Private Tour: Petra Day Trip from Aqaba

Start with a pickup in the morning from your centrally located Aqaba hotel or port (depending on option selected). Then, sit back in your private, air-conditioned minivan and enjoy the desert views as you travel north towards the UNESCO-listed city of Petra. Pass by Little Petra the Nabatean’s carvan stop before heading to the main city.

After roughly two hours on the road, arrive at ancient Petra and stroll 20 minutes to the Siq, the rock fissure that serves as the entrance corridor to the city. Alternatively, choose to take a horseback ride to the Siq, available on a first-come, first-serve basis.

With the rest of your group gathered at the Siq entrance, start your walk through the 1-mile (1.5-kilometer) canyon, framed by towering sandstone cliffs. At its final bend, savor your first, memorable glimpse of the Treasury (Al-Khazneh), the stunning rock-cut building that starred in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Admire its finely carved, rose-pink facade, as you hear about its history from your guide.

After snapping pictures here, walk through the gorge and discover more about the Nabataeans who made their homes here, at the junction of key ancient trading routes, in the 6th century. View the theater that once seated 3,000 spectators and continue to the Royal Tombs, a string of chambers and facades built into the mountainside.

After your tour, enjoy between two and three hours of free time to explore further the ancient city that the 19th-century poet John Burgon described as the ‘rose-red city half as old time.’ You may also use the break to enjoy lunch at one of Petra’s several restaurants (own expense).

When the time comes, meet your driver outside the ancient city and board your minivan back to Aqaba. Your day trip ends with a hotel or port drop-off in the late afternoon.