🇯🇴Halal Travel Guide to Jordan

The blue-domed mosque built in the 1980s over the tomb of the first king, holding 7,000 worshippers under a dome with no interior pillars. The only mosque in Amman that formally welcomes non-Muslim visitors, with robes at the door and a small museum.

The largest mosque in Jordan, in Umayyad-revival style in the western suburbs, opened in 2005. Used for state occasions.

Rebuilt in 1924 on the site of a mosque founded by Umar ibn al-Khattab's governor in 640. The heart of downtown, surrounded by the souk.

Built in 1961 in alternating black basalt and white limestone, in a chequerboard pattern found nowhere else in the region. On the highest hill in the city.

The Prophet's cousin and brother of Ali, killed at the Battle of Mu'tah in 629 after both his arms were severed carrying the standard. His shrine and mosque stand on the battlefield.

The Prophet's freed slave and adopted son, the first commander at Mu'tah, and the only companion mentioned by name in the Qur'an.

The poet of the Ansar and the third commander to fall at Mu'tah, with a shrine near the other two.

One of the ten promised Paradise, commander of the conquest of Syria, and the man the Prophet called the trustworthy one of this Ummah. He died in the plague of Amwas in 639. A large mosque complex surrounds the tomb.

The companion the Prophet described as the most knowledgeable in matters of lawful and unlawful, sent as a judge to Yemen. He also died in the plague of Amwas.

Traditionally identified as the tomb of Shu'ayb, the prophet sent to Madyan and, in the Islamic narrative, the father-in-law of Musa. A small mosque in a wooded valley.

One of several sites claimed as the cave of Surah al-Kahf, with seven sealed tombs inside and the remains of both a Byzantine church and a later mosque built directly above.

A white shrine on the highest peak above Petra, traditionally the tomb of the Prophet Harun. A demanding half-day walk or a Bedouin-guided donkey ride from the Monastery trail.

An 8th-century Umayyad governor's complex with a domed audience hall, a cistern and a mosque, on the hilltop above Roman and Bronze Age layers.

An 8th-century Umayyad bath house whose interior is covered in frescoes - hunting scenes, craftsmen, the zodiac on a domed ceiling. One of the earliest surviving examples of Islamic figurative painting.

Qasr Kharana, Qasr Azraq (where Lawrence wintered) and Qusayr Amra, all within a day's loop east of Amman.

One of the best-preserved Roman provincial cities in the world - oval forum, colonnaded cardo, two theatres and a hippodrome, continuously occupied into the Umayyad period.

A Crusader fortress taken by Saladin in 1188 after a long siege, on a ridge above the King's Highway with vaulted galleries running deep into the rock.

A 6th-century floor mosaic showing the Holy Land from Lebanon to the Nile delta, with the earliest surviving map of Jerusalem.

Falafel, hummus, ful and mint tea at plastic tables in an alley, since 1956, open 24 hours. The king has eaten here. Costs a couple of dinars.

Kunafa nabulsieh cut from the tray in a hole-in-the-wall off Al-Malek Al-Hussein Street. Follow the queue; eat it standing up.

Traditional Jordanian cooking in a 1930s villa with a garden - mansaf, maqluba, galayet bandora. The best place to try mansaf without being invited to a wedding.

Refined Levantine cooking in a 1950s house with a terrace. The most serious restaurant in Amman; alcohol is served.

An unfussy local institution doing mansaf and maqluba at lunchtime. Point at what you want on the counter.

Farm-to-table Jordanian breakfast - labneh, za'atar, seasonal vegetables, freekeh - in a plant-filled room. Excellent and very popular.

An upstairs café full of old photographs and Fairuz, looking over the downtown street. Coffee, shisha, mezze and a long afternoon.

A large family restaurant in a tented setting doing grills and mezze at scale. Where Jordanian families go on a Friday.

A cooking class in a family home - you shop, cook and then eat what you made on the terrace. Run by three sisters and one of the best things to do in Amman.

An evening class cooking a full Jordanian meal, which is a better use of an evening in Wadi Musa than most of the hotel restaurants.

Every camp serves zarb - lamb and vegetables from the sand oven - with rice, mezze and tea. This is the Wadi Rum meal and it is included in the camp price.

Long-running Aqaba restaurant doing Red Sea fish and sayadieh on a street terrace in the town centre.

A restored stone house with a courtyard, serving Jordanian classics. The standard lunch stop on the King's Highway and better than it needs to be.

The resorts along the shore all serve halal buffets; several have licensed bars. Day passes let you use the beach, pools and restaurants without staying.

Stone villas, cafés and galleries on the hill above downtown, walkable to the Citadel and the souk. The best base in the city.

The artists' quarter - quieter than Rainbow Street, with good coffee, small galleries and a handful of guesthouses.

Cheap hotels above the souk, noisy and central, with Hashem and Habibah at the end of the street.

The town above the Petra gate, with hotels at every price. The closer to the visitor centre the better, given the 6am start.

From shared goat-hair tents to domed 'bubble' suites with a glass roof over the stars. All alcohol-free, all including dinner and breakfast. Book with a licensed local operator.

A strip of large resorts with private beaches, mud stations and pools. Day passes are available if you would rather not stay. Several have women-only pool hours.

Candlelit, solar-powered and run with the local Bedouin community, deep in the Dana reserve. No alcohol, no road access at the end - you transfer by pickup.

A small, relaxed port town with cheap diving, a public beach and a Saudi border 20 minutes away. Alcohol is available; the town is otherwise low-key.