Details about Aqaba Jordan | Jordan Attractions

Aqaba Tourist City

A Jordanian city located in the far south of Jordan on the coast of the Red Sea, 330 kilometres from the Jordanian capital Amman, it is the centre of the Aqaba Governorate, as it occupies a privileged position as the only sea outlet for Jordan, and the city of Aqaba shares borders with the city of Haql in Saudi Arabia and the city of Eilat in Palestine through Wadi Araba, and Aqaba was called in ancient times by a Hebrew or Syriac name, which is Ella, while in the Mamluk era it was called Aqaba, meaning the rugged road in the mountain.

Aqaba is located strategically along the sea and at the crossroads of the two continents, Asia and Africa. Consequently, it became home to various tribes and ethnic groups four millennia ago because it served as a highway for the traders who departed from and arrived in the Hejaz and south Arabia on their way to Egypt and the Levant.

The area was also occupied by Greeks who named it Bernas, while the Romans inhabited it with the name Ela or Elena. Even after the advent of Islam, Empires ruled the area until the twelfth century, by which time the region had already gone under Christian Crusaders, who took over the area and erected a huge fortress that remains to this day.

It became under Islamic rule, and in the twelfth century the Crusaders occupied it and built a large castle that is still standing until now, and in 1170 AD Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi recovered the city of Aqaba, and in the sixteenth century it came under the rule of the Ottomans, and during the First World War, Sharif Hussein was forced by the Ottomans to leave it.

The city of Aqaba is an active tourist city located on the Red Sea coast where tourists from all over the world are full of tourists. The city of Aqaba is characterized by moderate climate, winter warmth, clean water and beach hygiene. All this has made it an ideal environment for coral growth and various types of marine organisms.

Aqaba Bay is one of the best locations for swimming and deep diving, and Aqaba has a station to attract tens of thousands or possibly more of migratory birds during the autumn and spring seasons during its journey between Europe and Africa.

Aqaba is characterised by the presence of all facilities and services of high specifications and quality and the presence of a series of hotels with high readiness and specifications to suit the large numbers of tourists. The Port of Aqaba is a major commercial centre and is a key link in trade between Jordan and the outside world, through which Jordan imports most of its oil needs and exports phosphate and potash.