Bedouin Nights: Sleeping in the Wadi Rum Desert

Overnight in the Wadi Rum desert

The sky is turning a softer shade of blue. The gaze from the sun is no longer obvious, there are no clouds, no rolling breezes, but the air begins to feel light and the sand is turning amber. It’s golden hour in Wadi Rum.

The sun hasn’t stopped beating down all day, so I’m thankful for the change in temperature as evening approaches.

I’m sitting on top of a rose-coloured sand dune, drawing circles in the sand with my fingertips. I’ve never been anywhere like this before, and it doesn’t quite feel real. 

For miles and miles, it’s just me, my friends, and our bedouin guide. The feeling of remoteness is something I seek but rarely find. Here, I’ve got the feeling.

We’re completely surrounded by waves of desert, and a range of huge canyons serve as a backdrop in the distance. Our guide informs us that we’ll need to leave soon so we can watch the sunset from somewhere special.

Watching the sunset across Wadi Rum

It’s 6: 45pm, and we head back down to the camp where we’re staying for the night. It’s time to head out on the jeep to find the best place in Wadi Rum to watch the sunset.

It’s a bumpy ride across the sand dunes. We arrive. There’s only a small group of us. We climb up on a rock formation that stretches out of the sand like a stage, and we take a seat.

It’s the kind of beauty that could render anyone speechless. Talking would spoilt it, so we remain silent, waiting for the sun to set.

Soon enough, the sky unwinds under a globe of blazing orange and red for just a few minutes. The canyons, which were yellow-ish through the day, transformed to amber, before turning into a silhouette.

I turn to look at my friend. Her skin is illuminating. If only all lighting was like this.

Now the sun starts to creep down closer to the horizon. Everyone seems to be holding their breath until the sun falls behind the canyon, and only a glowing trace can be seen as the sky begins to turn darker and darker.

Dinner at Bedouin Lifestyle Camp

Back at our camp we all sit around a fire and drink ‘Bedouin tea’ that has a hint of sage to it. The Jordanian hospitality is impeccable so as soon as my drink is finished, my glass is full again.

We exchange stories and find out more about each other. We are a very eclectic group, coming from Germany, Romania, France, England and Australia.

The Bedouins build a camp fire and sing in Arabic the tunes of their motherland. They encourage us to dance around fire, but the sand is so thick and loose that instead of spiralling gracefully, we wobble discordantly as the sand moves beneath our feet.

Dinner prepared using a zarb

Shortly after, one of the bedouins announces that dinner is ready. We all walk over to his location like hungry hyenas awaiting fresh meat.

We gather in a circle around a little mount of sand. Where’s the food? Then I realise it’s been cooking underneath the sand using traditional bedouin methods.

The food is prepared by cooking it in a ‘zarb’, which is an underground oven covered with sand. It’s been slowly cooking for nearly two hours.

We start shovelling the sand away and when the lid is lifted an aroma of spice lifts from the ground.

We fill our stomachs to the brim with chicken, potatoes, lentils, and salad. We eat until there’s no room left to eat, and then sprawl ourselves horizontally across the ground feeling ten pounds heavier.

There’s nothing left to do but stare up at the Milky Way in bliss. Everywhere I looked there were stars.

 We cannot move, but only look upwards.

Accommodation in Wadi Rum

I stayed overnight in Wadi Rum at Bedouin Lifestyle Camp which situated in a remote area tucked away behind a great big canyon. It was a truly unforgettable experience and I’d recommend this place to anyone planning a trip to Jordan.

→ Book a night at Bedouin Lifestyle Camp

For more information about staying at Bedouin Lifestyle Camp read my detail post here.

Additional Jordan travel guides

• How to Spend One Week in Jordan – Travel Itinerary  
• Petra’s One Mile Wonder: From the Siq to the Treasury
• Floating in the Dead Sea
• Amman: I Grew to Love You But You Didn’t Make it Easy 
• Adventure Through Little Petra and Beyond

Would you like to sleep overnight in Wadi Rum?