Hi,
My Dad and I will be travelling to Syria and Jordan and we're looking for a tour company to take us around (we figured it would be easier than travelling independently). My Dad is older so we're looking for a comfortable tour with hotels, private buses, etc. I know there are many companies out there so I was wondering if anyone has any experience with these companies and can offer any recommendations/warnings about them.
Thanks!
-Dafne
Reply to this I do not do the tour thing, but there are certain attractions that are a must see in both these countries:
Jordan - Wadi Rum (stunning desert scenery), Petra (at least two full days in the site - any less and find another tour company), Kerak (great castle that was never conquered), Dead Sea (have a float!), Madaba (friendly city with lovely mosaics), Jerash (Roman ruins - not as good as others in the Middle East).
Syria - Bosra (best preserved Roman ampitheatre in the world), Krak des Chevaliers (the finest crusader castle of them all), Damscus (souq, Umayyad Mosque), Palmyra (ruined cities - need two days), Aleppo (souq, Citadel).
To do this sort of tour without running yourself to the state of exhaustion - you will need at least two and a half weeks - three being ideal.
Reply to this Hey Dafne,
Where are you from? I toured Jordan and Syria last year (2008) and I used Shoestring for it. Comfortable buses, okay hotels (don't expect 5-star facilities in these countries!) and amazing people. It's a Holland based tour operator though, although I know they're part of an international chain.
Best thing to do, find a tour operator with smaller groups (up to 10 people). You will have more freedom, a smaller bus etc.
Can you name some operators you've found the tours with? i can do some research for you, see if anyone I know used those operators 😊
Good luck!
- Saskia
Reply to this I'm from Canada.
My travel agent found Adventure Tours, but it included a night of camping and use of hostels - not something my Dad is interested in.
We're going in January, which seems to be a tricky time of year to travel. I just checked Shoestring and they don't have any tours in the middle of January (only end of December/beginning of February). Our neighbour suggested Adventures Abroad but again, no tour in January!
Shane - how easy is it to travel independently, if you don't speak arabic? My Dad was thinking of taking buses from city to city and doing day tours or just exploring on our own. Would this be a very difficult thing for us to do?
Thanks everyone for your help, keep the tips coming!
-Dafne
Reply to this I found it easy to travel in both countries with very limited (i.e. almost no) arabic. The public transport infrastucture in Jordan is quite poor compared to Syria, where it is at a good level. I chose to hire a car in Jordan for a few days to see some sites away from the major areas as public transport is almost nonexistent in some parts of the country. I took buses and went on a couple of day trips in Syria and that was quite easy to organise.
The major hassle in Jordan is getting to and from Wadi Rum, which is a must see, and where public transport is problematic. I had no such hassles with any of the major sites in Syria. The other option is to organise with the hotel/hostel you are staying in to see if you can join a group for a day trip to certain attractions and share the costs that way. It is easy to do in both countries.
Reply to this Hi Dafna,
as you are looking for a individual driver (and guide) service in Syria (and to Jordan), i warmly recommand you
.. they are great people, very reliable and they have a very comfortable van.. to contact them:
have a great time in syria.
greets Reply to this I've traveled to Syria/Lebanon with Adventure Center and to Jordan/Egypt with Imaginative Traveler. I preferred the Imaginative Traveler mostly because it included a lot of simple hotels and hiking, but the Adventure Center tour was definitely more tuned to travelers who are looking for more comfort. Both trips, however, were equally memorable and educational.
Reply to this I'm going to Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Turkey in January of 2011 and have also had a bit of problems finding the tours as well. I settled on Geckos (which is the camping/hostel route) because it had all 4 countries in one itinerary which is what I wanted.
On The Go was the company I would have LOVED to have gone with - their types of accomodation were usually better; their departures weekly and their reputation was incredible - they have Egyptian based tours that visit Jordan and Turkish tours that visit Syria but as far as I'm aware they don't do all four (or Syria + Jordan). However, if you're patient you might be able to match up dates where you can do Jordan and maybe do the local transport across the Jordan/Syria border and then do Syria. I'm not exactly sure what you're after so I won't make any suggestions but it's worth a shot. The only reason I didn't go with On The Go was the fact that they didn't run all four countries in succession; and I honestly can't be bothered it all out.
Reply to this if you are looking for a more personal option try mytrip-syria. those guys create for you the trip you want and they can help you out with everything. they are very flexible and you will get a lot of authentic experiences because they are not a tour organisation but a small 2-men agency, only dealing with individual travellers. you will love it.
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