2-Day Tour: Petra, Wadi Rum, and Dead Sea from Amman

Found myself in Jordan and wanted to scratch off a once in a lifetime experience while by going to Petra. It lived up to the expectations and then some. My driver, Qutaibah (Q), picked me up promptly at my hotel and off we went. Drive took right around 3 hours with a 15 minute pit stop halfway where there were restrooms, food, and gifts. During the drive, Qutaibah went over the itinerary and presented options about lunch options (eat in Petra, have him put together a lunchbox for 10JOD, or stop briefly in town we I got back), when the jeep tour would be (either that afternoon or the next morning). He also presented some extensions to the trip in Aqaba if I so wanted. In Petra, we had five hours (and really five and an half since we got to Petra a little early) although Q said to let him know if I needed a little more time. But that was plenty of time to go through the Siq, see the Treasury, and major sites. I’d recommend getting a qualified tour guide but be careful of getting a random guide out front. Also, there are plenty of vendors in Petra selling various wares. Some can be a little pushy but just kindly say no thanks and move on. After Petra, met up with Q and wolfed down my lunch box. There are places inside Petra to eat and buy water, juice. But I wanted to focus on getting in as much as I could. Lunch box was a chicken shawarma wrap and fries. Drive to Wadi Rum took about 2 hours with a brief pit stop for rest room and drinks. At Wadi Rum, hopped on the jeep for 2 hour tour. This is also your transport to the encampment so your stuff goes in the back seat while you hop in the open air back. Drive was bumpy but fun. Made it challenging to take pictures and make sure your stuff (or you) doesn’t fly out the back. Saw plenty of camel along the way. Made 3 stops. Went to the arch where Q took my pic since I was traveling solo. Then saw petroglyphs in canyon. And finally sand dune that you can climb up and go to top of small rock hill. Then off to camp… or should I say glamp. I don’t think this is a traditional Bedouin housing unit - but it was decked out on the inside like one. Towels and shampoo were provided. Accommodations were nice. Would’ve been nice if they had prepped the ac in advance as the room was HOT and it took a while for the AC to cool the room down. I was basically the only guest (along with Q who stayed in a nearby cabin). Dinner was delicious - chicken and rice with various sides and sauces, along with pita bread and hummus. Camp was very quiet. Nice desert breeze and moderate temperatures. In the morning before breakfast, a small herd of camel wandered right by the encampment. Was so cool to see them. Breakfast was an egg crepe type thing, pita, hummus, and assorted vegetables. Jeep ride back to Q’s car and four hour drive to The Dead Sea with a quick stop for gas and another 15 minute pit stop for restroom, food/drink, and gift shopping. Arrived a little early at the hotel and had the lunch option which was buffet style and was ok. If you didn’t want to do that, you could probably get stuff at the pit stop to eat. Towel is provided. Changing rooms are half way down to the beach. Had about 3 hours total there. There are several pools (to include kid pools) along with the main event, the mud and salt scrub. Floating in the sea was incredible. But don’t get the water in your eyes. I was doing fine until right at the end when a little bit got into my eye… fortunately they had a shower nearby where I could wash off. Trudged up the hill back to the main hotel area, met up with Q for a lemon mint drink, and then the one hour drive back to the hotel. Q was great. He explained everything and made sure I had what I needed. He also seemed amenable to alterations within reason of you wanted to stop and see something along the way. Overall - don’t hesitate - book it now.

Qutaibeh was a terrific guide. He was very accommodating to our needs and gave us multiple options on how to get the most out of the trip. He was easy to communicate with via WhatsApp. His advice on how to navigate each of the sites was very helpful. Petra is stunning and worth the trip by itself. Wadi Rum is equally beautiful. Desert Moon Camp was clean and comfortable with a great staff. Qutaibeh even helped us find and recreate a scene/camera shot from a Star Wars movie which was filed there. The following day we did an optional Red Sea glass bottom boat and snorkeling trip in Aqaba before going to the Dead Sea. His advice on all of it was welcomed and enhanced our experience. Highly recommended.

Jafar was an amazing tour guide. He went out of his way to make sure we were comfortable and tell us everything we needed to know to not get scammed at Petra. The Bedouin camp was wonderful, highly recommend getting the deluxe tent with AC and private bathroom, it makes the stay much more comfortable. The camp was in a beautiful area and there was lots of room to walk around and explore the immediate area on your own. Food at the camp was good, we had a traditional Jordanian Mansaf for dinner and good breakfast as well. The Dead Sea experience was great, we were given lunch passes and a towel for the beach. Overall, I would recommend this tour to anyone. It is much easier than trying to book these three experiences separately, especially wadi rum, since a 4x4 vehicle is required to drive through the protected area.

What an amazing experience. 5 hours in Petra and overnight in Wadi Rum and then 3 hours at the Dead Sea. It was a whirlwind but absolutely spectacular. Jafar is an amazing guide. 10 out of 10 would recommend.

Omar, our tour guide was excellent!! His company is so lucky to have him!! We had a 2- day trip from Amman to Petra to Wadi Rum to Dead Sea and back to Amman — the whole time we enjoyed it… very knowledgeable and very polite ! His kindness and friendliness made the whole trip an amazing one! Thank you Omar and best!

Truly trip of a lifetime! The days felt full but not rushed, Khaled was amazing, & the Bedouin tea was amazing :) Couldn't recommend enough!

Great tour and a must while you are in Jordan. Very easily organised and great communication leading into and on the tour. Our guide was lovely and gave us good options and advice. Accommodation in Wadi Rum was great and the food was delicious.

I had a great trip and thoroughly enjoyed my time. My guide Oday was very kind and adapted to help me have the best possible experience in Jordan. I could not recommend Oday or this trip enough!

Absolutely brilliant experience exploring Jordan in a very short time. Day 1: picked up from hotel in Amman and straight to Petra and were a mixed group from uk, us, russia, hungary and Italy. It was about 2.5 /3 hours to Petra and We had 5 hours in Petra. I read some reviews saying this wasn’t sufficient time but we all found it enough and managed to see most of the sites and the monastery as well. You can make it if you get straight there and took about 1hr 30 to the furthest point at the monastery but it’s a fair walk and lots of stairs to get there. Then straight onto wadi rum which was about 2 hours from sunset. This was absolutely incredible and the views and the calm tranquility was one of the highlights. I stayed in a deluxe tent which was only about £30 more and well worth the price - as it had heating and ac as well as a private bathroom - it was like a hotel room rather than the smaller tents which don’t have toilets or heating and are more basic (depends on what you want) The jeep tour was fantastic - remember both your thermals and sun cream as the sun is quite intense but also it’s pretty cold in the am (was there in Feb) Next onto the Dead Sea which was about 4 hours so fairly long but we had toilet breaks and didn’t feel too bad. 2.5 hours at the Dead Sea for floating and mud soaking and then an hour ish back to Amman. The tour guide jafar was fantastic - super knowledgable and got us around super efficiently. So grateful to his expertise! Amazing trip and leaving feeling culturally fulfilled but also rested and recharged despite a full schedule!

This excursion was a wonderful introduction to all that Jordan has to offer. Starting in Amman with the gorgeous topography, seeing the expansive historic site at Petra, overnighting in the one of the most unique deserts in Wadi Rum, and finally getting to feel the sensation of floating in the Dead Sea, the experience exceeded all expectations. Our guide, Yousef, was very knowledgeable and inviting and ensured all our needs and desires were met.