Some might describe backpacking in Jordan as away from the main tourist trail, and I would tend to agree. But the beautiful windswept village of Umm Qais on the northern border is officially off the beaten track.
Albeit the ancient attractions of Northern Jordan have to live in the shadow of mighty Petra, and you may not have heard of them before. (We hadn’t either).
But Umm Qais and Jerash feature some of the world’s best preserved Roman ruins and a visit to the north of Jordan makes for an utterly fascinating day of exploring and wonder.
Umm Qais
The site of Umm Qais is an incredible archaeological site full of ruins from different eras throughout history.
What is today called, Umm Qais was once the city of Gadara. And it was here in Gadara that was the site of the famous miracle of the Gadarene swine.
In its day, the city was renowned as a great centre of culture in Roman times and was home to several classic poets and philosophers.
Now the old city is in ruins but the site does boast an impressive colonnaded street, a vaulted terrace and the ruins of two big Roman-style amphitheaters.
Highlights at the site of Umm Qais
As soon as you enter the old Roman streets of Umm Qais you can wander freely through the old courtyards and cobbled alley-ways.
The entire village is striking. And the freedom to wander around feels contradictory in such a place of history.
The views from the top of the village are the most breathtaking. But within the ruins of the old village itself there are some cool parts to explore.
- Tip: Especially if you are visiting Umm Qais with kids, take a photo of the map at the entrance to find the highlights.
Make sure to find and check out:
- West Theatre
- Ottoman Village
- The Basilica Terrace and Byzantine church
- Roman Tombs
An intersection of nations
There isn’t all too much left of the main structure that was once the village of Umm Qais, but the views from the village location on top of the hill are truly spectacular.
The site of Umm Qais sits at a crossroads between three countries, on a bluff overlooking the Sea of Galilee in Israel, the Jordan Valley and the border of Syria.
But from the edge of the village, you can see the Syrian Golan Heights, Lake Tiberias and the north Palestinian plains.
Plus we even read that on a clear day you can see Mount Hermon all the way in Lebanon!
In other words, the location of Umm Qais is seriously impressive. And it is easy to see why the village was originally constructed on the hilltop site.
On reflection
We were tired as the sun began to set in Umm Qais and Irbid. It was time to head back to Amman.
While the drive north had been full of chatter, the return journey was a quiet one while we all reflected on the day.
On the way the kids had fired questions at us faster than we could come up with answers for. They wanted to know about the villages we passed through and unintentionally deeper questions about the connections of Jordan with bordering Syria.
We answered as best we could. But the truth is the visit to Umm Qais was another of those moments in travel that reminds you as you learn more about a new place and culture, of just how little we know about the lives of others.
The smaller villages north of Irbid are barren looking as you drive towards them. And it’s easy to get lost in the small winding roads that track through the towns.
The villages look exactly as we had imagined; similar to those that have survived the wars in Syria and other middle eastern countries.
The buildings are understated in faded white concrete and the surrounding landscape is arid. Yet somehow the fact it does look as we might have envisaged is even more provoking.
We did our best to answer the questions the boys had about Syria and the wars.
But I knew we were only scratching the surface. It was another humbling day of travel and learning for all of us.
Practical things to know before you go
- Umm Qais Admission cost: Entry to the Umm Qais archaeological site is included in the Jordan Pass. If you do happen to be visiting without a Jordan Pass, entrance is 5 JD per person.
- Jerash admission cost: Entry to the Jerash archaeological site is included in the Jordan Pass, or costs 10 JD per person.
- Umm Qais Restaurant: The restaurant is open from 10am until 7pm from October to May and 10am until 10pm between June and September. A meal costs around $8-10 USD.
If you are driving yourself, be sure to make sure you have enough petrol on leaving Amman to get to Umm Qais and back!
- Tip: There are petrol stations in Jerash and Irbid but from Irbid north we didn’t see any obvious ones.
The tyre pressure in our rental car didn’t look quite right and we also had to find a mechanic shop with a compressor. (We still no idea which village we did this in!).
Getting to Umm Qais
The easiest way to visit Umm Qais from Amman is to drive yourself.
From Amman, the road to Umm Qais offers a fairly straightforward journey, but one that makes you feel far from the crowds and definitely off the beaten track.
The route is on major highways between Amman, Jerash and Irbid. The city of Irbid is the last major town you pass through before the last 30km stretch to Umm Qais.
On Google Maps, the journey is mapped at just over 2 hours. But I would say it took us around two and half hours as we took our time passing through Irbid and the smaller villages to the north.
Getting around in Jordan
Our overall consensus after a week of driving around Jordan, is that the roads in Jordan are great.
We hired a car through Avis with rentalcars.com and picked it up at the airport in Amman.
This was an easy place to pick up a rental vehicle, despite the fact we actually crossed overland at the Allenby Bridge border between Israel and Jordan.
I would recommend renting a car for the best freedom to explore Jordan at your own pace, and especially if traveling in Jordan with kids.
The beautiful, windswept valley of Umm Qais is worth a visit is you have the freedom of time and wheels while in Jordan.
Let us know what you think!
Useful links for your travels in Middle East and beyond…
These are the companies we use while traveling fulltime as a family and that we would recommend to anyone planning and booking travel.
- Booking.com – The best all-around accommodation booking site that constantly provides the cheapest and lowest rates. They have the widest selection of budget accommodation and it’s easy to filter and sort into price and availability with all the extras you are looking for personally.
- Hostelworld– The largest inventory of hostel accommodation in the world.
- Skyscanner – This is by far our favourite flight search engine. They are able to search small websites and budget airlines that larger search sites often miss. We book all our flights through Skyscanner.
- GetYourGuide– Get Your Guide is a huge online marketplace for tours and excursions offered all around the world including everything from walking tours, to street-food tours, cooking classes, desert safari’s and more!
- SafetyWing – A global travel insurance that covers people from all over the world while outside their home country. You can buy it short or longterm; and even if you are out of the country.
- World Nomads – Travel insurance tailored for longterm travel and nomads (including those who have already left home).
Read more about travel in the Middle East
- Saudi Arabia Travel Guide: Everything you need to know about visiting KSA.
- Jordan Travel Guide: Read all about magical Jordan.
- Visiting Umm Qais in Jordan
- Crossing overland from Israel to Jordan (and the worst noise ever).
- UAE with kids: Three Emirates in three days.
- Oman with kids: Road-tripping and wadi-jumping…
- Quick tips for visiting the Sheik Al Zayed Mosque in Abu Dhabi with kids.