Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
AQABA & AROUND
Aqaba is the most important city in southern Jordan and, with feverish development under-
way, is being groomed as the country's second city, if not in size at least in terms of status,
revenue and tourism potential. Perched on the edge of the Gulf of Aqaba, ringed by high
desert mountains and enjoying a pleasant climate for most of the year, Aqaba has what it
takes to make a major resort - a fact not lost on hotel chains: the glamorous $2.5 billion
Saraya Project, which includes lagoons, marina, golf course and a British university, is well
on the way to completion and the Tala Bay hotel and residential development is helping
Aqaba and its surrounding coastline in the bid to become Jordan's answer to Eilat.
Aqaba
03 / POP 133,200 / ELEV 50M
Surprisingly, given the radical makeover of its immediate vicinity, Aqaba retains the re-
laxed small-town atmosphere of a popular local holiday destination. For the visitor, al-
though there's not much to 'do' as such, the town offers a sociable stopover en route to the
diving and snorkelling clubs to the south, and the big destinations of Wadi Rum and Petra
to the northeast. It's also an obvious place to break a journey to/from Israel and the
Palestinian Territories or Egypt. There's plenty of good-value accommodation in the town
centre and some excellent restaurants. The port mars the view a little and the beaches close
to town are fairly unappealing (except at the top-end hotels), but overall Aqaba has an 'on
holiday' atmosphere that's infectious.
While Amman shivers in winter with temperatures around 5°C and the occasional snow-
fall, the daytime temperature in Aqaba rarely goes below 20°C and is often quite a few de-
grees warmer. In summer the weather is hot, with daytime temperatures over 35°C, but the
sea breezes make it bearable. It also helps to follow the traditional siesta: everything shuts
down around 2pm and reopens after the afternoon nap, from around 6pm.
History
And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion-Geber, which is beside Eloth (Eilat), on
the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom
1 Kings 9:26
In the 10th century, a Muslim traveller described Aqaba as 'a great city' and a meeting
place of pilgrims en route to and from Mecca. Indeed, from as early as the 10th to 5th cen-
turies BC, it was at the heart of ancient trade routes transporting copper ore, smelted from
