Bike & Hike Jordan

Day 1: Amman - Madaba
Day 2: Mount Nebo, Mukawir & Dead Sea, 48 mi. (78 km) 
Day 3: Off-Road Eastern Plateau Scenic Trail to Petra, 22 mi. (35 km) 
Day 4: Petra Sightseeing 
Day 5: Petra sightseeing, visit Little Petra and ride an interesting off-road trail,  19 mi. (31 km) 
Day 6: Petra to Wadi Rum across the desert, 27 mi. (43 km) 
Day 7: Wadi Rum and Mudflats of Disi, 25 mi. (40 km) 
Day 8: Departure

Day 1: Amman - Madaba 
Upon your arrival, an airport transfer is included from Amman Airport (AMM) directly to your hotel in Madaba.  Hotel check-in time is typically after 2.00 pm. Early check-in is not guaranteed, but if you do arrive early, luggage storage is available at the hotel. There will be time to rest and settle in before you meet your tour guide for the trip. He'll be happy to answer any questions about the journey and to make sure you're briefed on the program for the coming days. (No meals)

Day 2: Mount Nebo, Mukawir & Dead Sea, 43 mi. (60 km) | Elevation: Ascent 450m/Descent 1500m
After breakfast, you head to Mount Nebo, a hilltop site with sweeping views down to the Dead Sea and west across the Jordan River towards Palestine. On a clear day you can see Jericho and even Jerusalem from here. For centuries Christians have believed this is the place where Moses died, within sight of the Promised Land, having led his people out of slavery in Egypt. In the early Christian period, Mount Nebo became a place of pilgrimage, and it was then that craftsmen made the beautiful mosaics floors that have been uncovered over the last 80 years.

From Mount Nebo a short transfer (20 km) on Kings Road south to Libb, where mount your bikes and ride west for 16 km on a narrow, undulating road through the villages of Bani Hamida to reach the hill of King Herod’s palace. History teaches that this is where John the Baptist was imprisoned and beheaded.

You then go to the nearby village of Mukawir and are hosted by a local family for lunch—a great opportunity for a genuine local interaction opportunity. 

It is then a downhill 1000 meters ride to the Dead Sea, the lowest spot on earth. Enjoy the special buoyancy experience of these waters.

In the afternoon, you are transferred south, bypassing the town of Tafila, to Dana village, and to your simple and friendly accommodation.  Here you are on the edge of Jordan's largest nature reserve, a spectacular wilderness of canyons and mountains that rise above the Great Rift Valley. 

Do not be intimidated by the length of today's ride - the last 15 km are entirely downhill and almost effortless. (B, L, D)

Day 3: Off-Road Eastern Plateau Scenic Trail to Petra, 25 mi. (40 km) | Elevation: Ascent 650m/Descent 790m
A short transfer transports you to Shobak, another in the great chain of castles that guarded the eastern edge of the Crusader kingdoms and watched over the old trade routes that ran from the Red Sea coast up towards Damascus. It was built in 1115 by King Baldwin, one of the leaders of the First Crusade and the first to be crowned King of Jerusalem. Like Kerak, it was part of the principality governed by Raynald of Chatillon in the late 12th century, and it was here at Shobak that Reynald built the ships that he then transported to the coast at Aqaba to launch a raiding party towards Mecca. The castle was taken by the Arab Islamic armies of Salaheddin (Saladin) in 1189, and extensively restored in the 14th century by the Mamluk dynasty. There are two churches inside the castle, and if you ask your guides they will show you the steep underground tunnel that the Crusaders cut to get down to the water spring below the castle.

Leaving the castle, you ride along an excellent dirt track that contours around the edge of the Eastern Plateau and offers magnificent views down into the Wadi Araba. There are some short, steep climbs along the way, but this is a really enjoyable section of the ride, and the support vehicle is always at hand. Eventually, you rejoin the King's Highway and continue south towards Wadi Musa. This little town is right on the edge of Petra's archaeological park and will be your base for exploring the ruins. You'll check into a comfortable hotel here for a three-night stay. (B, L)

Day 4: Petra Sightseeing 
You have a full day (off the bikes) to explore ancient Petra, accompanied during the morning (2-3 hours) by an expert English-speaking guide. You are then free to wander the ruins on your own. An early start helps you to get ahead of the mass of tourists and walk through the quiet, atmospheric slot canyon or siq that leads down towards the city. After the long twilight of the siq the sunlit façade of the Treasury is a stunning sight, no matter how many times you've seen it reproduced on film. From the postcards, you'd think this was what you'd come to see. But it's just the beginning. Petra is a vast archaeological site, most of it still unexcavated; you could spend days exploring the ruins and still not see it all. It was built by the Nabataeans, an Arab tribe who began as tent-dwelling Bedouin but soon came to dominate the most lucrative trade of the ancient world: incense. They used the money to create this city and to build an empire that extended from the Red Sea to Damascus. They also absorbed architectural ideas from Egypt, from the Babylonians, and from the Greek cities of the Mediterranean, using them to create the hybrid culture that you see in these ruins. The Temple of the Winged Lions, the High Place of Sacrifice, the Roman theatre, the Garden Tomb, the Byzantine church - any one of these monuments would be an archaeological treasure in its own right; in Petra, you can explore them one after another, and find them all set into one of the finest desert landscape in the Middle East. (B)

Day 5: Petra sightseeing, visit Little Petra and ride an interesting off-road trail, 19 mi. (31 km) | Elevation: Ascent 600 m/Descent 600 m
This morning is free for you to decide what you would like to do, whether you'd like to pay Petra another visit or rest, the choice is yours. In the early afternoon, you will ride on the tarmac road from the hotel to Beida (12 km north of Petra). You will stop to visit the site of Little Petra. The route then leads on an interesting off-road track that leads to the ledge behind the mountains of Petra. The area is secluded and provides amazing panoramic views of the breathtaking Wadi Araba desert to the west. At the viewpoint, you can rest while enjoying the scenery before retracing the trail back to Beida and transfer back to the hotel. (B)

Day 6: Petra to Wadi Rum across the desert, 31 mi. (50 km) | Elevation: Ascent 270 m/Descent 520 m
You begin with a short transfer by vehicle, getting on your bikes at the village of Delagha and heading south on an unsurfaced desert track. After a couple of hours, you reach an old caravanserai or roadside inn where travelers could rest and recover at a place called Humaimah. After lunch and a good rest, you continue south until  Jordan's main north-south road, the Desert Highway. Here you put the bikes on the van and drive south to Wadi Rum, where you meet your Bedouin hosts and transfer to their 4x4 jeeps to get to camp in heart of the Wadi Rum's protected area.

There'll be time to relax and take in the sunset before enjoying a Bedouin feast of meat and vegetables cooked in the zerb, an oven of fire-heated sand and stone. If you're still not tired out by the day's adventures you can stay up around the fire, talking and laughing with your Bedouin hosts and watching the night sky.

Your accommodation is a simple but comfortable Bedouin campsite, with a traditional goat-hair tent divided into twin ‘rooms'. There are proper toilets and showers on the site (go easy on the water), as well as shaded seating areas for relaxing and dining. (B, L, D)

Day 7: Wadi Rum and Mudflats of Disi
Every guidebook to Wadi Rum repeats the description written by T.E. Lawrence of Arabia almost a century ago, and with good reason. "The Arab armies would have been lost in the length and breadth of it," he wrote, "and within the walls, a squadron of airplanes could have wheeled in formation. Our little caravan grew self-conscious and fell dead quiet, afraid and ashamed to flaunt its smallness in the presence of such stupendous hills. Landscapes, in childhood's dream, were so vast and silent."

After breakfast in the peace and quiet of the camp, you'll join your Bedouin guides for an exploration of Wadi Rum by jeep and on foot, exploring the incredible eroded cliff faces, the ancient rock inscriptions, and the red sand dunes of the desert. At a shady spot, you'll enjoy lunch, tea made on the fire, and maybe a siesta, before heading off in the jeeps towards the Disi mudflats - a vast plain surrounded by spectacular sandstone formations. This is a great place to enjoy a bike ride on level ground and to take in the scenery of colored sandstone mountains.

At the end of your ride, you will meet your bus and transfer back north to Madaba for the last night.

Day 8: Departure
A transfer will be provided from your hotel to AMM Airport, a 30-minute drive.

The holiday itinerary set out below offers a good overview of the trip, but should be taken as a general guide only.

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Hotels are simple yet comfortable. You will also enjoy a unique and authentic experience during your one night stay in a Bedouin campsite (Salem Camp) with a traditional goat hair tent divided into twin ‘rooms’. There are proper toilets and showers on site (go easy on the water), as well as shaded seating areas for relaxing and dining.

Bicycles

Mountain bike with front suspension

Trek 3700 Disc

• Aluminum bike frame
• Front suspension
• Shimano Altus 24 speed gearing
• Bontrager Evoke saddle
• Tektro Novela mechanical disc brakes
• Bontrager LT3, 26 x 2.0"
• Platform Pedals