Is Aqaba Worth Visiting? My Honest Review of Jordan’s Beach City
Read on to discover if Aqaba is actually worth visiting or not!
Aqaba, which is Jordan’s only coastal city, is often cited as a top destination when visiting the country, but is it really worth visiting?
Located next to the Red Sea, it is indeed one of the best spots in the world for scuba diving, and it has a nice beach, but apart from that, what does it have to offer?
I spent two days exploring Aqaba during my visit to Jordan in September 2025. And to be honest, I have some mixed feelings about my time in this beach city.
In this blog post, I detail the pros and cons of visiting Aqaba, listing all the top things to do and I share my honest opinion on whether it is worth visiting or not.
Plan Your Trip With My Recommended Resources:
🚆Bus or Train: Bookaway is a great resource for tickets
🏨 Accommodation: I always use Booking.com
🚙 Rental Car: Discover Cars has the best car rental prices
❤️ Travel Insurance: I recommend using Visitors Coverage
✈️ Flights: Kiwi.com has the best prices on flights
📱eSIM: Airalo has a fantastic range of eSIMs
Is Aqaba Worth Visiting?
To be brutally honest with you, I have mixed feelings about recommending Aqaba. On the one hand, it is worth visiting if you love scuba diving or if you want to relax on the beach and sunbathe for a day or two.
But apart from that, there’s really not much else to recommend about the place. And if you’re short on time in Jordan, then there are several other more obvious tourist destinations – including Petra, Wadi Rum, and the Dead Sea.
So, let me break this down for you in more detail with a list of pros and cons of visiting Aqaba:
Pros of visiting Aqaba
First of all, let’s begin with the good things about Aqaba:
It’s the perfect place to relax
One positive about Aqaba is that it’s the perfect place in Jordan for some much-needed rest and relaxation.
After spending two days hiking all over Petra and then enjoying a 10-hour jeep tour in Wadi Rum, I was desperate to just lie on a sunbed and chill out.
If you have a hectic schedule for Jordan, then 1 or 2 days in Aqaba may be worth it to recharge your batteries.
Amazing for Scuba Diving
Aqaba, and more precisely the Red Sea, is one of the best locations in the world for scuba diving. With amazing coral reefs and thriving sea life, it is a must-visit location if you’re a fan of scuba diving.
Or if you’ve never tried scuba diving before, then Aqaba is a fantastic place to try it. I can attest to that; in Aqaba, I took a 2-hour private scuba diving lesson and absolutely loved it – I highly recommend it.
If you don’t fancy scuba diving, then you could also try snorkelling or going on one of the many glass-bottom boat rides in Aqaba to experience some of the amazing sea life in the Red Sea.
Cons of visiting Aqaba
Now let’s take a look at why Aqaba isn’t all that appealing:
There’s not much to do!
The truth about Aqaba is that apart from scuba diving and sunbathing, there isn’t an awful lot else to do. If I had known what it was like before visiting Jordan, I probably would have taken Aqaba out of my 10 day itinerary.
On my first day there, I spent an hour or so walking from one side of the city to the other, and I felt that I had seen everything there was to see in such a short amount of time. In that sense, it reminded me of Agadir in Morocco.
There are some nice restaurants and luxurious hotels with beautiful private beaches, and a nice harbour. There are also a few interesting historical sites, but I found these to be underwhelming after visiting Amman, Petra, and Wadi Rum.
Safety Concerns
I also had some real concerns about my safety in Aqaba. The majority of people that I met were very friendly, but with one exception.
While relaxing on Aqaba’s public beach, a stranger nearly succeeded in stealing my bag, including my personal possessions, while I wasn’t looking.
Fortunately, I noticed in time and quickly exited the scene, only for him to then follow me for the next five minutes. This was quite a scary scenario, but thankfully, the stranger disappeared.
My advice would be to visit a private beach in Aqaba rather than a public beach. There are a few luxurious hotels on the beachfront that have private beaches, which are much safer.
This incident was most likely a one-off and isn’t reflective of the locals of Aqaba, but it’s worth mentioning.
Things To Do In Aqaba
So what exactly is there to do in Aqaba? Let me break down the top things that you should definitely do when visiting:
Scuba Diving
As mentioned previously, Aqaba is an amazing place for scuba diving. If you enjoy scuba diving or want to try it for the first time, then I can recommend Aqaba – the sea life is truly incredible here.
Snorkelling
If scuba diving sounds a bit too scary or intimidating for you, then you can always try snorkelling instead. There are plenty of shops on the seafront at Aqaba that sell good-quality snorkelling masks.
Relax on the beach
As I also mentioned previously in this post, relaxing on the beach is probably Aqaba’s best attraction.
There is a public beach where families go, although I found it to be quite overcrowded and limited in space when I visited in September. The quality of the sand wasn’t very good, and there are no sunbeds to hire.
Instead, I recommend visiting one of the private beaches run by one of the many luxurious hotels further up from the public beach.
I spent a couple of hours on a private beach at Kempinski Hotel in Aqaba when I discovered my bus to Amman had been cancelled. I explained my situation to security outside of the hotel and was allowed into the beach resort.
The private beach at Kempinski Hotel was excellent! The sunbeds were perfect and the sand quality was excellent. They also have a great lunch menu at the hotel, but I wasn’t allowed access to the hotel’s swimming pool as I was a guest.
Take a glass-bottom boat
If you don’t want to try scuba diving or snorkelling while in Aqaba, then there is a third option to see the Red Sea’s spectacular sea-life: glass-bottom boats.
You’ll see a row of glass-bottom boats along the public beach, as well as plenty of sellers who will aggressively try to sell you a boat ride at varying prices.
My advice would be to book a boat ride online in advance to avoid dealing with the sellers.
Eat at some great restaurants
Another positive aspect about Aqaba is that has some great seafood restaurants. You’ll find plenty of restaurants along the main road just off the beach, and there are more quality restaurants the further inland you go.
I ate at a couple of seafood restaurants and had some very good food at very reasonable prices, too.
Check out Aqaba’s historical sites
Aqaba actually has a few intriguing historical sites, which may be worth checking out if you get bored with sunbathing. Here are the main historical sites worth visiting:
- Aqaba Fort – one of the most fascinating sites in Aqaba, which was built by the Ottomans during the 16th Century.
- Ayla Ruins – near the beach lie the ruins of the city of Ayla, which dates back to the 7th century and is another interesting historical site in Aqaba.
- Sharif Hussein bin Ali Mosque – This is a beautiful mosque close to the Ayla Ruins. It was built in the 20th Century in memory of Sharif of Mecca, who played a prominent role during the Arab Revolt.
How To Get To Aqaba
There are a few different options when it comes to reaching Aqaba, depending on whether you’re already in Jordan or planning to fly to the country:
- Bus – It is possible to catch a bus from Amman, Petra, and Wadi Rum to Aqaba. I recommend using Bookaway to find the best bus journeys available in Jordan, or the official JETT site (JETT is the main bus operator in Jordan.
- Taxi – I actually caught a taxi from Wadi Rum, and the journey takes less than an hour. As I shared the taxi with two other fellow tourists, I paid 10 dirhams (just over £10); otherwise, it would have cost me 30 dirhams.
- Rent a car – Of course, if you’re renting a car for your holiday in Jordan, you can reach Aqaba relatively easily. I recommend using Discover Cars for the best rental prices.
- Plane – Aqaba does actually have an international airport (King Hussein International Airport), which is just a short 15-minute car or taxi ride away from the centre.
There are international flights from Aqaba to Cairo, Istanbul, and Abu Dhabi. There are also direct flights from the UK to Aqaba, but these are typically more expensive than flying direct to Amman.
There are also several flights each week from Aqaba to Amman, which is the most frequent flight from Aqaba.
Is Aqaba Worth Visiting FAQs
Still not sure if Aqaba is worth visiting or not? Let me answer some of the most commonly asked questions about Jordan’s only seaside destination:
How many days do you need in Aqaba?
I would honestly only recommend visiting Aqaba for one day, if you just want to check out what the city has to offer before moving on to more exciting destinations in Jordan.
If you really want a beach experience when in Jordan and want to spend time relaxing, then I’d recommend two days or more. I spent two full days in Aqaba and felt that I could have shortened my time there to just one full day.
Is Aqaba safe for tourists?
Overall, yes I would safe Aqaba is safe for tourists. However, having had an incident with a local (as described above), I would definitely think twice about visiting again.
Aqaba isn’t a dangerous city and the majority of locals are very friendly, but I would recommend being on your guard at all times.
Is Aqaba expensive?
Compared to other destinations in Jordan, no, Aqaba isn’t any more expensive or less expensive for that matter. You can find cheap accommodation and reasonably priced restaurants as well.
Aqaba does however have several four and five-star hotels, if you’re looking for a luxurious stay when visiting.
How far is Aqaba from Wadi Rum?
Aqaba is only 40 kilometres away from Wadi Rum, and you can expect to get there in around 40 minutes if travelling by car or taxi.
Conclusion: Is Aqaba Worth Visiting?
So that concludes my blog post about whether Aqaba is really worth visiting or not. I very rarely don’t recommend a destination on my blog, but Aqaba isn’t a location that’s truly worthy of your time when visiting Jordan.
Aqaba isn’t necessarily a bad place, it just doesn’t have an awful lot to offer. It is a must however if you love scuba diving, and it has some lovely hotels with private beaches where you can chill in the sun.
But there are undeniably plenty of more fascinating and unmissable destinations worthy of your time in Jordan. So, I would only recommend Aqaba if you’re a fan of the activities listed.
I hope that’s answered your question as to whether Aqaba is worth visiting or not, and helped made up your mind about spending time in Jordan’s one and only beach city.
➡️ Planning your trip? Here are my favourite resources:
🏨 Accommodation: I recommend using Booking.com
🚙 Rental Car: Use Discover Cars for the best car rental prices
❤️ Travel Insurance: I recommend using Visitors Coverage
✈️ Flights: Use Kiwi.com for the best prices on flights
