4 h

Private

Instant confirmation

About this activity

After pick up from your central Amman by private, air-conditioned vehicle, relax as you journey out of the city and into the desert plains of eastern Jordan to visit explore UNESCO-listed Amra Castle (Qasr Amra), famous for its 8th century frescos of hedonistic scenes before continuing to the Kharana Castle (Qasr Al - Kharana) and the atmospheric Al - Azraq Castle (Qasr Al - Azraq), the latter used as military based by T.E Lawrence, known as Lawrence of Arabia during World War I. Drive with your friendly informative driver to experience the fascinating Desert Castles. The region is speckled with 7th and 8th century castles, many within a 15-minute drive of each other, that were originally built by the Caliphs of the Umayyad dynasty as rural retreats and hunting lodges. Hear tales about this powerful dynasty, the first Muslim rulers of the Arab kingdom, including fascinating snippets about their extravagance and debauchery. As you travel, feel free to tell your driver if there’s a castle you want to see more of or another castle you’d like to visit, at your own expense. Your tour is private, so the itinerary can be tailored to suit your interests. After about 1 hour on the road, pull up at UNESCO-listed Qasr Amra, one of east Jordan’s most famous castles. Once a hunting palace of the Umayyads, this splendidly restored edifice is graced with 8th-century frescoes showing decadent scenes of nude women, wine and parties. Continue to Qasr Al -Kharana, an imperious 2-level fortress standing in a huge plain. Thought to have been built on Roman foundations, this evocative castle exudes intrigue and displays a rich array of Mesopotamian, Arabic, and Greek architectural influences. Finally, head for Qasr Al-Azraq, originally an Umayyad hunting retreat and once used as a headquarters by T.E. Lawrence, the 20th-century British soldier and Arab Revolt leader perhaps more famously known as Lawrence of Arabia. Wander around the sun-burnished courtyards, towers and mosque and learn how Lawrence based his operations here during 1917 to 1918. After exploring here, relax on your ride back to Amman where your experience finishes with a hotel drop off.

Upgrade your tour to include an Accompanied Licensed Guide from Amman to be with you for the visit of the 3 Marvelous Desert Castles.

Read more Show less

Included

Hotel pick up and drop off
Private Transfer by air-conditioned vehicle according number of participants
English-Speaking Driver
Entry/Admission - Qasr Azraq
Entry/Admission - Qasr al-Kharrana

Not included

All type of meals, unless option with lunch selected (Vegetarian meal by request)
All type of beverages
All type of gratuities (Tips to the Driver) – Recommended
Local Guide, unless option selected
Personal Expenses
Anything else not mentioned

Additional

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
For clients holding Jordan Pass, the corresponding entrance fees to be returned directly in destination.
Pick up and drop off from Amman Queen Alia International Airport available by request for lay over day tour.
Local SIM cards and Wi-Fi are available upon request and can be subject to a small additional charge approximately: 20 USD. (Prices subject to change by the communication company).
Tours with lunch: Most local tourist restaurants in Jordan are non-alcoholic.
This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate

Features

Tourism

90%

Cultural

60%

Reviews

4.0

10

C

Cynthia A

5 | 2018-04-12

If I knew earlier, I would have booked all of my tours through Zaid Tours. Hasan was an excellent driver/tour buddy.

s

slocatel2006

3 | 2017-12-27

Some of the information was wrong. He did not seem interested in the tour.

c

cynthiabrown1

4 | 2017-10-30

I added a City Tour to this Desert Castle Tour and was glad I did. Upon getting picked up by the driver, I informed him I had to be back at the hotel by 3:15 or at the latest 3:30 I had obtained a late checkout approval from the hotel until 4:30 in order to shower and prepare for my flight home.. It would have been helpful for the driver to inform me/us of the amount of time he suggested at each stop in order to meet that limitation because by the end of the tours we didn't return to the hotel until 4:15! Additionally, the driver had car problems engine died twice en route. Although stressful at the end of the tours, I did really like the Citadel, Roman Amphitheater, and the three castles, particularly the castles.

S

Steve B

2 | 2017-04-25

The tour started 1 1/2 hours late. The driver had zero information to pass on to us. There wasn't much info at the sights either. We were offered a lunch since the tour got off to a late start but by then it was 2:30 and we had to return to our hotel due to previous plans. They also had planned to take us to a gift shop which was not part of the original plan. We felt like we were hostages. The staff in the office were very apologetic and tried to make the best of a bad situation.

a

adrian w

4 | 2017-01-12

The desert sites are well worth the visit. The driver speaks good English and is a good driver, safe and stable driving. Unlike the promotion on the website, the driver is not really a guide, with only limited knowledge of the history of the castles. However, he is flexible if one wants to adjust the tour to include other sites, but possibly with some cost adjustments. It is a half day tour to hit 3 sites, so a 8:30am departure would allow sufficient time to tour all 3 sites and then back to Amman for lunch at say 1-2pm

A

Allyson W

5 | 2015-10-15

Once again my driver was Shadi. I was the only one on the tour and the only one visiting, nice for me I got great pictures. Had Jordan to myself. On the way to the first castle, we drove pass one of the refugee camps in Jordan. It was hugh, very interesting. Lots of security surrounding the camps. High recommend this tour. Bring water. About a 2 hour drive thru the desert. Air conditioned van. Thanks again Shadi.

b

berta p

3 | 2014-10-20

driver showed up on time.the castles were wonderful to explore. however, the itinerary says 'admissions to the castles' under the 'inclusions' section, but the driver kept asking me to pay for the castle entrance ticket. According to the tour description the entrance to the castles were included. So why did the driver ask me to pay for the entrance tickets? Either the tour inclusions were wrong or the driver tried to make me pay. because of this, i'm rating this tour just a 3 stars. if not because of this, it would have been a 5.

G

Giovanni S

5 | 2009-05-14

Very interesting. The castles, completely different from one another, are outside the normal tourists' routes. Even our kind driver did not know them! We got to see the beautiful panorama of Jordan.

K

KRISTIA K

4 | 2009-05-14

The drive was great, the castles very interesting, but the driver spoke no English. He was great but the time could have been better if we could have communicated better.

Collections This experience is part of these collections