Biblical 5 days Hisban Petra tour

Day 1:

Today you will start your visit to Amman Citadel, Archeology and the Folklore Museums, the Roman Theater, the old and modern Amman, old market.

Next drive to Jerash (Gerasa), once known as the land of Gilead, it was part of the Roman Decapolis and is sometimes referred to as the Pompei of the East, the best-preserved city of Roman times, and visit its theaters, temples, churches and colonnaded streets.

Day 2:

You will start the day by visiting Baptism Site which is your next stop, Bethany beyond the Jordan River, (The Baptism site), for Christians, the most significant event associated with the River Jordan is undoubtedly the baptism of Jesus Christ by John the Baptist.

The baptism site, known in Arabic as al-Maghtas, is located at the head of a lush valley just east of the Jordan River.

Then visit Mount Nebo, which was the Final station in Moses’ historic flight from Egypt to the Holy Land, Moses and his people camped “in the valley near Beth-peor”, a place long associated with the site known today as Ayun Musa (Springs of Moses), a small lush valley northeast of Mount Nebo. Another name for Mount Nebo is Pisgah (Syagha in Arabic).

From Mount Nebo’s windswept promontory, overlooking the Dead Sea, the Jordan River Valley, Jericho, and the distant hills of Jerusalem, Moses viewed the Holy Land of Canaan that he would never enter, he died and was buried in Moab, “in the valley opposite Beth-peor” but his tomb remains unknown.

Next drive to Madaba and its hinterlands were repeatedly mentioned in the Old Testament as Medeba. It was featured in narratives related to Moses and the Exodus, David’s war against the Moabites, Isaiah’s oracle against Moab, and King Mesha of Moab’s rebellion against Israel.

Some of the finest art of the early Christian centuries can still be seen in Madaba city and its surrounding regions in central Jordan, Church of Saint George, mosaic map of Jerusalem and the Holy Land, the earliest religious map of the Holy land, and then head back to Amman, to your hotel for dinner and overnight.

Day 3:

You will start your day by visiting Hisban which is located on the edge of the highland plateau overlooking the Northern tip of the Dead Sea and the Lower Jordan Valley.

The Amorite King Sihon ruled the area of central Jordan from his capital at heshbon (one of the Cities of the Plain), widely identified with modern-day Hisban due to the similarity in names, fortified in the Roman-Byzantine period and called Esbus, Hisban was also an important early Christian station on the pilgrims’ route from Jerusalem to Mount Nebo via the Jordan River, modern Hisban village is the first major antiquities site on the Kings’ Highway south of Amman.

Then visit Mukawir, a fortress set on a high hill near the Dead Sea, It is the site of one of Herod’s palaces, and has the tradition of being where Salome danced and John the Baptist was beheaded, from the top of this mountain it is possible to see Herod’s two other mountain-top palaces, Herodium near Bethlehem and Alexandrium near Jericho.

Next visit Umm Ar-Rsasa was mentioned on both the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. Most of the city now lies in ruins, but there are several buildings in its eastern part, including churches, a courtyard with a well, staircases and stone arches that have all been excavated and restoredm, visit the recently unearthed Church of Saint Stephen with its perfectly preserved outstanding mosaic, which depicts the images of 27 Old and New Testament cities of the Holy Land, east and west of the River Jordan.

Then see the highest standing ancient tower in Jordan, Just two kilometers north of Umm Ar-Rasas which is believed to have been used as a place of solitude by early Christian monks, the tower is 15 metres high and has no door or inner staircase.

Transfer to Petra for overnight.

Day 4:

In the morning, you will start your visit to Petra; the city carved into the rose-red Mountains by the Nabateans and lost to Civilization until re-discovered by the Swiss Burkhardt. Walk through the Siq, a narrow and winding fissure between the cliffs, to reach the Treasury, the Nabatean Roman Theater, the royal tombs, the Roman Road, the great temple, the temple of the Winged Lion and the basin.

During the time of Jesus and the Apostles, one of the East Mediterranean’s greatest trading centers was located in the southern Jordan city of Petra, the extensive rock-cut capital of the Nabataean Kingdom.

During the Exodus, Moses and the Israelites passed through the Petra area in Edom. Local tradition says that the spring at Wadi Musa (Valley of Moses), just outside Petra, is the place where Moses struck the rock and brought forth water.

The Bible says that Moses was not allowed to enter the Holy Land but could only glimpse it from Mount Nebo because he struck the rock with his rod to bring forth water, instead of speaking to it, as God had commanded.

Aaron, the brother of Moses and Miriam, who was called by God to be Moses’ prophet, died in Jordan and was buried in Petra at Mount Hor, now called Jabal Harun in Arabic (Mount Aaron).

A Byzantine church and later an Islamic shrine/tomb of Aaron were built on the summit of the mountain, which today attracts pilgrims from all over the world, Aaron was the first High Priest of the Bible and is remembered for the beautiful blessing that God commanded him to give people.

Day 5:

On a hillside above the town of Zoar (modern-day Safi), Byzantine Christians built a church and monastery dedicated to Saint Lot.

The infamous Sodom and Gomorrah and other cities of the Dead Sea plain were the subjects of some of the most dramatic and enduring Old Testament stories, as they were leaving the burning city of Sodom, Lot’s wife disobeyed God’s order not to look back and was turned into a pillar of salt, and his two daughters survived and fled to a cave (Lot’s cave), near the small town of Zoar (modern-day Safi).

The Bible says Lot’s daughters gave birth to sons whose descendents would become the Ammonite and Moabite people, whose kingdoms were in what is now central Jordan.

Next will arrive at Dead Sea the lowest point on earth, and will have free time for swimming float, mud bath, a day of leisure, then transfer to Amman for your hotel.