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Food tours in Wadi Rum: what to eat and which tour to book
Wadi Rum is a protected desert in southern Jordan, not a town, so eating here means eating at a Bedouin camp. Almost every stay includes dinner and breakfast, and the dinner most camps are proud of is zarb: chicken or lamb with vegetables and rice cooked for a couple of hours in a sealed pit of hot coals under the sand, then dug up in front of the guests. Around it come salads, hummus, flatbread and endless glasses of sweet sage tea and cardamom coffee. Rum Village at the edge of the protected area has a few small shops and cafés; for markets and a wider choice, Aqaba is about an hour's drive away.
Use this page to know what to expect at the camp table, what to ask before booking and roughly what it costs in Jordanian dinars. The tours shown are real GetYourGuide listings, with prices as seen when we checked; confirm what meals are included and the pick-up point on the booking page before you pay.
What to eat in Wadi Rum
| Dish | What it is | Where to eat it | Typical price* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zarb زرب (zarb) | Bedouin pit barbecue: chicken or lamb, potatoes, onions, carrots and sometimes rice are stacked on a metal rack, lowered into a pit with hot coals, sealed with a lid and sand, and left to cook for a couple of hours. The meat comes out tender and smoky. | Dinner at most Wadi Rum camps; ask when booking whether zarb is cooked every night or only on some nights. | usually included in a half-board camp stay; otherwise roughly JD 10–20 (about €13–26) for dinner |
| Mansaf منسف (mansaf) | Jordan's national dish: lamb cooked in a sauce of jameed (dried fermented yoghurt), served over rice and thin bread with almonds or pine nuts. Traditionally eaten from a shared tray at gatherings. | Some camps cook it on request or for groups; restaurants in Aqaba and in towns on the way to Petra serve it more reliably. | roughly JD 7–12 (about €9–16) a portion in a restaurant |
| Maqluba مقلوبة (maqluba) | 'Upside-down' pot of rice with chicken or lamb and fried vegetables such as aubergine and cauliflower, cooked together and flipped onto a tray to serve. | Some camps serve it instead of zarb on certain nights; common in family restaurants across Jordan. | roughly JD 5–10 (about €6–13) a portion in a restaurant |
| Sage tea and Bedouin coffee شاي بالميرمية / قهوة عربية (shai bil maramiya / gahwa) | Very sweet black tea brewed with sage, offered as a welcome over and over, and bitter Arabic coffee spiced with cardamom, poured into small cups. Shaking the cup gently from side to side signals you've had enough coffee. | Every camp and every jeep stop in the desert. | free with your stay or tour; about JD 1 in a village café |
| Tomato fry-up قلاية بندورة (galayet bandora) | Tomatoes fried down in olive oil with garlic and chilli, scooped up with bread. A simple Bedouin and rural Jordanian dish often cooked over the fire on jeep-tour lunch stops. | Lunch on full-day jeep tours and at some camps. | included in most full-day tours |
| Breakfast spread with flatbread خبز / حمص / فول / زعتر (khubz, hummus, ful, za'atar) | A typical camp breakfast: flatbread, hummus, ful (stewed fava beans), labneh, olives, za'atar with olive oil, boiled eggs, jam and tea. | All camps; falafel and hummus shops in Rum Village and Aqaba. | included with half-board camp stays |
| Desert bread baked in the embers عربود (arbood) | A thick, unleavened bread some Bedouin cooks make by burying the dough in hot ashes and sand, then knocking off the ash before eating. Not every camp makes it, so treat it as a bonus. | Ask your camp or jeep guide whether they bake it; most likely on overnight desert trips. | included where offered |
Where to eat: markets and neighbourhoods
Bedouin camps inside the protected area
Where almost all meals in Wadi Rum happen. Camps range from simple goat-hair tents with shared bathrooms to 'bubble' and dome tents with private facilities; food quality varies more by camp than by price.
Rum Village
The Bedouin village just inside the protected area, where most jeep tours start. A few grocery shops, small cafés and restaurants serve simple meals, tea and falafel, and are useful for water and snacks.
Wadi Rum Visitor Centre
The entry point where you pay or show your Jordan Pass, with a café and shop; a last chance for snacks before the desert.
Aqaba
Jordan's port city, about an hour away, with the nearest real food streets: falafel and shawarma shops, fish restaurants and a souq for spices and sweets.
Food tours in Wadi Rum compared
Every tour below is a real listing on GetYourGuide or Viator, checked on 2 Oct 2026. Prices move with season and group size, so treat them as a guide and confirm on the booking page.
| Tour | Length | Price* | Group | Best for | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wadi Rum: Bedouin Cooking Workshop, Zarb & Sunset Feast | 5 - 8 hours | from €53 per person | max 8 | Travellers who want to cook the dishes again at home; easiest option for dietary needs, since you control the ingredients. | Check dates |
| Wadi Rum: 9 Hour Jeep Tour Pass, Camel, Sandbording & Lunch | 9 hours | from €56 per person | — | First-timers who want a broad tasting of the classics with a local guide. | Check dates |
| Wadi Rum:Full Day Tour Lunch Sand boarding Camel Ride Sunset | 1 day | from €88 per person | private | Couples, families or friends who want the route and pace set around them. | Check dates |
| Wadi Rum: Full-Day Jeep Tour with Lunch | 1 day | from €65 per person | — | First-timers who want a broad tasting of the classics with a local guide. | Check dates |
| Wadi Rum: 4x4 Desert Adventure with Lunch and Tea | 9 hours | from €59 per person | — | First-timers who want a broad tasting of the classics with a local guide. | Check dates |
Wadi Rum: Bedouin Cooking Workshop, Zarb & Sunset Feast
On GetYourGuide · run by Wadi Rum Best Tours
- Length
- 5 - 8 hours
- Price
- from €53 per person
- Group size
- max 8
- Included
- Pickup and drop-off at the Wadi Rum Rest House Hands-on Bedouin cooking workshop with a local Bedouin host Bake your own arbood bread in the sand Prepare and taste a traditional zarb Bedouin tea and coffee A full shar…
- Suits
- Travellers who want to cook the dishes again at home; easiest option for dietary needs, since you control the ingredients.
- Starts
- *
Wadi Rum: 9 Hour Jeep Tour Pass, Camel, Sandbording & Lunch
On GetYourGuide · run by Wadi Rum Fire Camp
- Length
- 9 hours
- Price
- from €56 per person
- Rating
- 4.8 ★ from 34 reviews (on 3 Oct 2026)
- Suits
- First-timers who want a broad tasting of the classics with a local guide.
Wadi Rum:Full Day Tour Lunch Sand boarding Camel Ride Sunset
On GetYourGuide · run by Rozana Bedouin Camp
- Length
- 1 day
- Price
- from €88 per person
- Rating
- 5.0 ★ from 31 reviews (on 3 Oct 2026)
- Group size
- private
- Suits
- Couples, families or friends who want the route and pace set around them.
Wadi Rum: Full-Day Jeep Tour with Lunch
On GetYourGuide · run by See Wadi Rum
- Length
- 1 day
- Price
- from €65 per person
- Rating
- 5.0 ★ from 2 reviews (on 3 Oct 2026)
- Included
- Full-day tour of Wadi Rum 4x4 jeep ride with a local Bedouin guide Visit to Lawrence Spring, Khazali Canyon, and ancient inscriptions Climb red sand dunes and Um Fruth Rock Bridge Bedouin-style lunch Mint tea Personal…
- Suits
- First-timers who want a broad tasting of the classics with a local guide.
- Starts
- Wadi Rum Village, Jordan
Wadi Rum: 4x4 Desert Adventure with Lunch and Tea
On GetYourGuide · run by Rakan wadi rum tours
- Length
- 9 hours
- Price
- from €59 per person
- Included
- Full-day desert tour in a 4x4 Visit to Ain Abu Aineh (Lawrence Spring) Climb the Red Sand Dune Explore Khazali Canyon for ancient inscriptions View from Lawrence House and Small Arch Prepared lunch in the shade Visit…
- Suits
- First-timers who want a broad tasting of the classics with a local guide.
Some links on this page are partner links. If you book through them TonyPlan earns a small commission — the price you pay is exactly the same.
Street food, sit-down or a cooking class?
Street food
There is essentially no street food in the desert itself. In Rum Village and especially in Aqaba you'll find falafel, shawarma, hummus and ful shops, which are cheap, quick and eaten by locals.
Sit-down meals
The sit-down meal is the camp dinner: a buffet or shared trays served in a communal tent, often followed by tea around the fire and sometimes music. Meal times are set by the camp, typically dinner around 19:30–20:30 and breakfast around 7:00–8:00.
Cooking classes
Formal cooking classes are rare in Wadi Rum. What you can usually do is watch or help with the zarb, bread and tea at your camp; ask when booking. For a proper Jordanian cooking class, Petra (Wadi Musa) and Amman have more options.
How much to budget for food
| Style | Per person, per day* |
|---|---|
| Budget (street food, markets) | JD 15–25 (about €20–33): meals included in a basic half-board camp, plus snacks and water |
| Mid-range (one sit-down meal a day) | JD 30–50 (about €40–65): mid-range camp with dinner and breakfast, plus a jeep-tour lunch |
| Splurge (tasting menus, wine) | JD 80+ (about €105+): luxury dome camp with dinner, breakfast and private meals |
Vegetarian, halal and gluten-free
Vegetarian & vegan: Easy to arrange if you say so when booking: camps routinely make vegetable zarb or extra salads, hummus, rice and potatoes. Vegan is possible but tell the camp in advance, since yoghurt and butter are common.
Halal: Meat in Jordan is halal by default. Alcohol is not served at many camps and is rarely sold in Rum Village; some upmarket camps allow or sell it, so ask if it matters to you either way.
Gluten-free: Rice, zarb meat and vegetables, salads and hummus are usually fine, but bread is at the centre of every meal and some dishes are thickened or cooked alongside bread. Tell the camp ahead of time; awareness of coeliac disease is limited.
Food scams and tourist traps to avoid
- Touts in Aqaba, Wadi Musa or at the visitor centre selling a 'cheap Bedouin camp' that turns out to be far from the advertised place, with meals and transport charged extra. Book a camp with recent reviews directly or through a known platform, and confirm in writing that dinner, breakfast and transfers from the visitor centre or Rum Village are included.
- Assuming zarb is on every night and finding a cold buffet instead. Ask the camp which nights zarb is cooked and what dinner includes before you book.
- Bottled water and soft drinks at camps priced well above shop prices. Buy large bottles of water and snacks in Rum Village or Aqaba before heading into the desert.
- Jeep 'tours' that are mostly shopping stops at souvenir tents. Ask for the list of sites before you pay, and agree in advance whether lunch is included.
Top tours & activities in Wadi Rum
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Staying near the markets saves time and taxi money — most food tours start in the old centre.
Common questions
Are meals included at Wadi Rum camps?
Most camps sell stays as half-board, with dinner and breakfast included, because there is nowhere else to eat inside the protected area. Lunch is usually only included on full-day jeep tours. Always check: some budget deals list a cheap bed price and add meals later. Confirm whether water and tea are free.
What is zarb and is it really cooked underground?
Zarb is a Bedouin pit barbecue: meat and vegetables are lowered on a rack into a pit with hot coals, sealed with a lid and sand, and cooked for a couple of hours. At many camps the 'unearthing' happens in front of guests before dinner. Ask whether your camp cooks it nightly, since some only do it on certain nights or for larger groups.
Can I drink alcohol in Wadi Rum?
Wadi Rum is a conservative Bedouin area. Many camps do not serve alcohol, and Rum Village shops rarely sell it. Some higher-end camps allow it or have a bar. If you want a drink, buy it in Aqaba or Amman and ask the camp beforehand whether bringing it is acceptable.
Do I need to tip in Wadi Rum?
Tipping jeep drivers and camp staff is customary in Jordan. Roughly JD 5–10 per group for a jeep driver on a full day, and a few dinars for camp staff, are common; give more for exceptional service. In restaurants in Aqaba, about 10% is normal if no service charge is on the bill.
Is the food safe to eat?
Camp food is generally freshly cooked and eaten hot, which is low-risk. Drink bottled or filtered water rather than tap water, and be a little careful with salads if your stomach is sensitive. Bring any medicine you may need, since the nearest pharmacies are in Rum Village (limited) or Aqaba.
How much should I budget for food?
In practice most of your food is inside the camp price. A basic camp with dinner and breakfast often costs roughly JD 25–45 per person, and luxury domes far more. Add a few dinars for water and snacks, about JD 5–10 if lunch isn't included in your tour, and tips for drivers and staff.
* Prices are approximate, gathered on 2 Oct 2026 from menus, markets and the booking pages linked above. They change with season and exchange rates.