Wadi Rum in Jordan

Wadi Rum, also known as the Valley of the Moon, is located along the western edge of the Arabian desert in the south of Jordan. It is a four-hour drive from Amman, the capital of Jordan, and about an hour’s drive from Aqaba on the coast. This otherworldly landscape is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and occupies an area nearly the size of New York City, making it the largest wadi (valley) in Jordan. Filled with huge rock formations and rippled sand dunes, it has a distinctive red color that is caused by iron oxide, earning it the nickname Mars on Earth (the 2015 film The Martian was shot here). Wadi Rum is also home to more than 20,000 petroglyphs and 20,000 inscriptions that trace 12,000 years of human history. Bedouin, nomadic Arab people, continue to live in the villages and deserts here, moving from one place to another.