2-daagse Petra-tour vanuit Tel Aviv

I am giving this tour five stars exclusively because of how the Jordanian side operated. The Jordanian part of the trip was outstanding: an extremely professional guide, absolutely no hidden fees, everything transparent and clearly explained, free water throughout the journey, a calm and very careful driver, strict organization, safety, and a genuine sense of care. Truly top-level service. However, the overall experience was quite horrific, and I cannot recommend it to anyone. On the contrary, I feel compelled to advise people to stay away and choose a different option. The problem lies entirely in the organization of the tour itself. We chose this tour for two reasons. First, because it promised extensive sightseeing, including a significant amount of time in Petra — which is vast and deserves a thorough, unhurried visit. Second, because this is an Israeli company (Abraham Hostel / Abraham Tours), and Israel is known for its understanding of security. We expected safety and professionalism. Both expectations failed immediately due to poor planning. The core issue is the Allenby Bridge border crossing. We spent around four hours crossing the border into Jordan and almost three hours crossing back. This was at a border crossing that was filthy, overcrowded, badly maintained, foul-smelling, deeply uncomfortable, stressful, and frankly unsafe. On the Jordanian side, staff actually tried to help us and speed things up. On the Israeli side, we were locked inside a minibus, not allowed to use a toilet, with a visibly irritated driver, no communication, no care — just waiting. To be clear: we spent more total time at the border than in Petra itself, more than at all other stops combined. One location from the itinerary — the Crusader castle — was skipped entirely, though by that point it barely mattered. The only concern was not losing Petra altogether. Only later did we learn that this border crossing is not only extremely overloaded and unpleasant, but also closes at 6 PM and shuts down for Shabbat. As soon as we met the Jordanian team, we were told our time would be cut short and that we would have to return around midnight. As a result, we drove all the way through Jordan, arrived late, slept for about five hours, then woke up at 5:30 AM and rushed to Petra by 6:00. Yes, this had one advantage: we saw Petra at sunrise, empty of tourists. That was beautiful. But we paid for time — for six hours in Petra, calmly and properly. In reality, you get maybe three hours at best, and only if you are lucky with your guide (as we were). The rush happens because everyone is panicking about making it back to the border before it closes. At any moment, the Israeli side may shut down, and you simply won’t make it through. The emotional and physical toll was severe. The entire experience was exhausting, stressful, frightening, and deeply unpleasant. People returned barely functional — sleeping in minibuses, unable to eat properly, stiff necks, complete exhaustion. Again, the Jordanian side was wonderful: excellent food, warm hospitality, no tipping expectations at all. We wanted to tip the guide, but he disappeared quickly — clearly distressed by how much time we had lost. He made sure we were transported and left. We never saw him again, nor the Jordanian driver, though we truly wished we could thank them. On the Israeli side, things deteriorated further. We were driven to Jerusalem and then simply put into a regular taxi. The driver spent the entire ride pushing additional services, complaining about money, and generally behaving in a way that felt like a scam — exactly the kind of situation we had hoped to avoid by choosing an Israeli company. Later, when we described this experience to others, we were told we were essentially crazy for agreeing to this route. Over the past year alone, there have been terrorist attacks and killings of Israeli border guards at the Allenby crossing. It is one of the most tense and sensitive crossings in the region, heavily monitored because goods — and far more dangerous things — pass through it toward Palestinian territories. That is why inspections are slow and strict, and why no tourist fast-tracking exists. The next day, we crossed into Egypt via Eilat. The border control took 10 minutes. It was calm, clean, civilized. Israeli friends later told us that any sensible tour should use a 24/7 border crossing, especially since Petra is actually closer from there. This leads to an unavoidable conclusion: Abraham Hostel / Abraham Tours appears to be cutting costs. Transporting people through Jordan is cheap. Transporting them across Israel to Eilat is expensive. So they choose the nearest border, regardless of comfort, safety, stress levels, or the core promise of the tour. This comes at the cost of: • safety • physical well-being • psychological comfort • and, most importantly, the main experience — Petra itself Even worse, the day before the tour, we received instructions explaining how to get out of the Allenby crossing on our own if there were delays. That alone destroys any sense of security or support. You feel that you may simply be abandoned at a dangerous border crossing — for this price. We paid primarily for safety and six calm hours in Petra. Instead, we spent six hours at border control, were driven endlessly across Jordan, slept in vehicles, barely functioned physically, and saw far less of Petra than promised. I strongly recommend Jordanian tours directly — perhaps even flying to Oman and entering Jordan from there, or taking a tour from Eilat. Jordan itself felt safe, organized, and professional. But I urge everyone to stay away from Abraham Hostel / Abraham Tours for Petra trips, especially via the Allenby crossing. This route is unsafe, poorly planned, and does not deliver what is promised. We are not asking for a refund. We are grateful for the adventure and deeply thankful to the Jordanian team. But it is painful to realize that the people who truly cared for us were not the ones we paid — while the organizers simply ordered taxis and sent us through a dangerous, high-risk border crossing. Five stars for Jordan. A serious warning to everyone else.

The service was great. We missed the bus in Tel Aviv, because we couldn't get the Gett (uber de la). It was Friday, the day they don't work. We called Abraham and they picked us up at the Jordan border stop. We took a taxi there. It was expensive but we managed to visit Petra which is an unmissable tour

This was an amazing trip and worth every penny! Everything was very well organized and we saw so much within such a short time. Abraham tors sent a PDF document ahead of time, so you knew what to expect at the border crossing, and everything was very clear once we got a cross into Jordan as well. Our tour guide, Madhi, was absolutely amazing. He was very knowledgeable, open, and answered all of our questions…just an all around great guy and great guide! He also kept us moving at a pace that he knew would be ahead of the larger groups, so that saved us a lot of time. Group size was about 20. 10/10 recommend…if I had to to it again, I wouldn’t go through anyone else

Loved it, totally worth it, one in a life experience! Going and sleeping at the desert and then seeing Petra was amazing, the guide was wonderful, the place we stayed was great too, would recommend for sure

Awesome trip. So memorable. The structures look so great. The Bedouin camp was very awesome. The guide was great. Overall awesome

Fabulous trip, very well organised! Border went very well. Everything explained. Don’t change money there as bad exchange rate, tour guide took money later in the day for Jordanian border visa. Lots of opportunities to change money on trip. If you get Madhi as tour guide you are in for a treat!! He made the trip for us. Bedouin camp was great, basic but comfortable. Petra was amazing, got the monastery & the caves & the scenery foto of the Treasury on the cliff done. Madhi explains so well about the time& helps you choose what you want to do. They take dollars& euros as well as Jordanian dollars of course in Petra. Food through out trip was plentiful & fine. Do this tour, you will not be disappointed, I recommend it 120 out of 100!!

Excellent site, great guide and accommodation at the Bedouin Camp. But absolutely disastrous transfer from the border back to Tel Aviv. After touring the whole day, 6 hours on the bus, two hours crossing the border, the van driver didn’t even bother to identify himself to us. We were standing on the curb, making the calls to Abraham with no answers. And when, by luck, we found the van, we were sitting there for over an hour, tired, dirty, and hungry. No one told us anything, so we asked the driver. He angrily explain that we were missing two people from another tour that was running late! A better solution was to send us home and find another way to bring those two. A complete failure, in my opinion!

Great tour guide (Mahdi). Cool campground with beautiful views of rock formations, and exceptional food. And overall a highly recommended site visit. It’s a lot to pack in two days, but well worth the time and money.

I loved Petra, but they offer you a two-day excursion and it is only half a day and you have to walk a lot and there is no time, the guide Abdula great. They also change your itinerary, we did not go to Aman or the ruins of Jerash that he said, and they do not warn you.

Definitely recommend this trip if you're around the Tel Aviv or Jerusalem area and want to see Petra! The guide and driver we had were amazing and gave us the perfect amount of time at our stops between a guided tour and free time at the stop. The guide also handled customs/border control on the Jordan side which was very helpful! Also, in Petra, the guide said you can't get to the Monastery if you do part of the guided tour with him (and don't get a donkey). This isn't necessarily true - as long as you're a decent paced walker, you'll have time to get to the Monastery as I had plenty of time to do the Monastery and another trail with his guided tour. A few recommendations to travelers looking to book this: - try to only take a backpack and leave all other luggage at Abraham hostel. I'm not sure if the hostel will store it for you if you're not staying any other night, but having luggage will cause a headache on the Israel side of the border (a few others from another group were stuck for over an hour because of their luggage). - Jordan side is very safe and accepts USD or Jordanian Dinar. Most places in Petra and service station stops will also accept Visa/Mastercard. - Most toilets in Jordan do not have toilet paper - so load up on tissues (provided on the bus) or bring a roll in your backpack. Only negative aspects of our trip or things I can recommend to Abraham tours: - Make it so anyone in the WhatsApp group can message the group rather than only admins. We were joining a group to go back to Jerusalem/Tel Aviv and some of the other group was stuck in Israel border control for over an hour. Our drivers disappeared and we had no way to contact Abraham to get a status update or what the plan was to see if we could take 1 bus to Jerusalem/Tel Aviv and the 2nd bus to wait for the delayed travelers. - It would be nice if the price of the tour included the entry/exit fees to Israel/Jordan. Just one less thing to worry about for travelers.