In addition to Amman's Citadel, Jordan is a castle lover's paradise with romance and intrigue never more than a short trip away. Along the ancient route of King's Highway, two of the greatest Crusader castles are Qal'at al Karak, east of the Dead Sea, and Qal'at ash Shawbak, south of the Dead Sea. Built to protect the eastern flank of the Latin Kingdom and its trade routes to the Red Sea, both castles fell to Saladin in 1188 and 1189 respectively.

Qal'at ar Rabad_the castle of 'Ajlun_overlooking the Jordan Valley north of Amman, was built by the Ayyubid Arabs to defend against the invaders from the west. The hulking remains of these once powerful citadels await the eager explorer with their mighty military exteriors, their dark inner passageways, and their mute testimony to the struggles for power so familiar to this historic land.

Moving east, one comes upon the Umayyad desert castles, built in the 7th and 8thC AD as retreats from the pressures of city life, where they could hunt and race their arab horses: Qasr al Harana(Kharana), a fortress like castle with heavy stone walls, Qusayr 'Amra, noted for its frescos, a palace of pleasure with triple roofed halls, siesta rooms and steam baths, Qal'at al Azrak, has much older military associations including a Roman fortress built of black basalt slabs. Among the desert castles are also Qasr at Tuba (the largest of the Umayyad palaces), Qasr al Mushatta, Qasr al Hallabat, Qasr al Qastal, and Hammam as Sarah. Each castle is a unique and splendid remnant of medieval Arab architecture.

Another important site, on the edge of the eastern desert, is Umm al Jimal. A somber ruin built from indigenous black basalt. A thriving Nabetean town, Umm al Jimal continued to be important in Roman, early Christian and Umayyad times.