VISITING

SAUDI ARABIA ~ Jeddah (2 nights), Rabigh, Medina (1 night), Al Ula (2 nights), Madain Saleh, Taima, Tabuk (1 night)

JORDAN ~ Petra (2 nights), Kerak, Madaba, Mount Nebo, The Dead Sea, Sweimeh (2 nights), Bethany, Amman, Jerash

SYRIA ~ Bosra (1 night), Damascus (2 nights), Maalula, Palmyra (2 nights), Mari, Doura Europos, Deir-ez Zor (1 night), Halabiyya, Raqqa & Rasafa, Aleppo (2 nights), Qala'at Samaan, The Dead Cities, Apamea, Hama (2 nights), Crac des Chevaliers

LEBANON ~ Tripoli (2 nights), Byblos, Zahlé (1 night), Baalbek, Beirut (2 nights), Sidon, Tyre

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES ~ Dubai (1night)

WHO WERE THE NABATAEANS?

The Nabataeans were a trading people of ancient Arabia, whose oasis settlements during the period from around 300 BC to 200 AD occupied the lands between Syria and Arabia, from the Euphrates to the Red Sea. Their loosely-controlled trading network, which centred on strings of oases and the routes that linked them, had no securely defined boundaries in the surrounding desert. Their flourishing kingdom was based on commerce and agriculture.

From their capital, Petra, the Nabataeans dominated the rich caravan routes leading to Greece, Rome, Syria, Persia, Egypt, southern Arabia, India, and China. They surpassed their Middle Eastern neighbours in agriculture, improving the yield of oases and turning vast areas of the desert into productive farmland by building irrigation systems. The Nabataeans were also noted for their thin, fine pottery and their ability to carve buildings, monuments, and tombs out of mountains.

The Nabataeans grew wealthy by collecting tolls from caravans for safe conduct through their territory. Petra became a cosmopolitan city, reflecting both Greco-Roman and Eastern influences in its art and architecture. Many Nabataeans spoke Greek and Latin in addition to their native Aramaic dialect.

By the first century B.C., Nabataean settlements extended north to Damascus (Syria), south to the Red Sea, east through most of what is now Jordan, and west to the Mediterranean Sea. The kingdom reached its greatest development under the leadership of Aretas IV (9 B.C.–40 A.D.). It was annexed by Rome during 105–106 A.D. and was made the province of Arabia.

Little was known about the Nabataeans until the 20th century, when the American archaeologist Nelson Glueck devoted more than 30 years of study to their remains.

ITINERARY

Day 1 Sunday: By air to Dubai ~ Evening Emirates flight from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane ot Perth to Dubai. Overnight in flight

Day 2 Monday: By air to Jeddah ~ Morning arrival in Dubai. Afternoon Emirates flight to Jeddah [Saudi Arabia]. Two nights at Jeddah Intercontinental Hotel

Day 3 Tuesday: In Jeddah ~ Morning and afternoon sightseeing

Day 4 Wednesday: By road to Medina ~ Morning drive to Rabigh (visit). Afternoon drive to Medina. Overnight at Medina Sheraton Hotel

Day 5 Thursday: By road to Al Ula ~ Morning drive to Al Ula. Afternoon sightseeing. Two nights at Arac Hotel

Day 6 Friday: In Al Ula ~ Full day excursion to Madain Saleh

Day 7 Saturday: By road to Tabuk ~ Morning drive to Taima (visit). Afternoon drive to Tabuk. Overnight Tabuk Sahara Hotel

Day 8 Sunday: By road to Petra ~ Morning sightseeing in Tabuk. Afternoon drive to Halat Ammar where we cross into Jordan. Continue to Petra for two nights at Petra Mövenpick Hotel

Day 9 Monday: In Petra ~ Morning and afternoon sightseeing

Day 10 Tuesday: By road to Sweimeh ~ Morning drive to Kerak (visit). Afternoon drive via Madaba and Mt. Nebo (visits) to Sweimeh. Stay two nights at the Mövenpick Resort Hotel.

Day 11 Wednesday: At Sweimeh ~ Morning at leisure. Afternoon excursion to Bethany Baptism site

Day 12 Thursday: By road to Bosra ~ Morning drive to Amman (visit). Continue to Jerash (visit). Afternoon drive to Dera'a where we cross into Syria. Drive to Bosra for overnight at Bosra Cham Palace

Day 13 Friday: By road to Damascus ~ Morning sightseeing in Bosra. Afternoon drive to Damascus. Two nights at Damascus Dedeman Hotel

Day 14 Saturday: In Damascus ~ Morning and afternoon sightseeing

Day 15 Sunday: By road to Palmyra ~ Morning drive to Maalula (visit). Afternoon drive to Palmyra. Two nights at Palmyra Dedeman Hotel

Day 16 Monday: In Palmyra ~ Morning and afternoon sightseeing

Day 17 Tuesday: By road to Deir-ez Zor ~ Morning drive to Mari (visit) and Doura Europos (visit). Afternoon drive via Euphrates Dam to Deir-ez Zor. Overnight at Furat Cham Palace

Day 18 Wednesday: By road to Aleppo ~ Morning drive via Halabiyya (visit) to Raqqa and Rasafa (visit). Afternoon drive via the Euphrates Dam to Aleppo. Two nights at Aleppo Sheraton Hotel

Day 19 Thursday: In Aleppo ~ Morning and afternoon sightseeing

Day 20 Friday: By road to Hama ~ Morning drive to Qala'at Samaan, Serjilla, Al-Bara and Apamea (visits). Afternoon drive to Hama. Two nights at Apamee Cham Palace

Day 21 Saturday: In Hama ~ Morning and afternoon sightseeing

Day 22 Sunday: By road to Tripoli ~ Morning drive to Crac des Chevaliers (visit). Afternoon drive to Aabboudiye where we cross the border into Lebanon. Continue to Tripoli for two nights at Chateau des Oliviers

Day 23 Monday: In Tripoli ~ Morning and afternoon sightseeing

Day 24 Tuesday: By road to Zahlé ~ Morning drive to Byblos (visit). Afternoon drive via Harissa (visit) to Zahlé. Overnight at Grand Hotel Kidri

Day 25 Wednesday: By road to Beirut ~ Morning excursion to Baalbek. Afternoon drive to Beirut. Two nights at Hotel Albergo

Day 26 Thursday: In Beirut ~ Full day excursion to Sidon and Tyre

Day 27 Friday: By air to Dubai ~ Morning sightseeing in Beirut. Evening Emirates flight to Dubai. Overnight at Dubai Airport International Hotel

Day 28 Saturday: By air to Australia ~ Morning Emirates flights to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane or Perth, arriving on Sunday morning 4th April

INCLUSIVE TARIFFS