Umm Qais Resthouse

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Without doubt one of the best parts of visiting the Gadara site is pausing to take refreshment at the Umm Qais Resthouse, perched atop a small hill in the heart of the ruins. With stunning views over the Sea of Galilee, the Golan Heights and the peaks of Lebanon, it’s the perfect venue for lunch or an early dinner.

Located inside a converted Ottoman house, the restaurant is part of a famed consortium of top-notch restaurants in Jordan and offers an impressive seasonal menu highlighting fresh produce, regional wines and locally raised meats. In spring the open-air terrace is surrounded by flowers that look good enough to sprinkle on your salad.

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Nearby Umm Qais attractions

1. Basilica Terrace

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A bit of imagination is needed to reconstruct the colonnaded courtyard of the Basilica Terrace, the western section of which housed a row of shops. The…

2. Museum

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Housed in Beit Russan, the former residence of an Ottoman governor, this modest museum is set around an elegant and tranquil courtyard of fig trees. The…

3. Shops

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The shells of a row of shops remain in the western section of what was once the colonnaded courtyard of the Basilica Terrace.

4. Gadara

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In the northwestern corner of Jordan, in the hills above the Jordan Valley, are the ruins of the Decapolis city of Gadara (now called Umm Qais). The site…

5. West Theatre

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Entering Umm Qais from the south, the first structure of interest is the well-restored and brooding West Theatre. Constructed from black basalt, it once…

6. North Theatre

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The North Theatre is overgrown and missing much of its original black-basalt stones, which were recycled by villagers in other constructions, but it's…

7. Ottoman Village

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Surrounding the museum are the comprehensive ruins of an Ottoman village dating from the 18th and 19th centuries. Two houses, Beit Malkawi (now used as an…

8. Baths

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West along the decumanus maximus are the overgrown public baths. Built in the 4th century, this would once have been an impressive complex of fountains …