My cousins highly recommended an overnight visit to Wadi Rum, so when I visited in March 2015, I doubled down and spent two nights in the Jordanian desert. I was greeted by the film set for "The Martian" at the park entrance, but inside the park I was soon transported to the historical setting of Lawrence of Arabia's travels. The Bedouin tour company I traveled with provided a fantastic overview of Wadi Rum on the first day, with visits to petroglyphs and Lawrence's spring, desert canyon hikes, rock bridge climbs, and sandboarding down a giant sand dune. I signed up for a camel ride on the second day, but while I enjoy camel riding for short distances, I was a bit sore after five hours. Nevertheless, the landscape I traveled through was awe-inspiring. I stayed in a Bedouin camp both nights, and the food and opportunities to learn about Bedouin life were amazing. I love stargazing, and Wadi Rum offers some of the best night skies I've seen in my travels. Even more impressive were the sunrises and sunsets, which painted the rock formations in brilliant shades of red and orange. Wadi Rum is a must-see World Heritage Site in Jordan.

Logistics: Private transportation is the best way to reach Wadi Rum. I highly recommend taking a Bedouin tour of the site, and, time-permitting, staying overnight at least one night in the desert.