I have always dreamed of visiting Petra since I was a little girl, and when I told my sposi he loved the idea and we added it to our bucket list of trips together.
We came from Egypt still processing the entire experience we lived there (if you are curious about that trip, read the blog that is on this same page) and the next stop was Jordan; The plan here was different, we decided to venture out, this time not hiring any tour operator and renting a car from the Queen Alia International Airport where we landed in Amman, the capital of Jordan, doing a road trip to the town of Wadi Musa, where Petra is located. and on the way back we would visit the Dead Sea, which it is worth saying was a passing point, to end up again in Amman, where we would continue our trip.
Before leaving we reviewed many blogs and videos about tourism in Jordan, but we want to tell you our experience and what no one tells you clearly and you realize until you are there:
Entry Visa: you have to validate if your passport requires a visa to enter Jordan, in our case it did apply and could be done Upon Arrival, it had a cost of USD60 per person. Now there is the option to get a visa waiver and it is by purchasing the Jordan Pass (USD99 per person), here is the link: https://jordanpass.jo, which includes the visa and tickets to the main monuments including Petra, we took this option since in the end you save money on tickets to historical place.
In this link you can validate whether your passport requires a visa or not: https://www.iatatravelcentre.com/passport-visa-health-travel-document-requirements.htm
Always connected: we recommend buying the local telephone Sim Card there at the airport, it costs around USD15 per week. Make sure your mobile phone is unlocked beforehand. There are several options, in our case we chose the Zain and it was a very good experience, super friendly and fast processing.
How to get to Petra: we decided to rent a car right there at the Amman airport where we landed, to get around to all the places we wanted and not be subject to any agenda. The rental experience was very easy, fast and safe; We made the reservation online a few months before. You can complete the procedure and drive with your country's license without any problem, as long as it is valid; When we did the research for the trip, some blogs mentioned that you had to translate your license into Arabic, we did it, but they never asked us for it anywhere, yes, the military sometimes stopped us, but when they saw the sticker of the rental company, in our case we used Hertz, they let us go very kindly, they treat tourists very well. The roads are in very good condition and well signposted, get ready to see some very beautiful landscapes. The route we followed was leaving the airport directly towards Wadi Musa, the town where Petra is located.
Cash or credit card: almost in all places such as restaurants, archaeological sites and shops in general you can use a credit/debit card, only in some souvenir places you will need cash, so you can exchange money right there at the airport.
The Hotel in Petra: from the beginning we wanted to have a different experience with the stay and we saw that there were some very nice themed hotels around the Petra experience that connected to the nature of the place. So through Booking.com we booked at the Rock Camp Petra hotel
https://www.rockcamp-petra.com about 30 minutes from the main archaeological site, although it was a little far from Wadi Musa, the whole experience, gastronomy and beautiful topography of the place, in addition to sleeping in a luxury tent with all the comforts, between mountains and desert it was truly priceless.
Arriving at Petra: the town where Petra is located is called Wadi Musa which means “Valley of Moses”, it is small, but on it's main street “Tourist Street” you will find all the facilities you need during your stay, in addition to the typical souvenirs shops. It is very clean, tidy and the people are very friendly, you will love it.
Local Food: We really enjoyed the food in Wadi Musa, we visited some local food restaurants, delicious flavors and very fine service. The ones we liked the most were: My Moms Recipe and Petra Roof Top and Cafe (try the Mansaf and the Maqluba, local dishes made with rice and meat, both delicious), you also can't miss the Cave Bar which is the bar of a hotel it's one of the oldest in the world, is located right at the entrance to the Petra site, the atmosphere is chill and it is literally a cave, additionally it is one of the few places where they sell liquor in the town. You also can't leave without trying the 100% natural juices made from seasonal fruit without mixing water, they are delicious.
PETRA: it is worth every dollar we pay, it is beautiful, you enjoy the long walks (around 10km if you walk it completely), we entered with the Jordan Pass https://jordanpass.jo, you can bring your own water, but along the way you will find stations to relieve fatigue and heat such as juices and hydrating drinks, the entire route takes around 4-5 hours. The highlights to visit are the “Treasury” and the “Monastery”, but throughout the place you find smaller archaeological sites of this beautiful city today a world heritage site and where the Nabataeans lived since the 6th century BC and made it a prosperous city. , definitely a trip back in time that you will never forget. In our case we didn't took any tour guide, but if you want there are certified guides on site that you can hire, but you can only pay in cash. At night there is the option of doing Petra by Night, a show in front of the “Treasury” with local music and video mapping, the truth is we don't recommend it much if you do everything the same day, we fell asleep listening to it due to fatigue, if you do it, try to do it on another day than the one you did “Petra by day” since the fatigue is extreme, additionally the Jordan Pass does NOT include it and you will have to pay it separately and in cash (around USD24 per person) .
The Dead Sea: We had to leave Wadi Musa and took the road towards the Dead Sea, the landscapes you see on the route are beautiful, we were using Waze to find our way and we still got lost because when we saw that it was taking us through alternate we got afraid and tried to get back to the main route, it took us a while to find our way back. Upon arrival, the landscape is impressive from the moment you begin to see it. We wanted to take a couple of photos along the way, but during the season a swarm of flies (https://en.ammonnews.net/article/25843) chased us and we had to return to the car and headed to the hotel we had booked. We chose to stay one night at the Dead Sea Marriott Resort Spa ( https://www.marriott.com/en-us/hotels/qmdjv-dead-sea-marriott-resort-and-spa/overview/ ) to experience the sea and relax a little after the long walks in Petra. We didn't know that this entire strip of hotels are luxury resorts and the destination of many tourists from Jordan and nearby countries. The hotel was beautiful and has direct access to the sea, with all the facilities you need. After a morning at sea and an afternoon of Spa, we were ready to continue our adventure.
The capital Amman: it is located 30 minutes from the Dead Sea, and we took advantage of the fact that we arrived at noon to see a little of the city center, which we found very beautiful and also has some historical sites that you can visit. Then we headed to the hotel that we reserved very close to the airport since the next day we were leaving for Morocco and we had to deliver the car to the rental company. The hotel experience was terrible, it is an airport hotel, basic but very poorly maintained and dirty, but we were already there and had to spend the night. Our recommendation is that you better look for a hotel in Amman since it is relatively close, about 20 minutes away.
We leave: our next stop: Morocco, our trip will be on Turkish Airlines, which by the way we really like using this airline because we can redeem tickets with miles as we are Star Alliance members and the service is quite good.
This was our adventure in Jordan, a dream come true, we would definitely visit this beautiful country again full of history, beautiful landscapes, magical towns and beautiful people.
See you !!!
Comments