Highlights of Grand Tour of the Middle East

A trek to the summit of Mount Sinai is a relatively short and easy climb, taking no more than three hours to ascend. The views from the top over the Sinai mountains are spectacular though, especially at sunset or sunrise when the light casts brilliant colours over the desert. The ascent is a steep climb along the camel path followed by 750 stone steps to the summit. The descent can be along the same route or via the 3,000 'Steps of Repentance'.

Red Sea

The Red Sea is one of the premier locations in the world for diving and snorkelling. In addition to the fascinating coral reefs and colourful marine life to discover underwater, the resorts along the Red Sea offer pristine golden beaches to relax on and warm, tropical waters to swim in. The main locations are Sharm el Sheikh, Dahab and Ras Mohammed on the Sinai Peninsula and Hurghada and El Gouna on the mainland.

Wadi Rum

A trip to Wadi Rum is one of the quintessential travel experiences in Jordan. This is an area of stunning desert scenery with sand dunes mixing with dramatic sandstone mountains, narrow gorges, natural arches, towering cliffs, ramps, massive landslides and caverns. Travelling with Bedouin guides who still forge a nomadic existence in the area, camping overnight in Wadi Rum is essential - to see the effect of sunset on the colours of the sandstone rocks and sleep out under the clear, star-filled sky. It was here that Lawrence of Arabia assembled the Arab tribes for the attack on Aqaba in the First World War and it also provided the location for the film. A camel trek through the wadi will transport you back to the time of Lawrence and complete the desert experience. The site also includes some 25,000 rock carvings and 20,000 inscriptions which testify to 12,000 years of human occupation.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Wadi Rum Protected Area

Dead Sea - Jordan

Floating in the Dead Sea is one of travel's memorable experiences. The sea, 400 metres below sea level and with 33% salt (normal sea water has 3-4%), is impossible to sink in. The water and the soft, sulphurous black mud you can pick up underneath is said to have remarkable healing powers.

Cappadocia

One of Turkey's most iconic sights is the lunar like landscape of Cappadocia. Formed by wind and water erosion of tuft (soft compacted volcanic ash), the landscape comprises bizarre rock formations shaped like pillars, cones, towers, domes and pyramids, some up to 40 metres high. For centuries man has carved dwellings, churches, troglodyte villages and even entire subterranean cities into these rocks, particularly Byzantine monks and hermits from the 4th century onwards. Many of the rock churches in the Göreme Valley contain richly decorated religious frescoes from the post-iconoclastic period (10th-12th centuries). The underground cities of Kaymakli and Derinkuyu, built by Christians seeking refuge from Arab oppression, are fascinating places to explore with several levels of tunnels extending for many kilometres.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia

Pamukkale and Ruins at Hierapolis

Pamukkale, meaning 'cotton castle' in Turkish, is a bizarre and spectacular natural phenomenon where mineral-laden hot spring waters have created a landscape of petrified waterfalls, mineral forests and a cascade of terraced pools. The waters have supposed therapeutic qualities that have been used since Roman times. The ruins of the thermal spa of Hierapolis are close to Pamukkale. Founded in the 2nd century BC by the King of Pergamon, it soon came under Roman control and prospered as a cosmopolitan city. Among the ruins are a theatre, temple, monumental fountain, bath, basilica and necropolis.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Hierapolis-Pamukkale