sarah

Hi, I am traveling to jordan in early march for 4-5 days. A few questions: what is the quickest way to get from Cairo to Amman and/or Petra? Is it worth it to have a guide in petra? How do I find a good one? I'm traveling by myself--any tips on getting from amman to petra? thanks! -Sarah

ali

hi sarah, <BR> <BR> to get from cairo to amman by royal jordanian airlines or egypt airlines,you have daily flights from cairo.from amman you can use public transport to petra ,or arrange by any private taxi or tour operator.in petra ,you have to use alocal site guide ,which is amust all in total fees &guide &horse is about $60.if you need any assist ,pls let me know <BR>regards <BR>ali <BR>jordan holidays <BR>tour operator

gar

a guide is not a must, sorry to the other guy. Most of them cant tell You a lot, a good book is better. Even to take a horse from the entrence is a laugh - lot of money for a 500 m ride. The entrence fee is very high, about 30 US $. But if You dont wanna be too long in Petra, just about 5 hours, take the offical tourist bus (ask tourist office in Amman). You will get transportation, fee and dinner for little money. the bus startet early in the morning and came back late in the night to Aman. If You wanna stay longer in Petra, take the public bus. Privat car is expensive. Or, YOu can go from Kairo over the Sinai to Aquaba (on the Red Sea) and from there to Petra, so You dont have to go to Amman. But it is not that easy to go. <BR>Have fun <BR>Gar

Lori

Just got back from a short trip to Jordan and had a great time! You can pick up a guide right where you get your tickets to enter. We had one and a half days in Petra. Dependent on if you like to hike, etc is how much time you should spend there. Contrary to the other post if you can do it it was nice to have more than 5 hours. Yes you can see all the major sites that all the tour groups see, but half the fun is going on the hikes that most folks do not go on adn also enjoying the natural beauty of the wadis, etc. Frankly our guide was not very good, it was nice to have him point out where the high places trail started and ask his opinion on a couple of hikes, but frankly we got just as much information (or more because we could digest it better) from our guide book (we had Footprints). (the extra cost for a second day was an additional 5 JD when purchased as a 2-day ticket) <BR>We also went to Jerash which I would strongly recommend if you have any interest in ancient Roman cities. We spent about 2 hours on site there and you can also pick up a guide there as well---ask at the ticket counter how to do it. We seemed to get more out of that guided tour and I would recommend that, but also read your guide book before you go too. <BR> <BR>Have a great trip! <BR>

Fiona

I was in Petra last May. I think you will need more than 1 day there. The first day is good for getting an overall view of the site, and on the second day you can climb to the high places. The site opens at 6am, and I recommend that, if possible, you get there then. I walked through the Siq at that time, and it was completely quiet and lovely. Cetainly do both climbs, to the High Place of sacrifice, and to the Monastery, but if you are goping to be there in summer do them early in the morning as there is very little shade and it is HOT! Take water and a snack, because everything in the site is expensive - even though the signs say that you are not meant to take food in - and you will drink a lot of water. <BR>Have fun, it is a great place. <BR> <BR>