Petra
Checked 31 August 2026 · 6 official sources
AFRICA & MIDDLE EAST · SIESTA SIDE
A Nabataean trading city carved into red sandstone and reached through a narrow gorge. The site is far larger than the photographs suggest, and most of it is walked.
The plan
The Siq and the Treasury
Twenty minutes down a shaded gorge to Al-Khazneh. Gates open at 6am in summer and 6.30am in winter; arrive then and you get it briefly to yourself.
📍 Map & photos · €€€ · Website ↗
The Monastery (Ad Deir)
A long stepped climb up from the basin to the biggest facade at Petra. Two to three hours return, and there is a drinks stall at the top.
The Treasury viewpoint
The official viewpoints opposite Al-Khazneh cost 15 JD on top of your entry ticket. The Al-Khubtha trail up takes two to two and a half hours.
📍 Map & photos · €€ · Website ↗
Tickets
50 JD for one day, 55 for two and 60 for three if you are staying overnight in Jordan, 90 JD if you are not. Under-12s free. A Jordan Pass covers it.
📍 Map & photos · €€€ · Website ↗
Petra Museum
Modern, air-conditioned and just outside the gate. Open 8.30am-8.30pm from April to October and 8.30am-7.30pm the rest of the year.
📍 Map & photos · € · Website ↗
Getting there
JETT coach from Amman
One or two morning departures from the Seventh Circle terminal, around 11 JD one way and roughly three and a half hours. Book online rather than at the gate.
Drive the King's Highway
Slower than the Desert Highway and much better, past Karak castle and across the Wadi Mujib gorge. Allow a full day for it, not three hours.
To and from Wadi Rum
The Rum bus leaves Wadi Musa around 6am for about 10 JD and JETT at 11.30am for around 15 JD. A taxi is roughly 45 JD for the car.
When to go
Best time to go
March-May and September-November: warm enough to walk all day, cool enough to climb to the Monastery.
Cheapest months
December-February. Cold, sometimes snowy, and by far the cheapest time to stay in Wadi Musa.
Priciest & busiest
Easter and October, when Wadi Musa hotels fill and Petra by Night sells out days ahead.
If you've got one day
Morning
Through the gate at opening and straight down the Siq, ahead of the horse carriages and the first coach groups.
Late morning
Past the Street of Facades and the theatre to the Royal Tombs, then up Al-Khubtha if you bought the 15 JD viewpoint ticket.
Lunch
The restaurants at the basin, at the far end of the colonnaded street, or your own food and more water than you think you need.
Afternoon
Climb to the Monastery, wait for the light to swing round onto the facade, then take the long way back out.
Evening
Dinner in Wadi Musa, then the Cave Bar by the gate, or Petra by Night if it falls on a Sunday to Thursday.
Nearby & day trips
Little Petra (Siq al-Barid)
A smaller Nabataean site 15 minutes north of Wadi Musa. The ticket office runs 7am-4pm in summer and 7am-2pm in winter.
The back route to the Monastery
A full-day walk in from Little Petra that arrives at Ad Deir from above. The official licensed-guide rate is 150 JD for six to eight hours.
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