Jordan has a few highly recommended places that are inaccessible by public transport. This is the main reason why most people rent a car to travel around Jordan. However, there are also a lot of people how don’t have a driver’s license or are afraid to drive in other countries (me). For both parties I wrote these itineraries to make your trip a bit easier.

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In these 7-day itineraries you will visit one of the seven world wanders with me, but also have a stopover for a well-deserved relaxation swim in the Dead Sea. All of this without renting a car or with the comfort of a car!

Jordan 7-day itinerary without a car

Day 1 Amman
Day 2 Madaba and Dead Sea daytrip
Day 3 Jerash daytrip
Day 4-5 Petra
Day 6-7 Wadi Rum
Day 7 Back to Amman or Aqaba

Jordan 7-day itinerary with a car

Day 1 Amman
Day 2 Madaba and Jerash
Day 3 Dead Sea, Wadi Almujib, Wadi Numeira,
Day 4-5 Petra
Day 6-7 Wadi Rum
Day 7 Back to Amman or Aqaba

Amman

The capital of Jordan has a rich history and is a treasure for cultural activities, great food and historic sites. For most travellers Amman is the perfect gateway to greater attractions like the Dead Sea, Petra and Wadi Rum, but Amman itself has a lot to offer and is a great home base for daytrips to Jerash and Madaba.

You can easily spend a week in Amman when you take it slow. There is a lot to see and to do. A few recommendations to fill up your days:

Visit the Amman citadel
Roman ruins
Stroll down rainbow street
Visit King the Abdullah II Mosque
Go shopping downtown in Al-Balad

Madaba

Madaba is one of the most beautiful cities in Jordan. The city offers you numerous attractions through its historic sites like St George’s Church And Mosaic Map, Church Of The Apostles and the Beheading Of John The Baptist, Mount Nebo and Carpet City.

The city attracts a lot of historians and architects because of the presence of numerous Byzantine and Umayyad mosaics in many church walls and other historic structures throughout the city.

Madaba is only a 30-minute drive from Amman, which makes it a great daytrip.

Jerash

Jerash is a fascinating ancient Roman city that is located just 50 km from Amman. The ruins of the ancient city are some of the most impressive in the Middle East. Jerash is also considered one of the largest and most well-preserved sites of Roman architecture in the world outside of Italy.

This is the one place in Jordan that I didn’t get to visit, because I wasted two days in bed feeling very sick. Which is a shame, because for a lot of people Jerash was their highlight in Jordan. You can easily do Jerash as a daytrip from Amman.

The Dead Sea

The Dead Sea is a Salt Lake located in the Jordan Rift Valley and is bordered by Jordan, Israel and Palestine. It is actually one of the most saline water bodies in the world. While oceans have an average salinity of 4%, the Dead Sea has almost 35% salinity. It is because of these reasons that no life can flourish and the lake is free of any animals or plants, thus the name the ‘Dead’ Sea.

There are many tours from Amman to visit the Dead Sea. Tip: don’t book these tours! They take you to the less beautiful part of the Dead Sea. It still will be fun to swim and float, but I recommend researching the parts where the Dead Sea is clear and blue. Keep in mind that there are only a few public spots where you can swim.

Here are the coordinates of one public spot where you can swim and enjoy the best view: 31°22’38.8″N 35°33’03.1″E

There are only a few tours online that will take you to the beautiful parts of the Dead Sea. Make sure you google and compare them correctly to avoid disappointment.

If you don’t care about the view and only want to float in the Dead Sea, I recommend booking this tour where you combine the Dead Sea with a visit to Amman and Jerash.

Wadi Numeira & Wadi Almujib

Located near the Dead Sea, Wadi Numeira and Wadi Almujib are famous for its hanging rocks at the beginning of the trail and the magnificent and long narrow passages. Because it is so narrow, Wadi Numeira has been compared to Petra’s famous Siq. Sometimes it’s called “Water Petra”.

It’s hard to get to these extraordinary sites. There are no daytrips or buses, which makes both Wadi’s the perfect site to visit with almost no tourists when you have a car. When you don’t have a car you need to improvise. And your best option will still be catching a ride with people you meet along the way.

Wadi Almujib has an entrance fee of 21 JOD (30 USD). Wadi Numeira doesn’t have an entrance fee.

Petra

The ancient city of Petra was built in the third century BC by the Nabataeans, who carved palaces, tombs, temples, storerooms and stables from the soft stone cliffs. Today Petra is a World Heritage Site that needs little introduction and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Jordan. With so much history and architectural wonders, Petra deserves a spot on any Jordan itinerary.

You’ll likely start your Petra trip from either Amman or Aqaba. From both cities you can rent a car, hire a private driver/taxi or use public transportation to connect to Wadi Musa—the gateway to Petra.

There are well walkable paths throughout the site to bring you to all of the ancient ruins. Some of the ruins, like the Royal Tombs, you can actually go inside and some, like the Treasury and Monastery, are just to experience from the outside. You can find plenty of cafes, restaurants, and restroom facilities inside Petra, so you can easily spend an entire day inside.

You can purchase tickets to visit Petra at the entrance or online for the following rates:

1 day: 50 JOD (70 USD)
2 days: 55 JOD (78 USD)
3 days: 60 JOD (85 USD)

Admission to Petra is included in the Jordan Pass, which saves you money on visa fees and grants you access to over 40 other sites and attractions around the country. It’s well worth the cost even if you just visit Petra for a single day.However, I recommend visiting Petra for 2 days if you want to take you time and do the hike to the Treasury.

Wadi Rum

Wadi Rum has an area of 74,000 hectares, making it the largest Wadi in Jordan. It is characterized by the ancient rock walls of granite and sandstone where petroglyphs were made centuries ago. Wadi Rum is also considered one of the most beautiful desert landscapes in the world and is a paradise for every nature lover.

While most people book a tour to visit Wadi Rum you can also visit the desert on your own. If you pay the fee to enter the Wadi Rum Protected Area, you are good to go. Keep in mind that Wadi Rum is a big desert that can be hard to navigate. You need a good 4×4 vehicle and a good GPS.

The best option is to prebook a tour and leave your car at the visitor’s center. All buses and taxis will also drop you off at the visitor’s center. There are a few tour options: half day tour, full day tour and a sunset tour.

If you are staying overnight, most accommodations will offer different tour packages. Luxury accommodations like Wadi Rum Bubble Luxotel will have the tours included in the price. Budget accommodations like Fire Camp will only cost you a few dollars because you book a tour through them. They also all have breakfast and dinner included. So overall, every experience is a win/win.

Aqaba

If you have traveled through Jordan for a few days or weeks and would like to finish off with a few days of rest, Aqaba is the place to be.

Aqaba is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest city on the Gulf of Aqaba which is part of the Red Sea where you can snorkel.

Most people start of finish their trip in Aqaba, because Aqaba Airport is the main gateway to Aqaba. You can also easily visit Aqaba as a daytrip and visit places like the Souks, Aqaba Castle, Marine Park, Sharif Hussein Bin Ali Mosque, ruins of Ayla and Aqaba Corniche.

Practical tips

How to get to Jordan

You can get to Jordan by plane from almost any country daily. You can fly directly into Amman, Queen Alia International Airport from many European cities as well as North America and Asia. However, you can also fly into the southern city Aqaba, King Hussein International airport. If you choose to fly to Aqaba chances are, you would have a layover in Amman.

Visa requirements

Everyone traveling to Jordan will need a tourist visa if staying for more than 48 hours in the country. A tourist visa can be arranged on arrival at Queen Alia International Airport in Amman and King Hussein International Airport in Aqaba. The visa is valid for one month and costs 40 JOD (56 USD)

The Jordan Pass is a great alternative to a regular tourist visa, as it includes a tourist visa for your trip as well as access to 40 tourist attractions. There are 3 different passes that start from 70 JOD (99 USD)

Best months to visit Jordan

Jordan can be divided into two climate zones. The North-Western part of the country has a Mediterranean climate. This means that the summers are typically very hot, whereas its winters are mostly cold and rainy. The rest of the land has a desert climate, a climate that is characterized by high temperatures and little to no rain.

During the winter, temperatures lay between 5 and 15 degrees. As for summer, temperatures get up to 30-45 degrees in the Northern part of the country. Spring and autumn are therefore the best seasons to travel to Jordan, as the weather is pleasant for sightseeing and there is little to no rain.

However, you should make sure to pack some sweaters, as it can get really cold during the night, especially in the desert. The best months for traveling to Jordan are therefore March to May and September to November.

Getting around

Renting a car

Renting a car is your best option in Jordan. It makes it so easy to travel the country.

A big plus when staying in hostels: you will always meet people with a car who offer you to travel with them to the next destination.

Bus

The bus system in Jordan is accessible and easy to use. However, it can be very slow. Most buses don’t follow timetables and show up when they want to. They also only depart when the bus is full of passengers. Keep in mind that buses to the main attraction only leave between 6 and 7 AM in the morning, which makes it a bit harder to travel

You can prebook your tickets on Busbud or redbud or directly on the website of Jett. I wouldn’t recommend showing up last minute at the bus station in this case because buses can be fully booked, especially in high season.

Domestic flights

Royal Jordanian operates the only domestic flights two or three times daily between Amman and Aqaba. Flights times are around 30 minutes and will cost you 70 USD one way.

Taxi

This way is usually the most expensive, however if you are travelling with a group of friends and can split the cost it might be the most reasonable option. For instance, the deal we got to Wadi Rum was 40 JOD one way. We ended up paying 15 JOD each between 3 people, which was way cheaper than the Jett bus.

Hitchhiking

I didn’t hitchhike in Jordan, but a few people that I met had a great experience. In general, it is very easy to hitchhike in Jordan. The people are very friendly, they always try to help foreigners. If you are standing next to the street and show some attention to a coming driver most of the time, they will stop for you.

Currency + money

The Jordanian dinar is the national currency of Jordan and is denoted by JOD. 1 JOD is 1,40 USD.

Vaccinations

All travellers should be up to date with their COVID 19 vaccinations. Other vaccinations that are recommended, but not mandatory are:

Hepatitis A/B
Rabies
DTP
Yellow fever

Language

The official language of Jordan is Arabic, but English is widely spoken especially in the cities.

Jordan is an incredible country with a beautiful desert scenery, fascinating archaeological monuments and nature reserves. It’s the perfect destination for every kind of traveler. Don’t forget to check out my travel tips that will make your trip a lot easier.

Jordan 7-day itinerary (with and without a car)