Petra 5 Day Itinerary (No Tourist Traps)

Five days is most people’s first hint that Petra alone can absorb a full week: this builds on the 4-day plan with a genuine choice on the last day, a full-day trek to Jabal Haroun or a slower cultural day in Wadi Musa. If five days feels like too much for one site, our 4-day Petra itinerary covers the same first four days without the add-on.

Book these before you go:

Day 1: Arrival and Wadi Musa

Fly into King Hussein International near Aqaba or Queen Alia in Amman, then head to Wadi Musa, the town at Petra’s gate, around two to three and a half hours depending on the airport. Check current rates and book near the entrance before you land. Dinner locally, mansaf or a proper mezze spread, and an early night; there’s no point burning energy on arrival day.

Day 2: Petra, First Pass

Arrive at the gate for opening. The Siq, a 1.2km sandstone gorge, is the only way in, and walking it early means the Treasury (Al-Khazneh) reveal without forty other people in the frame. Worth repeating since guides keep getting it wrong: the Treasury is a carved Nabataean tomb facade, no rooms behind it, no hidden gold, just a legend. Work through the Royal Tombs and the Street of Facades, then the Roman Theatre in the afternoon.

Day 3: The Monastery, Then the High Place

Head straight for the Monastery (Ad-Deir), over 800 rock-cut steps and 45 minutes to an hour of climbing, before the heat and the crowds build. It’s bigger than the Treasury and, going early, you’ll likely have long stretches of it to yourself. Come back down for the High Place of Sacrifice via the Attuf Ridge, then rest through the hottest part of the afternoon in the small Petra Museum near the Visitor Center. Confirm today’s opening and closing times on visitpetra.jo , they shift slightly between summer and winter.

Day 4: Little Petra and the Back Route

Drive 15-20 minutes to Little Petra (Siq al-Barid) in the morning, smaller, mostly free, and worth two hours rather than a rushed one. In the afternoon, take the Wadi Muthlim back route into the main site, a narrower entrance most day visitors never learn exists, and revisit the Treasury at a quieter hour. Don’t bother with the horse or camel touts working both routes; walking is faster and skips the tip negotiation.

Day 5: Jabal Haroun, or a Slower Day

If you’re a genuinely fit hiker, Jabal Haroun (Mount Aaron), the peak traditionally held as the prophet Aaron’s burial place, is a full-day trek from the main valley, six-plus hours round trip to the small shrine at the summit, and worth arranging a licensed local guide for rather than attempting solo. It’s the one part of Petra almost no one on a standard trip sees.

If that’s not your speed, spend the day slower instead: a Petra Kitchen cooking class in Wadi Musa in the early evening (around 25 JOD, book ahead), a wander through the souvenir stalls without the pressure of a schedule, and dinner at the Cave Bar, a 2,000-year-old Nabataean tomb turned into a bar by the entrance, a genuinely odd send-off before departure.

What to Know

Buy the Jordan Pass online before landing; it only waives the roughly 40 JD visa fee if purchased pre-arrival and paired with at least two nights in Jordan. Comfortable shoes are non-negotiable, the terrain is uneven sandstone throughout, and carry more water than feels necessary since shade past the Treasury is minimal. If you’re travelling in winter and it rains anywhere near the site, get out of the Siq immediately; it’s a natural flood channel and closures happen with little warning. For the fuller case on what’s worth doing at the site, see our Petra guide .