Jordan: A Concise 8-Day Itinerary
Jordan has plenty to offer: ancient cities hidden to the rest of the world, palaces that were used by early Islamic caliphs, Roman ruins and both seas to swim in, or where you can sit back and float.
Here's a guide to planning a trip.
Day 1 - 2: Land in Amman and go to Beit Sitti for a cooking class and dinner. Spend the next day in Jerash exploring the old Roman city and get back to Amman before 4pm to get into the Old Citadel and explore more Roman ruins. Have dinner at Sufra that evening but be sure to book in advance. They get pretty busy!
Day 3: Rent a car for the rest of the trip and visit some of the Eastern desert castles before driving to Petra. Aim to arrive for sunset to take in the incredible views.
Day 4: Start early so you can see the main sites in Petra including the Siq, the Treasury, the High Place of Sacrifice, and the Monastery. Have a quick dinner before driving to Aqaba.
Day 5: Spend the day by the beach and make sure to go snorkelling or scuba diving.
Day 6: Enjoy an early swim before heading to Wadi Rum to meet a pre-arranged guide. Take a jeep tour around the desert before going star gazing and enjoying a campside meal. Get ready to see all the stars in the sky.
Day 7: Head out early for a long scenic drive via the Kings Highway to reach Wadi Mujib around 2pm. You can also visit Shobak castle, before going to Wadi Mujib. Here you get to hike through a canyon with a fairly fast flowing current to reach the waterfall at the end. Then head to the Dead Sea. You should get a chance to float in the water during sunset!
Day 8: It's your last day, relax! Spend the day putting Dead Sea mud on yourself, floating the sea and then enjoying the warm water in a pool. If you want, you could even venture to the Main Hot Springs - the public springs here can get to 60 degrees Celsius. It's worth checking out! Before heading to the airport, you could visit Madaba, and even Mount Nebo.
What you need to know before planning your trip:
If your flight takes a detour through Turkey, and you have to take an internal flight (for example Istanbul to Ankara), you need to get a visa. Do it online to save yourself some time.
If you want to visit Petra, get the Jordan Pass before your trip as it works out far cheaper that way. The JP includes your visa (which you would otherwise buy at the airport) as well as access to plenty of the country's sights. The one downside? You have to know how many days you'll spend in Petra in advance.
Don't rent a car while you're in Amman. You'll be stuck waiting in traffic (especially on weekdays) and taxis within the city are pretty cheap. The maximum fare from one part of the city to the other is 5 JD. You'll obviously lose out a little when you go to Jerash, but you should be able to negotiate a fare with a taxi driver to the ruins, wait for you, and then drop you off to downtown for about 40-45 JD.
Think about renting a car for the rest of the trip. Just make sure you pay for insurance or buy third party excess insurance before your trip to save yourself some money. You can never control how others drive!
Take water shoes with you. They're fairly cheap – about £10 on Amazon – but pretty essential for both the Dead Sea and Wadi Mujib.
Think about planning your trip around Ramadan. While it might be nice to be in the country during the period, a lot of places (such as Wadi Mujib) might be closed.
If you don't want to drive, you can always look for drivers online. That's a more expensive route, but gives you similar freedom (and also tips from a local).
If you're prone to hay fever, it's fairly likely that you'll be allergic to the dust, so make sure you bring your tablets.
We've writing a more detailed version of what our trip was like, where you can glean more insights.
