Jordan 7 Day Itinerary: A Perfect Trip to the Middle East
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Wondering how to spend a week in Jordan? I’ve got you covered. This is the perfect Jordan 7 day itinerary for anyone visiting the country for the first time (or second, third or fourth!)
I’ll warn you, Jordan is a country like no other. Like seriously, I am absolutely, positively in love with this country!
Ever get that feeling when you arrive home after a country that you just miss it?
Jordan will steal your heart. From the people, the food, the landscapes, the weather, the culture…we just fell in love with every single part of Jordan just a few days into our first trip.
There’s just something magical about it.
If you have more than 7 days in Jordan, do it. Don’t do any less. It’s a place that deserves at least a week to explore!
So, what’s included in this Jordan 7 day itinerary? I’ve included a Wonder of the World, historical landmarks, sandy beaches, busy cities, a desert, crystal clear waters and a sea that’s so salty you can comfortably read a book whilst swimming in.
Jordan is incredible. And if you haven’t booked your trip yet, do it.
I promise you won’t regret it.
Need to know what to wear in Jordan? Check out my guide here!
Jordan 7 day Itinerary: The Route
Like I said, this is a route that includes all of the highlights of Jordan.
Below I’ve broken it down into a quick list (if you don’t have time to read the whole blog post), but I’ve given more detail in the sections below. I’ve also got a little FAQ section about this Jordan 7 day itinerary right at the bottom (if you fancy scrolling).
🚗 NOTE: This itinerary is designed for travellers hiring a car. 🚗
Jordan has very little public transport. It can be done with a private driver, but I have no experience with this so can only talk about self-driving!
Not sure whether or not to hire a car Jordan? Check out my guide to driving in Jordan here!
The Jordan 7 day itinerary
- Day 1: Fly into Amman and explore the city
- Day 2: Wake up early and visit Jerash, then drive to the Dead Sea. Stay either near the Dead Sea or continue driving to Petra for the evening
- Day 3: Petra and Petra by night (if you’re there on a Monday, Wednesday or Thursday)
- Day 4: Petra during the day, driving to Wadi Rum late afternoon/evening
- Day 5: Wadi Rum 4×4 through the desert tour
- Day 6: Drive to Aqaba
- Day 7: Either fly out of Aqaba or drive back to Amman
Obviously, this 7-day itinerary for Jordan can be changed around to suit you, and more/less time can be spent in each area. This is just a good starting point and includes all of the major things to do in Jordan!
This itinerary also includes a lot of driving. Your longest drive will be Aqaba > Amman, which can take around 4 hours. You might want to consider this when booking flights!
🚰 The tap water in Jordan isn’t safe to drink, so I used my filter water bottle pretty much every day to keep myself hydrated. I take it everywhere with me, and it works in every country where you can’t drink tap water! You can grab yours here.
Visiting Jordan for the first time? You need a Jordan Pass!
This waives your visa fee (well, it’s included) and allows you to enter all tourist sites for free. We were asked for ours on multiple occasions (including on arrival at the airport) and it saved us a LOT of money and agg!
It costs around £70 per person but includes your entrance to Petra (not Petra by Night) and all other tourist sites.
Check out my detailed post on buying a Jordan pass here.
🌎 If you’re looking for a new backpack or suitcase, I highly recommend the Osprey 65L wheeled backpack. It’s a mix between your classic traveller backpack and an easy pull-along suitcase, so you get the best of both worlds!
I recommend using this comparison site to book your flights to Jordan!
Day 1: Amman
Amman is the capital city of Jordan. I’m not really a city person, but Amman pleasantly surprised me!
Situated in the north of the country, Amman is one of the most liberal and westernised Arab cities. (Although I still felt the need to cover up and go by my Jordan dress code – you can view it here!)
Depending on your flight arrival time to Jordan, or what sort of things you like to do in cities, there are a few parts of Amman you don’t want to miss.
We stayed at Nomads Hostel in a private room for under £30 a night. It was within walking distance of one of the most popular roads in the city, Rainbow Street. Even if you’re not staying close by to Rainbow Street, I advise checking it out for their hippy vibe bars and fun restaurants! Oh, and check it out on Thursday nights when it’s the most lively as Jordanians officially kick off their weekend!
If you’re into your history, check out the Temple of Hercules (Tom was obsessed with this) and the 2000+ years old Roman Theatre. The venue is still used for concerts and events from time to time, and can seat up to 6000 people! Ooooh, and it’s also free to visit!
Dress appropriately and you can visit the King Abdullah Mosque, which is located in the city centre. It’s easily recognisable with its blue-domed roof and gigantic size.
If I could change anything about my trip to Jordan, it would be to plan a bit longer in Amman. Reading other travel blogs I realise just how much we missed. Although it does mean I can now convince Tom to make another trip back to Jordan!
I recommend this hostel if you’re staying in Amman for the first time as a backpacker!
Day 2: Jerash and the Dead Sea
Jerash
You’ll need to wake up early to fit everything into today’s itinerary, so make sure you set an alarm!
Hopefully, you picked up your hire car at the airport (or have booked a private driver), and are ready to head about 50 minutes north to the ancient ruins of Jerash.
Dating back to over 2000 years ago, Jerash is the most well-preserved Roman site outside of Italy. That’s pretty cool!
So spend your morning taking photos and soaking in the culture before driving down to the Dead Sea.
🚌 If you don’t feel like hiring a car, you can hire a private driver or do a tour. This tour is great if you just want to see Petra from Amman!
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Plus, if you’re struggling with where to fly to, you can enter ‘EVERYWHERE’ into the search bar. The cheapest flights to destinations all over the world will appear, and you can pick a flight with a budget suited to you!
Try it out for yourself on Skyscanner here!
The Dead Sea
Now it’s up to you how you visit the Dead Sea, but I highly recommend going via one of the hotels.
The Dead Sea isn’t easy to reach due to its extremely low altitude (it’s the lowest place on earth) so you’re going to need to hunt out a public beach if you want to experience it. This can be quite challenging!
As you drive along Dead Sea Road (yep, they don’t mess around with their road names here), you’ll come across a whole heap of hotels and resorts. Most offer a lunch and swim package and give you all-day access to their sandy beach.
We went to the Crowne Plaza, which cost £30 each for an unlimited (delicious) food buffet, and access to their lift down to the beach where we soaked in the mud and salty water.
You can book either a stay or day trip to the Dead Sea with Crowne Plaza here.
If you aren’t willing to pay for lunch, most people go to Amman Beach for a swim in the Dead Sea. BUT, it still comes at a price and will cost you around 25 JOD to enter. In my opinion, it’s worth getting the lunch for an extra fiver!
After a chilled afternoon at the Dead Sea screaming that you have salt in your eyes or any open wounds on your body, you can either chill at a hotel nearby or head on down to Petra. This is entirely down to you and how prepared you are to drive after a long day of exploring!
If you’re visiting Jordan, you’ll need to purchase a visa before arrival. The easiest and cheapest way to do this is by buying a Jordan Pass. I’ve written a guide explaining the Jordan Pass here!
Day 3 + 4: Petra and Petra by Night
Petra by Day
If you’re visiting Jordan for the first time, I’ll assume that Petra is pretty high on your bucket list.
The ancient city of Petra is one of the seven wonders of the world, and my god, does it belong to be there!
Petra is a BIG day out. The site itself is gigantic and will take you most of the day to walk around (or get around half of it).
Arrive at Petra with your Jordan Pass in the morning. You DON’T have to wake up at 4.30am and hit Petra at 6am like some people say to do, as it is so vast that there are constantly times where you feel ‘alone’ in the city. We arrived around 10am and it was never too busy for us!
I recommend this hotel if you’re staying in Petra for the first time!
Petra by Night
If you’re visiting on a Monday, Wednesday or Thursday, you’ll get the chance to check out Petra at Night. This is a unique experience where the Jordanians put on a lantern-lit show of the Treasury and perform a short show of music and storytelling.
It’s a really lovely experience but sadly very overpopulated.
Fortunately, we arrived early enough so we saw the Treasury with the lanterns without any tourists, but about 30 seconds later, over 500 more people piled in and blocked our view.
It’s beautiful, but if you’re not in the area on one of those days, I wouldn’t change your Jordan itinerary around to make it.
Unpopular opinion, sorry.
🔌 Whilst you won’t want to be glued to your phone whilst travelling Jordan, I highly recommend carrying a power bank. Losing battery whilst driving in the Middle East and not having a map would not be ideal! It also gets super hot so your battery will drain faster than normal. I use this power bank, and it’s not let me down yet! It easily lasts for a whole week trip!
Day 4 + 5: Wadi Rum
Eeek, your trip is just getting better.
Wadi Rum (aka Mars) is a giant desert in the south of Jordan. It’s one of the highlights of any Middle East itinerary and really is quite special!
Use the opportunity to stay in a bubble tent, drive a 4×4 over sand dunes, try stargazing, ride a camel into the sunset and hike through the desert. If I’m honest, I didn’t do the last one as I’m far too lazy but I’ve heard it’s great!
Hopefully you’ll have the chance to meet some of the local Bedouin people, who are so warm and welcoming and enjoy telling you stories of their past and culture. More than likely they’ll invite you for tea in their tent, so pull up a seat and enjoy it!
The desert is similar to what we believe Mars looks like, and movies like The Martian and Star Wars were filmed here.
During our stargazing trip, we were told how Wadi Rum used to be the ocean floor. If you look close enough, you can find thousands of years old undersea fossils to prove just this! That’s why the rocks look the way they do, which is really pretty incredible.
I recommend this bubble tent if you’re staying in Jordan for the first time!
Day 6: Aqaba
When you’ve finished enjoying Wadi Rum, you can drive an hour south to the other major city in Jordan, Aqaba.
Aqaba is the only coastal city in Jordan. It borders the Red Sea, and is directly opposite Israel.
Its beaches and waters are popular with scuba divers and snorkellers, due to the crystal clear waters and colourful corals and fish.
However, we didn’t get the chance to swim, but loved walking around Aqaba at night. From street food to little trinket shops, busy market stalls and friendly locals, it’s quite the experience!
I recommend this hotel if you’re staying in Aqaba for the first time!
Make sure you know the tipping etiquette in Jordan before visiting. You don’t want to go upsetting anyone! I’ve written a guide to tipping in Jordan here.
Day 7: Onward travel from Aqaba or Amman
Aqaba is home to King Hussein International Airport, so you can either book your onward flight from here, or drive back to Amman.
The drive back to Amman will take around 4 hours, and is a direct route straight up Desert Highway or the coastal road. There’s pretty much zero chance of you getting lost!
If you have any extra time, book a boat trip in Aqaba or explore some more of Amman!
🏛️ You need to make sure you have enough time to enjoy Petra, the Dead Sea and Aqaba. This tour takes 3 days from Amman so you can make sure you experience each area properly!
Backpacking Jordan for the first time? Or want to know where to find the best travel deals? Check out my travel resources for the inside scoop!
What time of year should you visit Jordan?
This all depends on what kind of weather you want.
We visited in April, and the weather throughout the country ranged from 25-32 degrees celsius.
Spring is March-May, and the peak summer months hit around June, with autumn arriving in September.
If you’re looking to do a lot of adventuring, I’d avoid the hotter summer months and stick to either spring or autumn time.
What to wear in Jordan
Jordan is a predominantly Islamic country so you should be fairly covered at all times.
Girls should keep their shoulders, chest and legs covered as much as possible, and be respectful at all times. This is more prevalent in the local areas, rather than the big tourist attractions like Petra and Wadi Rum.
Need some more help with what to wear in Jordan? I’ve written a whole guide explaining what to wear in Jordan (that isn’t ugly) here!
Are 7 days enough for Jordan?
A Jordan 7 day tour is one of the best ways to see the country. Yes, you could stay longer, but it’s just the right amount of time to see the big attractions like Wadi Rum, Petra and Amman. However, I loved it so much that I wish I had planned a longer Jordan itinerary!
Jordan is an incredible country and has so much to offer, but a 7-day Jordan road trip is a great base to start with.
A Jordan 7 Day Itinerary: In a Nutshell
Hopefully, this Jordan 7 Day itinerary has helped you to plan some more of your epic Jordan trip!
If there’s one thing I can promise you, it’s that you will love Jordan. Trust me, it’s a pretty special country. I’m just counting the days until I can go back!
Got a question to ask about this Jordan itinerary for 7 days? Let me know below!
Happy travelling 🙂
Jennie x
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