Arrival at Amman airport. Welcome to Jordan!. Border procedures and transfer to the hotel. Free time.

After breakfast, we travel to the north of Jordan. In the mountains, we discover the AJLUN FORTRESS, a mighty castle from the 12th Century. Muslims and Orthodox Christians have always lived in this area. We will visit the old CHURCH OF SAINT SERGIUS. Shall we all pray for peace? Lunch is included. We continue to JERASH, and visit its impressive Roman archaeological site. Return to AMMAN. Arrival and accommodation.

We will depart towards the CASTLES OF THE DESERT, built between the 7th and 8th centuries. We will visit QASR KHARANA, with its imposing structure of thick walls and the QUSAYR AMRA World Heritage Site, notable for its remarkable frescoes. Then, we travel to MADABA, lunch is included. We will visit the Madaba Archaeological Park, which we cross via an ancient Roman road, and the Church of St. George, with its fantastic 6th Century mosaic representing the oldest known map of the Holy Land. We continue to MOUNT NEBO, where Moses stopped to look over the Promised Land. Return to Amman. Arrival and free time.

We leave for BETHANY on the banks of the River Jordan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site; this is where John the Baptist baptised Jesus. Then we visit the DEAD SEA MUSEUM, which an impressive Panorama Complex. Lunch is included. Arriving at our hotel at the DEAD SEA, do not forget to take a dip in the saltiest sea and lowest altitude on earth. Dinner and accommodation included.

Exciting section in the heart of Jordan. We ascend to the historic King´s Road, which tells us about the Moab Kingdom of the Bible. At the top of a hill we will be surprised by the castle of KARAK (entrance included), an impressive example of military architecture of the twelfth century. It soon became one of the most important fortresses between Jerusalem and Aqaba. Arrival at DANA, a small picturesque town of stone houses on a huge cliff. Lunch is included. We continue along the King´s Route to SHOBAK, where we take photographs (outside only) of the great Crusader Castle. We continue to WADI MUSA (the site around Petra). We will explore the MOSES SPRING, where Moses is said to have tapped the rock with his rod and the water gushed out, and the Petra Museum, an excellent exhibition that enables us to learn about the history of the Nabateans and to see magnificent pieces found in the area. Dinner and accommodation. Any travelers who wish can go to an old Turkish bath or see a light and sound show in Petra.

Today we have the most exciting day of the trip: First, we visit the impressive archaeological site of PETRA, which is accessed through a narrow canyon, and discover the temples and tombs excavated on the cliffs in this city that was founded 300 years before Christ. After lunch (included) we leave for the impressive desert of WADI RUM. At the Visitor Centre we board 4x4 vehicles to visit some of the most impressive landscapes. We stop in the town of RUM to visit the ruins of the Nabatean temple. We include a 45-minute camel ride through the desert. We will also visit the Khazali Canyon. In this spectacular place, we will see the engravings that reveal the origins of the Arabic language. Dinner and accommodation included in a desert camp.

***VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: Due to the warlike situation in Israel, while the conflict is ongoing, the passage through EILAT will be eliminated from the stage. The stage will be carried out by crossing by direct ferry from Aqaba, Jordan, to Taba, Egypt, thus avoiding passing through Israel.

After breakfast, we leave for AQABA, Jordan’s second city, lying on the banks of the Red Sea. We walk through the center before continuing to the border of ISRAEL, EILAT and arrive in this modern and tourist city with its excellent beaches. There’s time to relax, have lunch and stroll around. Are you tempted to have a swim? We then continue towards the EGYPT border, and into Sinai. On the way, there’s chance to take photographs of the Pharaoh’s Island with the powerful fortress of Saladin. Continue to SAINT CATHERINE. Arrival, accommodation and dinner included.

FEES: At the border crossing from Jordan to Israel and from Israel to Egypt, every traveler must pay an entry/exit fee for the different countries. Jordan: $15 (exit fees), Israel: $32 (exit fee), Egypt: $45 (entry visa, which is actually $25 visa + $20.Approximate rates and subject to change without prior notice by the authorities of the country.Drones and cameras with a 5,5 mtr zoom are prohibited as well as other types of professional equipment cameras ( Europamundo is not responsiblefor objects that may be seized at borders by the authorities of the countries)

IMPORTANT NOTE: Due to exceptional circumstances or due to a small number of participants, it may happen that we will cross directly from Jordan to Egypt by boat, taking the AQABA- TABA FERRY with a duration of just over two hours. During the ferry crossing, there will be no assistance from any guide.

At the foot of Mount Sinai, we visit the impressive walled monastery of SAINT CATHERINE. According to tradition, this is where Moses saw “the Burning Bush that burned without being consumed”. The monastery, which is a sacred place for Jews, Christians and Muslims, belongs to the Orthodox Church and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We then continue on through the Sinai Desert’s picturesque landscapes. Lunch included in route. Stop at the WELL OF MOSES, a biblical site that looks like a small oasis. We will leave Sinai through the tunnel under the SUEZ CANAL. Arrival in CAIRO at the end of the afternoon. Accommodation.

Full day visit where we explore the famous Pyramids of Cheops, Kefren and Micerinos (tickets to go inside the pyramids are not included), and also the impressive Sphinx, which is sculpted from rock. Visit to the Egyptian Museum with its ancient art and where the treasure of the Lost Tomb of Tutankhamen is kept. Lunch included. Citadel of Saladin and the Alabaster Mosque. We will take a walk through the Coptic neighborhood where we visit the Hanging Church built above a Roman fortress.

Tras  el desayuno (horario variable en función de vuelos) traslado al aeropuerto. Incluimos  vuelo de EGIPTO A TURQUIA. Llegada al aeropuerto de ESTAMBUL, tramites  de frontera y traslado al hotel. Tiempo libre.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: Sightseeing tour. Topkapi Palace. Night transfer to Taksim.

A sightseeing tour of the city. We find ourselves in a city built in two continents. On our tour, we will enter the Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent (the largest in Istanbul). We will see the walls, the Golden Horn, the fishing district, and we will admire the exterior of Hagia Sofia. After the visit, we will offer tickets and a visit to the Top Kapi Palace, which was the administrative center of the Ottoman Empire, with its magnificent courtyards and its pavilions.

At the end of the afternoon we will provide a transfer to the Taksim neighborhood, the most commercialized and lively area of the city. There will be time to dine in one of its many restaurants, and you can also take the old tram that crosses the area or go to see the nearby Galata Tower.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: Boat trip on the Bosphorus.

Today we include a boat trip on the Bosphorus that will last about two hours, exclusively for Europamundo travelers. The Bosphorus is a strait that connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara, which separates Istanbul into two parts: the European and Asian parts. We will enjoy seeing the liveliness of the strait with its multitude of boats. We will pass under the two bridges that unite Europe and Asia and we will admire the palaces of the sultans, the typical wooden houses and the Ottoman villas. Return to the center of Istanbul. Free time.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: Visit of Ankara, beautiful landscapes in Cappadocia, dinner included.

After breakfast we include a visit to Ankara, the cosmopolitan capital of Turkey, with more than 5 million inhabitants and a lot of cultural life with its performing arts center, which houses the State Ballet and Opera, the Presidential Symphony Orchestra and many national theater companies. We will visit the impressive Mausoleum of Ataturk, the powerful castle of Ankara, whose first construction was 8 centuries before Christ. We also include the entrance to the Museum of Anatolian civilizations that allows us to understand the different cultures that left their mark on Turkey. At the end of the morning, we will stop at a large shopping mall, with different choices of food in its food court.

After lunch we continue to the region of Cappadocia, on route we will stop next to the SALT LAKE, with its incredible landscapes and visit HACIBEKTAS, with the utmost respect to the pilgrims (appropriate clothing and silence suggested during the visit). This sanctuary houses the tomb of Hacibecktas, a Sufi mystic of the thirteenth century. Continuation to NEVSHEIR -dinner included-.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: landscapes of spectacular shapes. Picturesque towns. Dinner included.

Full day in the fantastic region of CAPPADOCIA, with its lunar landscapes, its churches and troglodyte villages. We will discover the GOREME Valley with its open air museum and its churches carved into the rocks, entry tickets included. We will visit UCHISAR, a natural fortress. In KAIMACLI we will visit the underground city that could house 30,000 people. Returning to Avanos we stop at PASABAG, the valley of the fairies, we will walk in this spectacular natural area. Free time and dinner included.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: Ihlara Valley, Caravanserai, Konya. Dinner included.

At the far end of Cappadocia, we will visit the IHLARA Valley; known for the freshness of its waters, its churches and villages excavated in the rock. Then we continue our route, with a stop in an old CARAVANSERAI from the 13th Century before arriving in KONYA where we visit the Mausoleum of Mevlana. Here we will learn about the sect of the Dervishes (entrance included). Dinner included. At night, we suggest that you attend the dance performance of the whirling dervishes in the cultural centre.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: Fantastic Cotton Castle at the end of the day. Dinner included.

We take a scenic road between the lakes, and get to know EGRIDIR, a beautiful town next to a large lake, with its walls and mosques. There’s time to have lunch. We then continue to PAMUKKALE-Hierapolis, whose calcareous waters have created the Cotton Castle (entrance included). Dinner included.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: Ephesus. Dinner included.

We leave for EPHESUS, the best preserved ancient city of Asia Minor; 2000 years ago it had a quarter of a million inhabitants. We see the house of the Virgin Mary, the Basilica of Saint John and the impressive ruins of Ephesus (entrance included). We then go on to KUSADASI, a popular coastal town with a lot of atmosphere, commercial life and a small castle. Dinner included.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT: Interior of Anatolia. Hanging bridges crossing the Sea of Marmara and the Bosphorus Strait.

We leave for the city with the fourth largest population in Turkey: IZMIR. We make a brief visit with our guide to this city considered the most westernized and modern city in the country in terms of values, ideology and lifestyle. We then return to inland Turkey. Stop en route for lunch before reaching BURSA, the fourth largest city in Turkey, whose historic centre has been declared UNESCO World Heritage, with its traditional commercial districts, mosques, religious schools, public baths … The green mosque stands out. Arrival in ISTANBUL at the end of the day.

End of our services. Please, check the time of your flight in case you might need an additional night.