Aqaba — located on the Gulf of Aqaba / Eilat, with links to the Sinai and the Red Sea.

 

Aqaba is Jordan's window on the Red Sea. Historically the same city as Eilat on the Israeli side of the border, plans for a shared international airport and other forms of cooperation have cooled down in the past few years during a period of political tension. Aqaba has seen a lot of development in the last few years. This has improved the infrastructure and facilities. Be prepared for road maps to be incorrect/out of date.historically it was called um alrushrash , the original palestinian name..... both are two different cities.....nowadays.....

 

Must see:

• Aqaba Fort. Originally dating to the 14'th century, although the present structure was built by the Mamluke sultan Qansawh el-Ghawri (1501-1516) and has been revised many times since then. (In reparations as of February 2014, so only outside view permitted) edit

• Ayla, (next to the Mövenpick resort). The old city that was established when Islam came to the area in 622 AD. free. edit

• The oldest purpose-built Christian church in history, (across the street from the JETT bus station, which is just west of the Mövenpick hotel.). A posted sign gives a little bit of information on the church.

 

Except the sea and diving, Aqaba doesn't have a lot of things to offer. The following could be of interest but could easily be done in one day. The Fort and the museum are right next to each other.

• Aqaba Fort (in reparations as of Feb 2014, only outside view permitted)

• Aqaba museum, 1 JD in Feb 2014

• Fourth century roman church

To get money, there are many ATM on Al-Hammamat Al-Tunisyaa street in city centre.

 

• Aqaba Heritage Museum, Grand Arab Revolution Square. 8:00-14:00. This unique museum is surely one of Aqaba's main attractions as it displays a large variety of heritage items as well as real size models of traditional life in one of Jordan's most important cities. It also contains a collection of rare historic images from the beginning of the past century until today. free admission.

 

Ferries run regularly from Aqaba across to Taba and Nuweiba on Egypt's Sinai peninsula, the most attractive site there is Saint Catherine Monastery and Mount Sinai.