, taste, and snack as you explore. This one? Can I try one? Nice, sweet. A short drive from Amman is the UNESCO-listed site of Assalt. Known for its distinctive yellow stone houses, this historic hillside city is full of narrow streets, staircases, and beautifully preserved Ottoman-era architecture. So really, this kind of architecture became the city's trademark look in the 19th and 20th centuries. Of course, the Ottomans were here. They had a big part to play in the layout of the city, which means you'll find homes that have huge internal courtyards, high ceilings, the arched doorways, and decorative stonework. Very much typical of the Ottoman style of architecture. Assalt was once an important trading hub, and walking through the old town gives you a real sense of community and local life. Especially when exploring the centuries-old souk, where traders still sell handcrafted products like olive oil and camel milk soap. I just want to say thank you to the sponsor of this video, Squarespace. They're an online website design service, and they've got lots of ready-made, beautiful templates to choose from. I made my website using Squarespace, and I have no prior experience or knowledge creating a website, and they made it super easy. You just go to their website. They've got lots of templates depending on what you want. So if you've got a blog or if you've got an e-store, you're sure to find a template for your passion project or business venture. With their amazing drag-and-drop technology, you can just choose your template and drag the photos that you want into the template. You can change the color and font to match your website's aesthetic. So for my website, I went for a very clean, minimal aesthetic and colors, and a drop-down menu along the top, which allows me to showcase what I want people to see, like my YouTube or my social media. They've also got eShop templates. I just launched my merchandise, and I was able to create an eShop on my Squarespace website. I love their in-depth analytics tools because it shows you where your traffic is coming from, so you can target potential areas of growth for your site. So head to Squarespace. You get a free trial, and once you're ready to launch your website or domain, you can get 10% off using my code MELINIANGELICA when you head to squarespace.com forward slash MELINIANGELICA. So have fun building your amazing website. It was time to leave the capital Amman behind and head to Petra, easily the most anticipated visit on my trip to Jordan. After around a three-hour drive, we arrived at the so-called Rose City. Exploring Petra is one of those moments that truly lives up to the hype. Walking through the narrow seek and looking up at the towering pink sandstone cliffs, and then finally seeing the treasury slowly reveal itself is unforgettable. And no photo really prepares you for the scale and beauty of it in person. Wow. It's one of the most beautiful sights I have seen in all of my travels. Seriously. Petra was once a thriving Arab Nabataean city carved entirely into rose-colored rock. And as you explore, you begin to realize just how vast it really is. Just like the detailing is so, so spectacular. Beyond the treasury, there are tombs, temples and trails that stretch deep into the surrounding landscape. I decided to hike up 900 stairs to the monastery. The climb is long and challenging. However, there's also the option to go with a donkey if you're feeling brave. But the reward is worth it. The monastery is just as breathtaking as the treasury and a reminder of how vast and extraordinary Petra truly is. It's hard to comprehend that they could carve something so beautiful out of the mountain. And we just appreciate the fact that it's lasted for this long. After a relaxing rest in Petra, it was time to head to the desert for some adventure. And after a rather fun two-hour drive later, you may encounter some interesting roadside companions on the way. We arrived at Wadi Rum and our camp for the night. I got settled into these futuristic Mars-like tents surrounded by endless red sand and towering rock formations. What really makes these tents special are the panoramic windows. It makes it feel as though the desert is part of the room, not something you're looking at from afar. Next, I headed out on a fun Jeep tour to explore Wadi Rum's canyons, rolling sand dunes and iconic rock formations. You can really see already why they call this place Mars on Earth because you have to look at the landscapes. Like you've got these incredible rock formations and endless sand dunes and it really does feel like, you know, something from another planet. It's just amazing. My guide took me to some of the famous filming locations that have appeared in movies set on other planets like The Martian and I got the chance to walk up some steep sand dunes and just soak in the otherworldly views and the peacefulness of the landscape. Wow, this view is just incredible. Oh my gosh, it feels like I'm at the end of the world. Whoa. I ended the day exploring the desert with a camel ride at sunset. I must admit, this was my first time riding a camel, so I was nervous but it turned out to be way more fun than I expected. It's actually a lot more chilled out than being on the Jeep, I must say. And soaking in the views and the changing colors as the sun set was the perfect end to the day. Riding a camel out in the desert here in Jordan really is such a special experience and it's so quiet and peaceful and the sun setting in between those mountains in the distance. It's absolutely beautiful. Evenings in Wadi Rum are all about good food and relaxed vibes with traditional live music waiting for us at the camp and a warm fire. It was nice to relax after an adventure-packed day. The surprise was the local meat cooked in the ground the traditional way which we got to see being taken out and a buffet with all the mix of meats, vegetables and fresh bread. The food is so authentic and you literally see them cooking the lamb underground for hours and it's just amazing, like really delicious. It's honestly one of the most delicious meals of the trip and perfect after a long day in the desert. After a scenic one-hour drive from Wadi Rum the next morning we arrived at Jordan's Red Sea jewel, Aqaba. This city is Jordan's only gateway to the sea and the best way to explore it is from the water. So the first thing I did was head out on a glass-bottomed boat. The views of Aqaba from the sea are beautiful with its layered mountains contrasting with the white buildings. The water here is so clear and I just had no idea it was going to be this beautiful. The glass bottom is also perfect for spotting colourful coral reefs and even sunken wreckage sites without needing to get into the water though the option to snorkel is there if you want to. Back on land we explored the ruins of the old fort with sweeping views over the Red Sea and learned more about its role in the Arab revolt against the Ottomans. And of course no visit to Aqaba is complete without sampling the local seafood. Fresh, simple and some of the best food you'll find along the journey. The beautiful thing is it's very crispy. This fish is fresh from the sea today and it just tastes amazing. It's so meaty. Leaving behind the coastal city of Aqaba we headed towards the Dead Sea with a couple of scenic and historic stops along the way. The first was Mount Nebo, a quiet but meaningful stop on the journey. From the viewpoint you can see across the Jordan Valley towards the Dead Sea and on a clear day even as far as Jerusalem. Mount Nebo is known as the place where Moses is said to have seen the promised land so it's a calm, reflective pause in the itinerary. A moment to take in just how much history is packed into this small country. Our next brief stop was the mosaic town of Madaba and we headed to St George's Church to see its most famous site, the Madaba Mosaic Map. One of the oldest surviving maps of the Holy Land made from thousands of tiny stone tiles. It's incredibly detailed and gives a fascinating look at how this region was depicted over a thousand years ago. Visiting the Dead Sea is one of the most unique experiences in Jordan and I honestly did not know what to expect. It was one of the surprises of my Jordan trip. It's the lowest point on earth, sitting more than 400 meters below sea level and because of its extremely high salt content which is said to be 10 times saltier than the ocean, the water is incredibly dense and you can't sink, you just float. Staying at one of the resorts in this area makes the experience much easier and more relaxing too. With private access to the Dead Sea, showers nearby and amenities like swimming pools and restaurants on site. You simply walk in, lean back and float. No swimming required. That's so cool! Wow! So I'm basically just floating very easily without having to make any effort. My arms, my legs, everything's just floating. One of the most popular things to do here is cover yourself in the mineral-rich black mud found along the shore which the resorts provide for you. It's packed with minerals that are believed to be good for the skin. I probably look absolutely ridiculous but like I said, this is really full of these natural minerals. It's like a natural spa. There's a reason why people come here because it's literally like having a spa treatment. And after letting it dry in the sun, you rinse it off in the sea, leaving your skin feeling incredibly smooth. I was a bit skeptical at first but I can confirm that my skin was baby soft afterwards. This place is relaxing, a little surreal and a once-in-a-lifetime stop on any Jordan itinerary. It was also the perfect end to an adventure-packed week in Jordan. On day seven, we spent the final morning enjoying the Dead Sea and its surroundings one last time. Before heading off, we stopped at Pointe de Vue, an incredible viewpoint overlooking the Dead Sea with a sea of palm trees in the foreground and mountains stretching across the horizon. It's a beautiful place to take in the scenery and it also has public access to the water if you want one last float in the Dead Sea. The beach here is literally a salt beach, so the sand is a bright white and it's all salt crystals. It's fun to feel and even taste if you're brave enough. After that, it was time for the drive to the airport and the journey home, wrapping up an unforgettable week exploring Jordan with Arabian Wanderers, a country full of history, landscapes and experiences that completely exceeded my expectations.