RED SEA - THE CORAL REEFS

Surrounded by rugged mountains that subtly change color as the day unfolds, Aqaba is Jordan's only port city. Its crystal clear waters, abundant marine life and pleasant climate (With moderate temperatures in winter and fresh cooling sea breezes in summer), make it an ideal location for year round scuba diving, snorkeling and other water sports. The Red Sea's unique marine ecosystem includes more than 140 species of coral and countless varieties of brightly colored fish, some of which are unique to the region.

Aqaba's Royal Diving Center and several other qualified dive operates offer complete diving services including PADI and BSAC courses, equipment rental and fully supervised dives to some of the finest dive sites in the world.

For the history enthusiast are sites reflecting human habitation for at least 5500 years resulting from Aqaba's strategic location at the junction of land and sea routes from Asia, Africa and Europe. Of special interest among the ancient and medieval archaeological sites are the newly discovered site of what is thought to be the Oldest church in the world, the early Islamic city called Ayla, a Mamluke fort and a very fine museum at the house of Sharif Hussein bin Ali, great grand-father of King Abdallah the Second.