Jerash, Ajloun & Umm Qais Day Trip from Amman: Private Tour
Three ancient cities in one day, each one a different era of the Middle East
A private day tour from Amman to Jerash, Ajloun Castle, and Umm Qais, with hotel pickup and an English-speaking driver. You choose which combination of sites suits your interests (all three, or Jerash paired with one other), and can arrange a local guide at each stop for deeper historical context. The tour runs 5 to 8 hours depending on your selections and pace.
Options for this experience
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Step-by-step itinerary
Explore Jerash, Ajloun, and Umm Qais
- Hotel pickup in the morning
- Drive to Jerash and explore ruins
- Visit Ajloun Castle and climb tower
- Drive to Umm Qais and tour ruins
- Return to Amman and end tour
- Jerash 2h
- Ajloun Castle 2h
- Umm Qais 2h
What’s included
- Hotel pickup and drop-off in Amman.
- private climate-controlled vehicle with Wi-Fi and phone charging.
- English-speaking driver for the full day.
- bottled water onboard.
- your choice of which sites to visit (Jerash only, Jerash with Ajloun, Jerash with Umm Qais, or all three).
Times
- Every day No fixed time
Before you book
Operated by R&H VIP Transportation Services
Prices and times updated today
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The experience
Your driver picks you up from your hotel in Amman in the morning and handles the drive north to whichever sites you've chosen. The vehicle is climate-controlled, has Wi-Fi and phone charging onboard, and bottled water is available throughout the day. The driver speaks English and can answer basic questions, though the itinerary notes that local guides are available at each site if you want someone who specializes in the history. Those guides are optional and at your own cost, but they're there if you decide you want one.
Jerash is the largest stop for most travelers. It's one of Jordan's best-preserved classical cities, founded around 331 BC and later one of the great Decapolis cities of the Roman east. You'll walk through colonnaded streets, see the Temple of Artemis, the Forum, the oval plaza, and the amphitheater. The site spans Bronze Age settlements through Roman rule (its peak around 63 BC) and later periods under Christian and Muslim rule, so the layers of history are visible in the stones. Ajloun Castle, built in the 12th century by Saladin's forces against the Crusaders, sits on a hilltop and offers views across the Jordan Valley toward the Dead Sea. You can climb into the towers and move through the medieval chambers and galleries. Umm Qais, the ancient Decapolis city of Gadara, sits at a vantage point where you can see into Jordan, Syria, and the Israeli and Palestinian territories at once. The contrast there is stark (Roman ruins standing next to an abandoned Ottoman-era village), and the site is also known from the Bible as the location of the Gadarene swine miracle.
The tour ends with a return drive to Amman and drop-off at a central location of your choice. Because this is a private tour, the pace and which sites you linger at are yours to set. The driver will wait while you explore, and you're not locked into a group schedule or a fixed time at each stop.
Is this one for you?Book this if you want to set your own pace at each site and choose which ruins to prioritize: the private vehicle and driver mean you're not following a group schedule or a fixed itinerary. If you'd rather have a historian walk you through each location, arrange a local guide at checkout or ask your driver to help you find one at each site.
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Top questions
What languages is the tour guided in?
Live guide in English and Arabic.
Can I choose to visit just Jerash, or do I have to see all three sites?
The tour offers five options at checkout: Jerash only, Jerash and Ajloun, Jerash and Umm Qais, all three sites, or a shared version covering the three main sites. You pick the combination that fits your interests and time.
What exactly is Jerash and why is it worth a full morning or afternoon?
Jerash is one of the best-preserved Roman cities outside Italy. Founded around 331 BC, it became a major Decapolis city during Roman rule and contains temples, theaters, an amphitheater, colonnaded streets, and public plazas that span Bronze Age through medieval periods. Most visitors spend 2 to 3 hours there.
Is there a guide included, or do I explore on my own?
Your English-speaking driver is included and travels with you all day, but there's no guided tour of the sites themselves. Local guides are available at Jerash, Ajloun, and Umm Qais if you want historical detail. You can arrange and pay for them directly at each location, or explore independently.
What's the view like from Umm Qais?
Umm Qais sits at an extraordinary vantage point where you can see three countries at once: Jordan, Syria, and the Israeli and Palestinian territories. The site itself is a Greco-Roman city with colonnaded streets and ruins, set against an abandoned Ottoman-era village, creating a striking contrast.
How long does the whole tour take?
The tour runs between 5 and 8 hours depending on which sites you choose and how long you spend at each one. This includes driving time from Amman, exploration time at the sites, and the return drive to your hotel.
What's included in the price besides the driver and vehicle?
Hotel pickup and drop-off, private transportation in a climate-controlled vehicle, an English-speaking driver, Wi-Fi, phone charging, and bottled water are all included. Entry fees to the sites and any local guides you hire are separate.
Jerash, Ajloun & Umm Qais Day Trip from Amman: Private Tour
5h–8h · EN +1 · at your hotel
from US$ 62 per person
Next, you choose your date and number of travelers and see the final price.