In 7 days from Amman to Aqaba
- January 3, 2024
Intro
One of the 7 new wonders of the world and one of the most famous desserts in the world known from various movies, are just two reasons why Jordan should be on your bucket list.
Jordan has been on my bucket list for ages, especially because of Petra and the countless videos and pictures I saw on Instagram.
In January 2022 I finally made it there. My friend and I spent 7 days travelling from Amman to Aqaba with a rented car. And let me tell you, this country is even more beautiful than it looks on Instagram.
Let me take you on our road trip and give you some useful information to plan your perfect trip.
How to get there
Most common would be to fly to Jordan. There are two international airports, which are located in Amman and Aqaba.
If you travel to Israel or Egypt before, you can cross the border over land. There are three border crossings in Israel. The most convenient would be the Yitzhak Rabin Terminal / Wadi Arab Crossing (known for the shortest waiting time, and it’s close to the city of Aqaba).
From Egypt, you have to travel through Israel as well. The border is in Taba (Egypt) and you will enter Aqaba. The crossing is considered easy, because there are no custom officials between Israel and Egypt.
It is also possible to book day trips from Israel to Petra and / or the Wadi Rum dessert.
You can purchase the tourist visa on arrival at the airport or the border. It cost 40 JD per person, but if you enter Jordan in Aqaba the visa will be free (special economic zone).
Best time to visit
Jordan has really hot summer and wet winter seasons. So the best time to visit would be spring (March to May) and autumn (September to November). These months are high season, which means everything is more expensive, from accommodations to rented cars.
The best months to visit is probably May before it gets too hot and November when it slowly gets a bit colder again. The prices for accommodation start dropping in November again, and you have perfect conditions for snorkelling and diving.
If you are travelling on a budget, and you want to avoid big crowds of tourists, you can go during off or low season. I went in January, and we had mostly perfect weather and most important, nearly no other tourist wherever we went. But it’s important to mention, that I went there in the beginning of 2022, so there were also fewer tourists due to Covid.
Personally, I can totally recommend going in January or February, you may not have perfect weather all the time, but seeing Petra and the famous walk there through the red gorge completely empty was totally worth it. Side note though, we had to cut our stay in Petra short, from two nights to one because of an incoming snowstorm. We could have stayed, but chances were high that we would be stuck there for a couple of days.
If you plan on going in winter, especially when you plan on going to the desert (which you should do) pack warm clothes, because it can get below 0 degree during the nights.
The hottest months are June to August, which could make a trip to Petra and the desert a bit more exhausting.
All that said, you can travel Jordan all year around. Every season has its own pros and cons.
How to get around
For us the ideal way to travel Jordan, was with a rented car. Its budget friendly and you are flexible. Driving in Jordan is easy, especially when you are on the desert highway. However, driving in Amman itself is not for the weak, the traffic is insane, and traffic rules seem to be optional (Shoutout to my friend for driving in the city). If you are not a confident driver, maybe it would be better to look for a hotel that is not directly in the city and use public transport to get into the city.
Friendly reminder to stick to the max speed of 120 on the highway, because we got pulled over by the police a couple of hours after we landed. They were nice, and the speeding tickets are not too expensive but still, stick to the limit. (Eventually we got pulled over a second time in the end of our trip).
If you don’t want to rent your own car, you can use public transportation. There are buses, which connect all bigger towns. Or you can take a taxi.
Travel route
We went from Amman to Aqaba in 7 days. For us, this was enough time to visit everything we wanted, without having to rush.
Note: We flew with EasyJet to and from Aqaba, because that was the cheapest option at the time from Berlin. At the airport we picked up the rented car and drove 4 hours to Amman.
Tip: Get the Jordan Pass. It grants you entry to more than 40 attractions. There are three different options, so you can choose what suits you best. If you stay more than three nights in the country and get the Jordan pass, it includes your visa fee. You can find all information and prices here: https://www.jordanpass.jo/
So let’s get started….
Day 1–3: Amman
We stayed in the Nomad Hotel, Amman. You can choose between private rooms or dorms with 4 or 6 beds, and breakfast is included. The location is perfect, next to the rainbow street, with many restaurants and bars. I can totally recommend staying there.
We arrived late in the evening on our first day, so we just went out for a quick dinner and then back to the hotel.
The second day we spent exploring the city.
- First we went to the famous Citadel, which is a must. The view over the city is amazing. After that, we wandered to the Souks and got lost there for hours. It’s the perfect place to buy some souvenirs, from spices to jewellery.
- In the afternoon we went to the ancient city of Jerash (45km drive from Amman). Known to be the largest Roman site in the country. You can find theatres, temples and ceremonial gates there and wander around for a couple of hours.
We ended the day in the rainbow street, with delicious food and some drinks.
Day 3–4: Dead Sea
From Amman, it took us a bit more than one hour to get to the Dead Sea.
There are many beautiful hotels next to the Dead Sea in different price ranges.
(During our stay in 2022 most of the were closed due to Covid).
Now to the main activity:
Rub your face and body with the famous mud, which among other things helps with dry or itchy skin, and then go float around in the Dead Sea. Be careful when you enter the water, it can be very slippery, and most important DON’T get water in your eyes or mouth.
This is probably more fun during warmer months, but we went into the water nevertheless. Even though it was more of a quick dip than a relaxed float.
For dinner, we went to the Panorama Dead Sea Complex. The dinner was delicious and you have an amazing view over the Dead Sea.
Day 4-5: Petra
Next Stop, Petra!
(About a 3 hour drive from the Dead Sea)
We stayed again in a Nomad Hostel (same as in Amman) and we loved it. You can choose between private rooms and dorms, breakfast is included and the staff is amazing.
NOTE: Originally we planned to stay two nights in Petra, but because of an incoming snowstorm we decided to leave after the first night, because of the risk to get stuck there for a couple of days.
So with that in mind, we explored as much as we can of ancient Petra in one day. It was a long and exhausting day, but we made it from the most famous Treasury to the Monastery.
If you have enough time, I would recommend staying two nights in Petra, it’s definitely worth it.
So here is how we managed to see it all:
Go early in the morning. As mentioned in the beginning, we went there during January (and Covid), and we were almost alone on the famous walk through the red gorge to the treasury. Also, when we reached the treasury, there were only a handful of other people around. This is most definitely a huge advantage when you go off season!
You don’t need a guide if you just want to see the Treasury BUT there is a stunning view where you can see it from above and to get there you definitely need one of the guides because they need to help you climb it (takes 5 to 10 minutes).
The guides are everywhere from the entrance to the main site, and they will come to you (we could pay as much as we wanted in the end – maybe that’s different during high season, and they ask for a price).
He helped us climb to the viewpoint (there were just two other people up there), and we had tea in a bedouins tent. Bonus: He took amazing pictures of us from the platform! Just trust the process, they know what they do.
After that, we wanted to go directly to the Monastery. (If you start from the main entrance, there is another way to the Monastery).
Here you have two options: you can ask your guide to take you there (cost more money) or you can go on your own. We met a couple up there and decided to go all together. BUT the guy could speak Arabic, so he could ask the people who live in the mountains for directions. It’s a bit risky because you are just hiking and sometimes climbing in the middle of nowhere. So the safe option would be to take a guide or go back down and go the “official way”.
We hiked for about 5 or 6 hours and got to the Monastery (be prepared you have to climb maaaaany steps to get there) but it was sooo worth it. We arrived shortly before sunset and the view was stunning. And again nearly no other tourist and mostly locals were there.
We had to make our way back to the entrance in the dark, and we were completely exhausted when we arrived in our hostel, but it was totally worth it.
The bottom line is, Petra is even more stunning than the pictures on Instagram suggest, and it’s worth all the hype.
If you can, stay two nights but if you are in a hurry, it’s manageable to do it all in one day.
We had to make our way back to the entrance in the dark, and we were completely exhausted when we arrived in our hostel, but it was totally worth it.
The bottom line is, Petra is even more stunning than the pictures on Instagram suggest, and it’s worth all the hype.
If you can, stay two nights but if you are in a hurry, it’s manageable to do it all in one day.
Day 5-6: Wadi Rum dessert
From Petra, it’s a two-hour drive to the famous Wadi Rum dessert. It gained even more popularity thanks to the Dunes movies. And you shouldn’t skip this place on your visit to Jordan.
You can go there just for a day trip or stay a one or more nights in the dessert. There are plenty of options for accommodation, from budget friendly tents to glamping in the famous space pods with glass ceilings.
You can’t enter the desert on your own, so you have to park in the Rum Village. If you booked your tour/accommodation in advance, you will be picked up there.
We were a group of four and didn’t book our accommodation in advance and arranged everything in the village, however if you go in high season it’s probably better to book something in advance.
Our accommodation included, breakfast and dinner, and a half day Jeep-tour through the dessert. They offer various stops, from which you can choose.
Because we just stayed one night, we started with our Jeep tour before we got to our camp.
We stopped at multiple points, including huge dunes for sandboaring, a gorge, shooting locations for the dunes movie and the famous rock window.
Aaaand we had the cutest encounters with camels and even saw a couple of babies. We watched the sunset and then went to our camp. The whole tour took about 5 hours.
Our camp was pretty basic, with small tents for the guests and one bigger tent for breakfast and dinner, and toilets and showers. They normally provide a traditional Bedouin dinner, where they cook the food in the ground. Unfortunately, when we were there, the ground was too cold. So instead we got typical Jordan food, which was delicious.
One reason why you should consider sleeping in the desert, are the stars. As soon as it’s completely dark, the night sky looks amazing. I’ve never seen so many stars before.
If you are in the desert in winter like us, don’t forget to bring warm clothes. It can get to 0 degree during the night. But we each had about 10 blankets on our beds and slept sooo good.
The next morning we had breakfast and then our host brought us back to the village.
If you decide to stay multiple days, you won’t get bored. The camps offer multiple Jeep-tours with all kinds of stops, you can take a camel ride or just enjoy the quiet of the desert in your camp.
Day 6-7: Aqaba
After an hour drive, we arrived at our final destination: Aqaba.
It’s a small town by the Red Sea with beautiful beaches. So if you fancy a dive, this would be a great location.
In the city you can find small markets, traditional Hammams and sooo many good restaurants.
We were super lucky with the weather and spent the day at the beach and enjoyed the sun before we had to fly back home.