Aqaba Governorate

Aqaba ( _ar. العقبة al-ʻAqabah) is one of the governorates of Jordan, located south of Amman, capital of Jordan. Its capital is Aqaba.

Aqaba, the port at the Red Sea, plays an important role in the economic life of Jordan and has many attractions to offer the vacationer. The Jordanian-Saudi border originally ran a few kilometers south of Aqaba. In 1965 the late King Hussein exchanged convert|12|km|mi|0|abbr=on of the valuable coastal strip for convert|6000|km|mi|-2|abbr=on desert. The port is Jordan's most important import/export hub. The industrial port lies well away from the beaches and the hotels, so that tourist activities are not affected.

Aqaba is divided into 3 nahias:
*Al-Aqaba
*Al-Quwayra
*Wadi Araba

Archaeological Treasures

The greatest archaeological treasure of the region is Petra. Petra lies on the eastern slope of Mount Hor in Wādī ʻAraba, a section of the Great Rift Valley that runs from the Gulf of Aqaba on the Red Sea to the Dead Sea