By ALEX
Day by day review of our choice of hotels, camps, guesthouses… during our trip to Jordan. Check our itinerary here.
We try to find the right balance between quality and price, and for this trip in particular and given Jordan is not the most expensive country, we decided to stay mostly in hotels. We booked some of them in advance using Booking.com, but left a few nights open so that we could adapt on the go!
DAY 1. MADABA – Rumman Hotel
Since we arrived quite late, and our plan was to leave Amman for the last days of our trip, we rented a car at the airport and drove straight to Madaba. We’d booked this one in advance, which was a good idea since we arrived in Madaba pretty late at night.
Price: 29 JD (jordanian dinar) = 35€ including breakfast
Booking.com: 8,5
POSITIVES: Super friendly staff (waited late at night for us to arrive and even sent us indications), very spacious room and great breakfast with homemade typical jordanian food. Location is quite good, as you are in walking distance to the centre, but still in a quiet area.
NEGATIVES: Nothing too important, apart from the room being a bit cold on arrival, and the overall aspect of it not being the coziest.
Overall, we feel this was above expectations for that price tag, and would definitely go back.
DAYS 2 AND 3. PETRA (Wadi Musa) – Peace Way Hotel
We’d booked two nights in Petra, and ended up extending it to three. The first two night we stayed at Peace Way Hotel, since we found a great deal online.
Price: 56JD = 70€ including breakfast
Booking.com: 8,5
POSITIVES: Clean, recently renovated and comfortable overall.
NEGATIVES: Despite the good appearance, there were a few things that didn’t make us feel too welcome. Staff wasn’t very friendly, room had just a tiny window, bathroom door was falling to pieces… and mainly, even though we ordered it the night before (and payed 10JD for it, which it was definitely not worth) we had to wait nearly 45 minutes for a lunch bag in the morning, killing our plan of entering Petra before the crowds did.
Overall, we have mixed feelings about this one, but we’d try to find a different option for future trips.
DAY 4. PETRA (Wadi Musa) – Petra Gate Hotel
Our third night in Petra wasn’t planned, so we had to find a different accomodation, since the previous hotel had no rooms available. Petra Gate Hotel was close to the other one, and was one of the few to still have a room left.
Price: 48€ including dinner.
Booking.com: 7,2
POSITIVES: Not many to be honest, but somehow we felt a lot more welcome than the previous nights. The owner was extremely friendly, and the home cooked dinner he served at the rooftop terrace was delicious. The views from this terrace are pretty nice, as it overlooks Wadi Musa and Petra.
NEGATIVES: The most uncomfortable of our stays in Jordan by far. Room was tiny, beds were old and in pretty bad shape, bathroom was…well, let’s say at least there was hot water. And of course, the price was far from fair. But hey, let’s remember this is a room in Petra booked on the same day! Can’t really complain, right?
Overall, not something we’d recommend unless you are on a very tight budget and book it early in advance to find the right deal. The mood was fun though, with friendly staff and guests.
PETRA is one of the New 7 Wonders of the World, and one of the most beautiful and impressive places we’ve visited. As such, be aware that whatever the season, there will be plenty of people looking to get lost in its hills and valleys, canyons and tombs.
That’s why we recommend that you book your accomodation in advance. There are a few good places that fill up pretty quickly.
DAY 5. WADI RUM – Wadi Rum Sky Camp
We didn’t know how many nights we’d stay in Petra, therefore we hadn’t booked anything for this one in advance. We contacted the bedouin owner of this camp, Solaiman, via whatsapp after a recommendation from fellow travelers in Petra. You can find many of these camps in Booking.com, but we think it’s better to contact them directly, since you get to discuss the type of tour, clarify all your questions… bedouins are notably know for their hospitality, and this was no exception!
Price: 120JD = 150€ including private guided 4×4 tour, lunch cooked by your bedouin guide, typical dinner at the camp, breakfast, and all the tea you can drink!
Booking.com: 9
Contact Solaiman: +962779962155 / rumtours@yahoo.com
POSITIVES: Our guide Mahmoud was a master lute player, great cook, and very friendly and funny. Dinner was epic, consisting of a typical bedouin roast that is cooked for hours buried underground in the desert sand. The guys will play music and sing under the candle light.
NEGATIVES: This is just up to bad luck, but we had to sleep through a sand storm all night, so we didn’t get much rest. The sand will enter the tents through the smallest crack and the wind will blow loud enough to wake you. The tents/cabins are quite small, not that we are complaining, just warning those who don’t like camping!
Overall. Posibly the best experience of the trip. We’d surely recommend it. It may look a bit over-budget, but keep in mind all the things it includes. You won’t regret it!
DAY 6. ÁQABA – Afnan Hotel
We wanted to spend a day snorkeling in the Red Sea, and what better way to do it than spending one night in Áqaba. Not the most beautiful but a very lively city, and nearby you’ll find some of the best coral reefs we’ve seen just a few metres off the beach.
Price: 30JD = 37€ (no breakfast)
Booking.com: 8,5
POSITIVES: Spacious room and bathroom. Good location near the local beach and waterfront, and in walking distance to the centre and the nightlife/restaurants area. We arrived quite early and found the owner sleeping in his office after a long night out, but he turned out to be a really nice guy who helped us a lot with recommendations on where to go snorkeling and dining.
NEGATIVES: Not much, apart from not having breakfast available at the time we were there, and not having easy parking nearby. Also, not too easy too find with just a small door into a staircase. Had to wait for them to finish cleaning up the room, since we caught them still sleeping at noon! xD
Overall, this wasn’t a bad choice at all. We just needed a place to rest and to be close to the beach after days of dust, sweat and sand in Petra an Wadi Rum.
QUICK SAVING TIP:
In order to compensate spending a bit more on the Amman hotel, we booked our flights really early in the morning (1am). We find this to be a great way to save some money when travelling. You board the plane and, next thing you know, you are landing at home. No need to pay for an extra night just to go to the airport in the morning! 😉
DAY 7. AMMAN – Ayass Hotel
There was plenty of thought put into this one. We couldn’t decide whether to book some nice little hostel near the Citadel and the Roman Theatre, or to find something a bit further from the city centre. Driving in Amman, as in most of these cities, can get a bit crazy, so we ended up favouring the second option. We’d park our car there and take taxis to the main attractions.
Price: 91€ suite including breakfast
Booking.com: 8,9
POSITIVES: We got upgraded to a massive suite, with a living room and huge bathroom. The hotel has everything you may need, and the staff will help you arrange your taxi pick ups or whatever you may need. Very good breakfast buffet too.
NEGATIVES: The flip side of the coin was that we got upgraded to the only suite (and room) left in the hotel, since they had a big wedding going on. And it was a smoking room, which we hate… They couldn’t do anything about it since the hotel was fully booked.
Overall, the smoking room ruined it a little bit. We decided to spend a bit more on this one expecting it to be as comfortable as it gets after a few intense days of travel. Not to say this isn’t a great hotel, but it being so big made it feel a bit too impersonal and characterless… I guess when you pay more you get to be a bit more picky!
We really hope this was helpful! It’s our honest opinion on what we experienced, mistakes included so that you can avoid them!
