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The Kings’ Highway
For centuries the Kings’ Highway was the
principal route for traders travelling between
Arabia and the Levant. It hugs the edge of the
Great Rift Valley, with the Dead Sea filling the
bottom of this huge split in the earth. The
highway crosses countless river beds and the
availability of water made this a key trade route.
These days, most heavy traffic takes the Desert
Highway, leaving the winding switchbacks,
dramatic vistas, castles and churches to the
intrepid visitor. Some of the sights of the Kings’
Highway can be visited on a drive between
Amman and Petra but a return journey on the
same route may be necessary to visit them all.
Kings’ Highway at Wadi Mujib
Mount Nebo
Said to be the spot from which Moses viewed
the Holy Land and where tradition has it he
was later buried, Mount Nebo is an important
place for Christian pilgrimage. A church has
existed on this site since 393 AD and although
it has been much altered and restored since
then, it still houses some mosaics which are
around 1,500 years old. Mount Nebo is the
perfect place to stop on the Kings’ Highway for
a view over the Holy Land. On clear days, the
towns of Jericho and Jerusalem can be made
out in the distance, across the Jordan Valley
and the Dead Sea.
Holy Land mosaic, Madaba
Mount Nebo
Madaba
Madaba, a town at the northern end of the
Kings’ Highway, has a strong Christian heritage,
with numerous churches dotted around its
quiet, charming streets. The town is best known
for the fine examples of Byzantine-era mosaics,
the most famous of which is a map from the
6th century depicting the Holy Land. It is easily
explored on a walking tour, taking in all the
churches and the archaeological park, which is
an open-air museum.
Mukawir
A short drive off the Kings’ Highway, on a lonely
pinnacle overlooking the Dead Sea, is the castle
of Mukawir. It was the site of Herod’s Palace,
where Salome asked for the head of John the
Baptist as a reward for her dancing, and also a
centre of resistance to Rome during the First
Jewish Revolt. After the steep climb up to the
castle you are rewarded with fantastic views
over the surrounding hills. The outline of the
camps and even the siege ramp built by the
Romans to capture Mukawir can still be seen.
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