Darna Village Beach Hotel 

I've enjoyed my time at the Darna. Of the beach hostel type hotels ont he main road (Beaudoin Garden, Beaudoin Moon and Darna) Darna is the best. As with all of these places, the beds always leave something to be desired. I usually wake up in the middle of the night with one or both arms having fallen asleep due to the firmness (read: concreteness) of the bed and the following lack of circulation.

The staff of brothers are very helpful and fun to talk to. If you have them prepare you a meal you will not be disappointed. I recommend the Darna if you're looking for a cheap beach-front hotel.

This is a great spot to spend a relaxing weekend. While quite far away from the centre of Aqaba, you have a view over the sea and are just across the road from the beach.

The common area around the pool is equipped with deck chairs, couches, pillows and tents for shade. You can order snacks from the kitchen to enjoy while lounging around. In the evening they sometimes build a fire for everyone to congregate around.

One of the high points is the adjoining dive school. For 30JD each, two dive instructors took us on a fantastic first-time dive around the reefs and a wrecked shipping boat.

There is free wifi which reaches the rooms as well as the poolside area.

The rooms are very basic but the price accurately reflects that (around 15JD per person, including buffet breakfast). The service is good, but quite relaxed so it's the type of place where they encourage you to chill out and feel at home rather than running around after you.

All in all, it's a good base to spend a relaxed and cheap weekend in Aqaba.

Some things to note:

- The pool is closed in winter.

- Soap/shampoo etc is not available in the rooms unless you ask for it.

- The plugs in the rooms are all 3-pin UK-style (even though the fridge had a fat two pin plug which meant we couldn't plug it in!) so don't forget your adaptor!