Autumn Fiske Uncovers the Ancient Wonders of Jordan, From Little Petra to the Dead Sea

There are destinations that exist comfortably in the imagination, places you have seen in photographs and documentaries and feel certain you understand. Jordan, it turns out, is not one of them. For travel advisor Autumn Fiske, a recent journey through this ancient land dismantled assumptions she did not even know she had, and replaced them with something far more valuable: the kind of first-hand knowledge that transforms a recommendation into a genuine gift for a client.

Fiske had long wanted to visit Jordan. The pull was specific and vivid. "I always wanted to see the treasury at Petra," she explains, referring to the rose-red facade that has become one of the most recognisable images in the world of travel. What she did not anticipate was that it would be a lesser-known trail, one that most visitors never take, that would leave the deepest impression.

The Road Less Walked

While the majority of travellers arrive at Petra and make straight for the iconic Treasury, Fiske chose a different approach entirely. She began at Little Petra, a quieter satellite site of the ancient Nabataean city, and hiked ten kilometres into the main archaeological complex from there. The contrast was striking. Where the Treasury draws crowds, Little Petra barely had anyone there, making it, in Fiske's own assessment, the best spot for photographs and for simply absorbing the atmosphere of a place carved from living rock.

That phrase, carved from living rock, is one Fiske returns to with quiet reverence. The Nabataeans, the ancient civilisation responsible for Petra, did not build their capital so much as sculpt it directly from the surrounding mountains. Fiske found herself captivated by this history, particularly by the fact that Petra was only rediscovered by the Western world just over two hundred years ago, and that archaeologists continue to make new finds there today. The city feels, she suggests, less like a ruin and more like a secret still being told.

A Night Written in Candlelight

If the hike through Little Petra was the surprise of the trip, then Petra by Night was its emotional centrepiece. The experience, offered on select evenings, sees the long canyon approach known as the Siq and the Treasury itself illuminated by thousands of candles placed along the path and around the ancient stones. Fiske is measured and precise when she describes it, which only sharpens the impact of her words. "Photos don't do this justice," she says simply. For an advisor whose clients routinely arrive at decisions based on images, that is no small admission. It is also, perhaps, the most persuasive thing she could say.

Beyond the Rose City

Jordan offered Fiske more than Petra alone. The desert landscape of Wadi Rum delivered a different kind of wonder, vast and cinematic and unlike anything in her previous experience. "The desert of Wadi Rum made me feel like I was on planet Mars," she recalls, and the comparison does not feel like hyperbole. For travellers who love a combination of history and stunning natural scenery, she believes Jordan is an exceptional fit.

At the Dead Sea, Fiske encountered a lesson of a more practical nature. She had been warned about the extraordinary salinity of the water but, as she quickly discovered, being warned and being prepared are two different things. Her advice to future travellers is delivered with the warmth of someone who has genuinely learned it the hard way: do not apply sunscreen immediately before entering the water. If it finds its way into your eyes, the combination with the salt, she notes, is not a pleasant experience. It is precisely the kind of tip that no travel brochure would think to include, and exactly the kind that a trusted advisor exists to share.

Safety, Timing, and Travelling Well

One of the most consistent themes in Fiske's account of Jordan is the warmth of the country itself, both its people and, at certain times of year, its climate. She is clear that the nation is very safe and that locals are super friendly, a reflection of a culture that genuinely values and welcomes its visitors. Tourism is a vital part of Jordanian life, and that reality shapes the quality of the experience for travellers who arrive there.

Timing, however, matters. Local wisdom, which Fiske gathered firsthand, advises against visiting in July and August, when the heat becomes genuinely prohibitive. Travelling in the shoulder seasons allows visitors to experience Jordan's landscapes and sites in far greater comfort.

Fiske is also thoughtful about how her own identity as a traveller shapes her recommendations. Jordan is frequently visited by solo female travellers, and as someone who occasionally travels solo herself, she has developed a clear preference. She recommends exploring Jordan with a small group and a local guide, not because of safety concerns, but because of what such an arrangement unlocks. "By travelling with a local tour operator you get insights and places locals experience that you wouldn't be able to discover on your own," she explains. That access, that layer of local knowledge and lived experience, is something she now considers essential to the Jordan journey she recommends.

Looking Ahead

For Fiske, the rhythm of exploration does not pause. Having already traversed the sands of both Wadi Rum and the Sahara on camelback, she has her sights fixed firmly on a new horizon. Her next bucket list ambition is to ride a camel near the pyramids of Giza, a journey that would place her at another of the world's great ancient crossroads and add yet another chapter of first-hand experience to the expertise she brings back for her clients.

"I've been to Wadi Rum and the Sahara deserts exploring on camel," she says with the easy confidence of someone already planning the next departure. "Now I want to cross off my bucket list riding a camel near the pyramids of Giza." For the travellers fortunate enough to work with her, wherever Fiske goes next, the insights she returns with will be worth waiting for.