Due to the disaster at Wadi Rum we had to spend an extra night in Aqaba. Fortunately, we were able to get the extra night at Hotel Prestige, the place SM booked for Aqaba. Also, unfortunately we were able to get the extra night at Hotel Prestige, the place SM booked for Aqaba.
Before I go into our stay at this hotel a little background. SM booked all the hotels for this trip. I offered to do so but he knows that it’s uber stressful and being the awesome hubster he is he was, like, “No, baby. With the move and everything you already have a lot on your plate. Let me do this.” Also, he was aware that if I book it will probably cost, just a little, more. (It will also be nicer.) But he talked this place up to the extent that I was expecting, well, better.
That, however, is not the fault of the hotel. As I have mentioned, the Kingdom of Jordan is on the cusp of an inflation crisis meaning that you pay more for less. Our price point for this hotel was under 30JD.
The Good
Decent location. About ten minutes or less walk to the waterfront and most attractions. It’s a solid BBC, basic but (mostly) clean. The family room was spacious, had a balcony, and kinda sorta almost view of the sea. There is free parking just down the street and the young man at reception was quite helpful, even carrying the bags up the stairs.
The bad
More neutral than bad, but at this price point don’t expect daily cleaning. Speaking of clean, it’s okay. Don’t move the furniture. It feels like this place, despite some questionable interior decorating choices, used to be much nicer than it currently aspires to be. Nicer things often need more maintenance than those that are cheaper. That maintenance is no longer provided.
Because we spent the unexpected night our first room was a quick prep and it showed. It was also right off reception. Reception stayed busy. All. Night. Long. While my husband and kid were unbothered it affected my sleep. Avoid this room if you can.
No elevator. The hotel is on the second, third, and fourth floors. There was no help getting our bags down the stairs. (Though we did not ask. The poor lad running reception had to be awakened for our check out. It seemed like there was just the one guy.)
The first night we went down to the beach in town. This was a Friday night. It was super crowded with locals and, mostly more conservative Muslim, tourists. This is not the place to strip down to your bikini and jump in the water. As the water is very busy with glass bottom, fishing, and other boats zipping in and out willy nilly, I’d avoid this area for water frolic entirely.
But it’s great for enjoying the sunset and for people watching. There are plenty of places to buy whatever you need. And there is a small playground which almost made LB forgive us the lack of camels.
We ate at Rovers Return English Pub where we had our first alcoholic beverages of the trip, one of the two beers the pub had on tap.
The good
The food was hot, the beer cold, and we had few complaints. I had the fish and chips because of course I did. Truth. I really like fish and chips and they are surprisingly easy to screw up. This was not particularly authentic but they tasted good, so, whatever. SM had the burger with a taco salad side. It was really good. Jordanians are good with meat.
The bad(?)
The portions were ridiculously oversized. They called them American sized but even in the US what they brought out would have been considered platters rather than plates. The three of us could have ordered one dish and still ended up with food left on the plate. Just something to keep in mind.
There were only two beers on tap. Amstel and Petra. At an English style pub. Come on, people!
We also ended up at McDonald’s. Because.
It’s McDonald’s. But note that the wifi requires a phone number for authentication to access.
We spent the whole of the next day at Berenice Beach Club. Family friendly and right on the sea it was a nice, relaxing, much needed day for all of us. The food was decent and not too overpriced, which is a good thing because they don’t let you bring in anything consumable except for water. I assume they would also make an exception for baby food. The menu was mostly basic international with a mezze set and a mixed grill thrown in. Alcohol is served. There are three pools: one adults only, another for families, and a wading pool for wee babes like our Little Bit. Bikinis welcome.
The good news is there is an active stone coral reef right off shore. Snorkel sets, among other things, available for rental and/or purchase. The bad news is that between the hot, pebbly sand of the beach and the sharp edges of the coral it is imperative that you bring along shoes that can me worn in an out of the water. My flip flops did not survive. This is pretty much the only situation in which you will hear me recommending Crocs.
The beach is divided into two sections, active and relaxing. If you choose the active side expect to be approached by one of the nubile Ukrainian women on staff and cajoled into a game or dance contest. Natalya, one of the young women on duty during our visit, became a favorite of LBs and eventually convinced LB to compete, along with the rest of our family, in a dart game. We were eliminated fairly quickly (I blame the wind!) but managed to enjoy the loss thoroughly.
We also went to the aquarium. It’s super tiny and, even at a slow meander, you might kill a whole half hour here. That said it’s definitely interesting and Little Bit enjoyed it. Especially after a few other families showed up and she was able to play with the kids. A game of chase requires no shared language.