Ma'an Governorate Activities and Costs
Travel advisory, 31 October 2026. The wider 2026 regional conflict involving Iran affects Jordan. At the time of writing the US State Department rates the whole country Level 3, Reconsider Travel, and Level 4, Do Not Travel, for the Syria and Iraq borders and a few named areas. It has also named Ma’an city and parts of Ma’an Governorate separately. The UK FCDO advises against travel only within 3 km of the Syrian border and lists no warning for Petra or Wadi Rum. Petra and Wadi Musa are open and operating, though flights can be disrupted and conditions can change at short notice. Read the US State Department advisory and the UK FCDO advice before you book and again before you fly. The rest of this page is written for a normal visit.
Where the activities are
Ma’an Governorate is Jordan’s largest, at 32,832 km2, yet almost every visitor activity sits in Petra District around the town of Wadi Musa. Shobak Castle, in Shoubak District, is the main extra. The rest is desert plateau with no coastline, so sea and reef trips mean Aqaba, which is a different governorate. Sleep in Wadi Musa.
Petra Archaeological Park
Petra is the headline attraction. Visitors who sleep at least one night in Jordan pay 50 JD for 1 day, 55 JD for 2 days or 60 JD for 3 days, and children under 12 go in free in daylight. A one-day visitor who does not stay overnight, for example on a same-day crossing from Eilat, pays 90 JD. The Jordan Pass costs 70, 75 or 80 JD for 1, 2 or 3 Petra days. Buy it before you arrive and stay at least 2 nights, and it also waives the 40 JD visa fee. Terms are on jordanpass.jo .
An evening class, a tomb bar and a balloon
Petra Kitchen, on Tourism Street inside the Petra Boutique Hotel, teaches a cooking class for JD 35 per person, with the meal, non-alcoholic drinks and recipes included. It starts at 6:30 PM from March to October and 6:00 PM from November to February, so book ahead through Petra Kitchen . The Cave Bar at the Petra Guest House Hotel, beside the Petra gate, is a licensed bar set in an original Nabataean tomb and opens daily from 2:00 PM to midnight. The Petra Balloon is a tethered helium balloon that rises about 300 m above the site, listed daily from 6:00 AM to 8:00 PM and cancelled when the weather turns.
Castle and Little Petra
Shobak Castle costs 1 JD for foreign visitors, and the Jordan Pass covers it. Opening hours vary, so check the day you go. Little Petra and Beidha, about 8 to 9 km north of Wadi Musa, are free and need no Petra ticket. The Jordan Tourism Board fee table lists current entry prices.
Animal rides
Horses, donkeys, mules and camels still work in the park, and welfare groups document overloaded animals. If you take a ride, agree the total price first, or decline and walk, which is always possible.
Practical tips
Petra opens around 6:00 to 6:30 AM and closes between 4 and 6 PM depending on the season, and tourists have been locked in overnight, so start the walk out early. June to August brings 35 to 40 C or more with no shade; spring and autumn are the busy, comfortable seasons. The Siq drains the valley, so never enter it in or after heavy rain, and follow the rangers and Civil Defence.
Read more: Attraction tours and Day trips .
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