Glamping in Wadi Rum...for an anniversary celebration...

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Here we are, soon the last blog of a very special June trip. Today is a little special as we are celebrating our second wedding anniversary. The big day was on the beach in Seychelles. Next year, we took the dress to the Sossusvlei in Namibia...and we already have colder and greener plans for 2023 and 2024!



Wadi Rum is one of those very special places in the world. I've done it in December...so this time, it's a little warmer. Interesting enough, we are nowhere close to the heat of Luxor. Would I call 33 degrees a very comfortable temperature for mid day...well, yes it is! We drove all the way early morning from the Dead Sea via Aqaba. The big advantage of a self drive in Jordan is the size of the country. 4 hours drive and you can go from top North to bottom South! So we made it to the UFO Luxotel just before 2pm. There, you can either take a shuttle direct to the hotel, or pay a local guide for a multi hours discovery of the Wadi Rum. I did the 5 hours camel trek....that is something I have no intention to do again...and surely not in the summer heat!



You have the option to do a private 2 hours, 3 hours or 4 hours Wadi Rum tour. We settled for the 3 hours and it was perfect. I truly have the feeling we saw a lot. Our place for the night is the UFO Luxotel. It's one half of a hotel, the other being the more recent Bubble Luxotel. Advantage of the Bubble one, you have a hot tub on your terrace....well...if it's windy like it was for our visit, not a huge advantage...specially for a price tag between 100 to 150usd more per night. The reception and restaurant are actually shared by the two properties.



This place is simply stunning. Sadly, the staff service level was way below what you could expect for such a place. Would I come back, yes, but they need to change management and most of their team. Was fun to discuss on the way out with a former GM for multi years for many Four Seasons properties in the Middle East and US...and we both shared the exact same opinion about this place. Great engineering setting...get rid of the current management and most staffs!



We were glad that the dinner was mostly a Jordanian affair. Simple but more than decent. Well, that was if you get there early as they run out pretty fast of all the good things. We were there early! The breakfast was a disaster, not even worth a picture.



Our room was spacious, gorgeous view and decent shower cubicle. The view is what makes this place very special. Do like us and bring your bubbles or your wine as I have the feeling the bar system is non-existant or completely dry, which is pretty rare in Jordan. Celebrating we did, with amazing South African bubbles!



Next day, our next stop is next door, and I'm sure you already know where we are ending our little Middle East June trip. I still have to sort out few pictures, but I'm sure you'll enjoy already the ones of the Wadi Rum. Come to visit, the place is stunning!

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