Days 195 to 197: Three Days in Petra

November 17, 2025

Days 195 to 197: Three Days in Petra

A couple of days ago, Pavle and I took the 6:30 AM Jett bus from Amman to Petra. The ride was four hours long with a 20 minute break around the halfway point. The cost is 10 JOD, or around $14 USD. When we arrived at the Petra Visitor Center we had to walk uphill for about 15 minutes to the Nomads Hotel. The hill was so steep that at one point it was a 45 degree climb. I was glad that I didn’t bring my bicycle here because I would have hated pushing my bike up.

Pavle and I didn’t do anything for the first day except eating lunch and rested. I was too lazy to go exploring Petra because of the uphill on the way back to the hotel.

Since Pavle only bought a one day Jordan Pass for Petra whereas I bought the three day pass, we decided to explore Petra the next day. Pavle will then leave Petra for Amman and I will stay for two more nights at the hotel and only explore Petra one more day, essentially wasting my third day at Petra. I had no problem with that since it’s only 5 JOD more to get the three day Jordan Pass at 80 JOD, or $112.83 USD, compared to the two day pass.

Yesterday, Pavle and I woke up before dawn and walked 15 minutes downhill to the Petra Visitor Center. We were among the first ones getting in when the place opened at 6:30 AM. I heard that going in early is a good idea since there will be fewer people in the morning and the rumor was true.

We walked about 40 minutes from the entrance to The Treasury, which is the iconic Petra image that people had photographed many times before. Along the way, I felt the place is similar to the canyons in the American West, especially Antelope Canyon that I’ve been before.

The Treasury was very impressive and I was glad that not many tourists were there in the morning. I was hoping for a nice warm morning light that would shine on the carvings of the wall for a great photograph, but the angle was not right in the morning.

We heard from a German traveler that we should hike to The Monastery at Ad-Dayr because the carvings on that wall is more impressive. We decided to hike there via the main trail, the Street of Facades. We saw the Nabatean Theater and the ruins of The Great Temple, then we hiked up some stairs. There were many small shops on the side of the trail selling things to tourists. We were also approached by Bedouin locals for donkey rides to The Monastery. It’s my rule to not ride any animals since I think that’s animal abuse. It’s enough that I eat meat, I don’t want to cause any more suffering.

The hike was not bad for me, but since Pavle is a smoker he had trouble walking up the steps. We took several breaks and Pavle told me he wanted to stop and turn back. I encouraged him to keep going and promised him that the reward would be worth it. I was glad he listened.

The entire hike to The Monastery from The Treasury was about 1:30 to 2 hours, according to my estimate. By the time that we reached The Monastery we had grown some big calves, plus we were tired. But the carvings on the wall was more amazing than The Treasury. There were also even fewer people. And the mountain views were spectacular depending on the viewpoint, which there were many to choose.

I hiked a bit farther to a few more viewing areas then I came down to the big coffee shop in front of The Monastery. Pavle took his cigarette breaks and rested. We ended up chilling at the coffee shop for almost two hours. I decided to edit some of my photographs that I’ve taken during the hike. There were so many. I tried the AI magic eraser tool in Google Photos and it worked wonders in removing unwanted objects, including people. Some of the attached photos were edited this way.

As Pavle and I enjoyed our time at The Monastery, I imagined the main character in The Alchemist and related to the scenery mentioned in that book. So this is what it looks like to live in the desert. I wish I could live here for a while to experience the life of a desert nomad.

It must have been around 12:30 PM that we decided to hike back. It was easier to go down than going up.

When we exited Petra we were very hungry because we didn’t eat breakfast. I had a lamb gallayah for lunch. It’s lamb in a tomato and vegetable sauce, served with rice.

After lunch, Pavle and I visited the Petra Museum next to the visitor center and learned more about Petra’s history and the Nabatean people who built it. Around 4:30 PM, I bid farewell to Pavle at the bus station. He was a very nice and calm guy to travel with. I hope to see him again, maybe in his home country of Croatia.

When I came back to the hotel I caught the sunset from the rooftop. One of the guests in my dorm room will drive to Wadi Rum on Tuesday morning. His name is Martin, and he said I can come with him for the ride since we are going to the same place. This saves me the 10 JOD local bus fare.

This morning, I had a breakfast at the hotel for 5 JOD, not bad for an all-you-can-eat meal. At 8 AM, I walked down to Petra again. This time, I decided to hike the trail by the Royal Tombs. Along the way, I met a couple who is also hiking the same route. It was nice to chat with somebody so I didn’t feel too alone.

The trail went farther and became the Al-Khubtha Trail, which took me to a viewpoint looking down on The Treasury. It was a great view, but I’m scared of heights so I only stayed on the cliff edge long enough for someone to take a few photographs of me.

After I hiked down, I didn’t feel like staying any longer in Petra so I came out around 12:30 PM.

A few things about hiking in Petra. Wear good shoes. Hiking boots are not required, but wearing good walking shoes or sneakers is a good idea. I had on casual shoes similar to Vans and the rugged terrain hurt my feet when I was hiking, but I got through it at the end. I saw a girl hiking with Toms. They would definitely hurt your feet. Also, it’s a good idea to wear a scarf. I had my Buff scarf on at times to avoid breathing in the dust left by golf carts that shuttled people around. You can also buy a scarf onsite for 3 JOD, about $4.25 USD.

Mohammed had messaged me. He’s in town with his friend Charlotte. After my lunch, I met up with them and hung out at the coffee shop in front of the entrance to Petra. Charlotte is a journalist and she’s investigating a story about how the police is pushing out the local Bedouin nomads out of Petra. Mohammed was her fixer who made all the contacts around the area. Charlotte was nice enough to drive me up the hill to the hotel before I bid farewell to her and Mohammed. I hope to contact Mohammed again since I’ll be going to Egypt after Jordan and he has friends there.

I don’t plan on doing much now that I’m back at the hotel. I had messaged Kasia since she’s in Petra as well with her tour group, but I think she’s busy with activities so I don’t think I’ll see her again.

Tomorrow I’ll go to Wadi Rum with Martin. I didn’t book anything yet because I was confused by the listings on booking.com. Some of the listing have $1 USD for one night of stay. That seemed too cheap. After talking about this with Mohammed, Brendan, and my Taiwanese friend Dora who visited Jordan shortly before me, the consensus is that the price to stay one night at a Bedouin camp with all meals covered and a jeep tour is about 40 JOD per person per day, or $56.42 USD. I got some contacts so I will reach out to them and do further research regarding my time in Wadi Rum.