Wadi Rum Desert

Today, we picked up our rental car from Thrifty, which is just around the corner from the Hilton. It costs 230 kr per day, and gas is incredibly cheap—only 5-6 kr per liter. They were very thorough in checking the car for any faults or scratches, noting everything down before handing over the keys. We also took some pictures of the car’s dings and a chip in the windshield, so hopefully, there won't be any disputes when we return it. Our first destination is the Wadi Rum desert, famous from the film Lawrence of Arabia from 1962. After filling the car with gas, plenty of water, and snacks for ourselves, we set off towards the desert. It’s said to be expensive to buy food in Wadi Rum, so everyone recommends bringing your own. Navigating while driving is pretty straightforward. Aqaba isn’t a big city, but the traffic can be chaotic, so you need to stay alert while driving through town. Once you’re outside the city, you pretty much have the road to yourself. There are three highways running through the country from north to south: Dead Sea Highway, Kings Highway, and Desert Highway. As a tourist, you really don’t need much more than those to reach the country’s attractions. To get to Wadi Rum, we took the Desert Highway north. After about 40 km, we saw signs for Wadi Rum and turned right. There aren’t many roads to choose from along the way, so it’s hard to get lost. The views become more and more beautiful as you approach Wadi Rum—mountains everywhere! The surroundings are bone-dry and look quite unforgiving if you were to get stranded out here at night. Our first stop is the Wadi Rum Visitor Center, where you can find information about the area. You can also rent a jeep and a guide if you haven’t arranged anything already. There are plenty of eager sellers around, so don’t be shy about just showing up. You can explore Wadi Rum by jeep or on camelback, and you can even spend the night out there. Renting a jeep for three hours with a guide cost us 55 dinar. This is also where you pay the entrance fee—2 dinar per person and 5 dinar per car. We’re not sure why, but no one charged us an entrance fee, so after a quick stop, we continued in our own car towards Rum Village, where we planned to find a guide ourselves. The small dusty village sits at the foot of Wadi Rum, and suddenly the asphalt ends, giving way to desert—there’s no driving further in a regular car. Rum Village doesn’t look like much. We drove around a bit and saw an older gentleman standing by his jeep while his kids played inside. We stopped and asked if he knew where we could rent a jeep. Unlike the eager sellers at the Visitor Center, who can be a bit too slick, he seemed more genuine. Without any haggling, he told us that renting a jeep for three hours would cost 40 dinar—the exact price that Lonely Planet suggests it should be. Our driver spoke good English. He usually cooked for the teachers at the local school. That’s probably why he was so honest—he wasn’t used to negotiating with tourists. He wasn’t a pushy seller trying to squeeze a few extra bucks out of us. He had lived in Rum Village and the surrounding area for most of his life, so he knew everything about the desert. His father was a Bedouin who constantly moved around with his camels and sheep in search of water. He doesn’t live as a Bedouin anymore but has settled in Rum Village with his wife and five kids. His oldest son is 16, and the youngest is just 2 months old. He had children with two wives since his first wife had passed away. He then married a 30-year-old woman, with whom he plans to have even more kids—ideally, two soccer teams! The older gentleman got his kids out of the car and promised to drive slowly through the uneven desert sand, as the locals love to speed, making you bounce around inside the car. He noticed I was pregnant, so he waited to hit the gas until we weren’t in the car anymore. Our first stop was Lawrence’s Spring, a spring located on a mountainside named after the famous British archaeologist and officer in the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Next, we visited Jebel Khazali, a gorge that goes 7 km into the mountain. You can hike 150 meters into the gorge on your own, but after that, you need a guide and a rope to go further. The cliffs are stunning and dramatically beautiful. The gorge is narrow, the path is tight, and you really have to be careful not to fall. Our last stop was at the Sand Dunes, a giant sand hill sheltered by a mountain. From the top, there’s a lovely view over Wadi Rum, and you can see all the way to Rum Village. There are many more highlights to visit, so it’s best to take your time when you go to Wadi Rum! Back in the village, our driver invited us for tea in his home with his family. His kids came out and curiously looked at us. We had brought some cookies, which they absolutely loved. We were also invited into their "living room," where their little newborn son was sleeping. They thought it was a great idea