Often overlooked thanks to its big neighbours Petra and Wadi Rum, Aqaba is a beach town in the south of Jordan that is gaining popularity. It seems there is not much going on at first sight, but this small city will show you the opposite. Let us show you what Aqaba is about. 

It takes only an hour drive from Wadi Rum, and since our host from the Bedouine campsite where we stayed last night dropped us off early in the morning, it was just a short drive for us to reach Aqaba. We were really excited as we were freezing during the night in the desert, and the weather forecast showed 20 degrees in Aqaba even though it was winter. We could not wait to get warmer.

Read more: Desert Wadi Rum: What to know before you go

Akaba lies on the shores of the Red Sea and is becoming a popular beach destination among travellers. When you relax on the city beach, you get a perfect view off Eilat in neighbouring Israel, just 15 km away, or if you look to the left, there is Egypt just across the water. 

As you can see, it is a very strategic location if you want to make a bigger trip by visiting more countries as not only Israel is that close. You can actually cross the borders by land to Saudi Arabia through the Durra Border crossing, only 16 km away from Aqaba. 

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How to get to Akaba & travel around

If you go from the north as we did, the best way to reach Aqaba is by rented car. From Wadi Rum, follow Desert Highway, which has beautiful desert scenery in this part. It is different from Kings Highway, which goes more through the green scenery and villages. 

The road trip is the ultimate number one option for travelling in Jordan. It is the fastest and the most convenient way of transport.

We originally rented a car for the first 10 days as we were unsure what our plan was. Once we arrived in Aqaba, we went to a Dollar office to extend the car for more days. There are many rental car companies in Aqaba (same as Amman), so it is easy to rent a car or manage your booking on the spot here. However, the most convenient way to rent a car is through Discovercars.com, where you can find the best deals. 

Our rental car was 25 JD if we bookend before our arrival, but when we wanted to extend the contract for a few more days, we had to pay 30 JD, and it was impossible to bargain. So we recommend you plan your trip before and rent a car online for the whole length of your stay if possible to make sure you don’t pay extra. 

Check the latest prices with Discovercars.com and get your free quote.

Otherwise, you can take a local bus – from Amman North Station it takes 5 hours and costs 9 JD. 

Suppose you want to take a bus from Aqaba to Wadi Rum. In that case, it goes at 6:30am and 11am from the Main Aqaba bus station on Ar-Reem St. Take into consideration that the busses go only once full. Locals don’t use this route a lot, so it is a very unreliable kind of transport if you don’t have enough time. To Reach Kerak or Tafila, the buses leave Al-Humaimah St. just next to the mosque. 

The two-week itinerary we created for you is a loop. You can actually easily start in Aqaba instead of Amman as there is also an international airport (King Hussein International airport) where cheap flights are coming from Europe. Ryanair has the cheapest deals for as little as €15, so just search Skyscanner to find the best deal. 

Check the latest prices with Skyscanner.

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Best time to visit Aqaba & Aqaba in winter

What is for sure, even though you come in winter, Aqaba is always warmer than the rest of the country. During our road trip, we had an average of 12-13 °C, but in Aqaba, it was a pleasant 20 °C which makes it an all-year-round destination. Of course, if you plan to come just because of the relax and beach life it is better to go in autumn or spring since in summer (Jun-Aug) it can be extremely hot, and on winter nights it is cold. Even though we wore summer clothes during the day after sunset, it was cold, and we had to wear our down jackets. 

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Insurance

Make sure you have proper insurance which covers you everywhere you go. IATI insurance has the perfect coverage for Jordan and provides excellent customer service in case of emergency. In addition to that readers of Broken Navigation get an exlusive 5% discount.

Get your 5% discount with IATI insurance here.

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where to stay

There is plenty of accommodation in Aqaba. It is generally better to stay downtown as everything for you is within walking distance except the public beaches 2-4, which makes it a perfect base for exploring. But anyway, if you come just for a beach, you can stay in one of the resorts located roughly 12 km from the city centre. 

City centre accommodations

Budget I City Center Hostel – budget hostel with a strategic location. 350 m away from Al-Ghandour beach. Each room has a private bathroom and the reception is open 24 hours a day. A great option if you want to save money.

Mid-Range I Cedar Hotel – We stayed here. Central location which means everything is within a walking distance – beach, souq, restaurants. We opted for this hotel especially because it is in side street to even though you stay in the centre it is still quiet and there are free parking spots in front of the hotel.

Luxury I DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Aqaba – located just a few metres from Cedar Hotel, Hotel Hilton offers real luxury. Rooftop pool, gym, restaurant and amazing view from your room.

Resorts by the beach

Budget I Bait Alaqaba dive centre & resort – very popular place among backpackers. Not directly on the beach but you can just walk there as it is very close. There is a nice terrace, pool and a grill that you can freely use.

Budget I Bedouin Garden Village – located on the shore of Red Sea right where the famous diving spot Japanese Garden is. This place offers a pool, grill area, restaurant and rooms with a terrace.

Luxury I Mövenpick Resort & Spa Tala Bay – One of many Mövenpick’s resorts in Jordan, here you find a pool, restaurant, private beach, shops and many kinds of spa procedures.

Luxury I Marina Plaza Hotel Tala Bay – More like a hotel, this place is like a little town. There is everything you might need including a pool, gym, restaurant, shops. Every room has its own balcony.

Luxury I Al Manara, a Luxury Collection Hotel – Middle East luxury under one roof. This place is an absolute pearl, private beach, garden, gym, pool or restaurant. Everything that you need is in this place. Note: This hotel is not far from the city centre and is actually located on the other side as the rest of the hotels mentioned.

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Beach guide – Free beaches

Akaba is a leisure beach destination, but you should not forget it is still in an Arab world where most people are Muslims. For us visitors, it means we should respect the culture as much as possible.

Women in Jordan follow a dress code where they cover most of their bodies, including a headscarf, and it is not different when it comes to swimming in the sea. They go to the sea fully dressed, which is entirely normal. For men, it is usual to wear swimshorts. 

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How to visit a beach in Jordan as a women

You actually have 2 options. Number one is to go to a private beach meant for tourists, and you can feel free to wear your regular swimsuit. There is no judgement, and you can enjoy it as a standard beach destination. 

This beach is called Berenice Beach Club, and you need to pay an entry fee of 13 JD per person, which is quite expensive for just having access to the beach, in our opinion. Anyway, you get a towel and access to the resort pool, the beach bed with sunshades included. 

We just stopped by and asked at the reception if we could first visit the resort and then decide if we wanted to stay. It was possible, but after the first look, we decided we didn’t want to stay as it was too much ,,resorty” and we didn’t feel good there. There are bars with loud music and overpriced restaurant. So we chose another option to go on a public beach and great we did. 

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Public beaches in Aqaba 

Another option is to visit a public beach which is quite busy as whole families gather here during the day and enjoy the beach. They bring carpets, grills, shisha, and the atmosphere is very lively and interesting to watch. 

We have to mention again that women go to the sea fully dressed. Even though we saw a few female travellers going to water in a bikini, it brings unwanted attention to you if you do the same. 

Instead, buy a cheap long t-shirt on the market to swim in it with a swimsuit under it. This way, you can comfortably enjoy swimming in the Red Sea for free and respect Jordanian culture at the same time. 

We visited Public Beach 3, which we found the most beautiful beach to go with sunshades to be used for free and toilets and showers. You can also play volleyball or football as there is a playground. It is a sand beach, but the shore is full of stones, so if you’re sensitive, bring sandals. Except for the guy sometimes walking along the coast and offering drinks, there are no options to buy food or drinks so bring everything with you. 

Public Beach 4 is not far from PB3 and is windy and long. Many divers start their trip on this beach, so if you are interested, this is the beach from where your trip probably starts. Some other companies run diving/snorkelling tours also from PB3. 

All Public Beaches are for free, and you find them if you follow S Beach rd. going from Aqaba towards the south. 

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Top things to do in Aqaba

Souq in the city centre

It is more like one long street rather than a market, but it is worth visiting even though it is small. You can buy fruits & veggies, spices, clothes, and there is a butchery in the middle.

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Fish market

This is a non-official market as it is more question of luck. Fishermen unload their daily catch here before lunchtime and sell it. It happens in a little port right behind the building, which is actually marked as ,,Fish Market”. There are no tables or anything, they just put the fish on the ground and wait for a buyer. When we arrived around 11am, there was a last group of Fishermans, and it was nice to see different kinds of fish. Some days, the market may be inside the building, but we didn’t find any specific information. 

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Aqaba Fort

The fort was built in 1510, and it used to serve pilgrims who were on the way to Mecca. Occupied by the Ottomans until 1917, when most of the fort was destroyed. Today, the ruins are the top historical attractions in Aqaba. For better understanding, visit Aqaba Museum, which is in the same complex. The site is relatively small, so it is enough to have 30 minutes to explore. 

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Arab Revolt plaza 

It would be hard to find a bigger contrast than to see this modern plaza in front of historical Aqaba Fort. In the middle of the plaza, there is a huge 140 m flagpole. It is the perfect place for a walk with a historical fortress from one side and from the other seashore of the Red Sea. Sunsets from here are epic. 

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Al-Ghandour Beach 

Locals gather and chill on this bustling beach every day. There are also restaurants and stalls along the promenade to get some snacks or Turkish coffee. Glass boat trip is very popular here, so be prepared because locals can be a bit pushy while selling their tour. The average price for a trip in December was 5 JD. 

But what is nice is that these trips end before sunset, and then suddenly, all the beach turns into a chilling zone. (police coming to check, and the boats need to stop operating, we guess it is because of the safety since Israel is just across the water). They put carpets on the sand and chairs and put the candles into the sand, which looks pretty cool. You can then smoke shisha or have some tea & soft drinks. This beach is simply the perfect spot to enjoy the local life. 

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Diving/snorkelling

A very popular activity in the area is diving or snorkelling. Many companies provide their services here, and they can take you to one of many diving spots near the shore. Royal Diving Club is a company with an excellent reputation that will provide you with all the important information about the key diving spots. If you want, just snorkel around the corals, which we heard is very nice; they rent you snorkelling gear and even a wetsuit for as little as 5 JD each. 

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Al-Sharif Al-Hussein bin Ali Mosque

We didn’t visit this mosque inside, but you can’t miss it with its beautiful design and location in the centre.

So yeah, this is our guide to Aqaba, which we hope you like and inspire you to spend some time in this beautiful coastal city. We actually stayed here for 3 nights during a Christmas holiday season, and we couldn’t wish for a better Christmas Eve on the beach. So Merry Christmas to y’all 🙂

Don’t forget that no visit to Jordan is complete without visiting the ancient city of Petra and Little Petra.