7 Days in Jordan by Car: Amman, Petra, Wadi Rum and the Dead Sea

A week in Jordan can take you from Amman and the Roman ruins of Jerash to Petra, a night in Wadi Rum and a final afternoon beside the Dead Sea. Hiring a car gives you control over the journey: where to stop, how long to stay and when to move on.

This seven-day Jordan road trip starts and finishes at Queen Alia International Airport near Amman. It includes six overnight stays, a full day exploring Petra and a desert excursion arranged locally in Wadi Rum.

The route is adapted from the family journey described in Eight Days in Jordan on The World As We Found It, based on a visit in May 2022. It rearranges those experiences into a proposed week-long itinerary, with Aqaba, Wadi Bin Hammad and longer stays included as extensions.

Before booking, check the current FCDO advice for Jordan. Advice checked on 28 October 2026 warns of regional disruption and advises against travel to parts of the country. Recheck your route, flights and insurance before committing.

Explore car hire in Jordan, or start with Amman Airport car hire for this itinerary.

Your seven-day Jordan itinerary at a glance

This assumes your arrival and departure days leave enough time for the journeys involved. For an early flight home, spend your final night closer to the airport instead.

For seven days, keep the core route focused. Aqaba and a canyon hike are better added with extra nights than squeezed between Petra and Wadi Rum.

Is hiring a car in Jordan worth it?

For this itinerary, a rental car is useful because you are travelling between several overnight bases and combining places that would otherwise require separate transfers or excursions.

The original family trip found having a car particularly helpful for Jerash, the Dead Sea, Mount Nebo and Wadi Bin Hammad. It also made it possible to change plans and spend longer in Wadi Rum.

A car is less useful while you are walking around Petra or taking a guided desert excursion. Plan where it will be parked during those parts of the trip.

If you would rather avoid driving, compare the complete cost and convenience of a private driver or organised tour. The best choice depends on your group, confidence and preferred pace.

Where should you collect your rental car?

For this round trip, Queen Alia International Airport is the natural collection and return point.

Check the actual handover arrangements before booking. Airport collection may involve a terminal desk, shuttle or meet-and-greet service.

On the original trip, the rental representative met the family in an airport café. The arrangement worked, but it illustrates why you should read the collection instructions rather than assume every company operates a conventional desk.

Compare Amman Airport car-hire options for your dates, checking collection arrangements and rental conditions alongside the total price.

Day 1: Arrive in Amman and collect your hire car

Keep your first day simple. Allow time for immigration, luggage, the rental handover and reaching your accommodation.

Before leaving the collection point:

• Photograph existing damage, including wheels, glass and the interior.
• Check the fuel level and return policy.
• Confirm the deposit, excess and breakdown contact.
• Save the exact return location and instructions.
• Check any child seats before starting the journey.

Choose accommodation with confirmed parking. After a long flight, being able to park and leave the car until morning makes the first evening easier.

If you arrive early, use the remaining time for a meal and a short introduction to Amman. If you arrive late, save sightseeing for another day.

Stay: Amman.

Day 2: Jerash, with an optional visit to Ajloun

Use your first full day for a trip north to Jerash.

The original family visit included its colonnaded streets, temples, theatre and Oval Plaza, followed by Ajloun Castle. That combination gives you a day away from the capital before the longer journey south.

Start with Jerash and give yourself time to explore on foot. Bring water, sun protection and comfortable shoes, and check the current opening hours before leaving.

You can read the family’s guide to visiting Jerash for their experience of the ruins and parking.

Should you add Ajloun?

Add Ajloun if you finish Jerash with enough time and energy. Otherwise, return to Amman for a slower afternoon.

This is an optional stop, rather than a reason to rush Jerash or finish the day with an unnecessarily late drive.

Stay: Amman.

Day 3: Drive from Amman to Petra

Today you move south to Wadi Musa, the town beside Petra.

Choose between a more direct journey and a longer sightseeing day. Madaba and Mount Nebo are possible stops, but each adds time beyond the drive itself.

Mount Nebo featured in the original family trip, with views across the surrounding landscape and mosaics inside the memorial church. Including it on the journey south gives it a place in the seven-day route without saving everything for departure day.

Keep your arrival in Wadi Musa realistic

Leave early if you want sightseeing stops. Allow time for food, parking and checking into your accommodation before the evening.

A scenic route is a different commitment from the fastest road south. Check current navigation and conditions, and choose a route that lets you reach Wadi Musa comfortably.

Book accommodation with parking and establish how you will reach Petra’s visitor entrance the next morning. If it is within comfortable walking distance, you may be able to leave the car parked throughout your visit.

Stay: Wadi Musa.

Day 4: Spend a full day in Petra

Give Petra the whole day.

Start with the walk through the Siq to the Treasury, then continue into the wider archaeological site according to your interests, fitness and the conditions.

The family’s original visit reached the Monastery and included numerous other stops. It was a substantial day on foot. Their one-day Petra itinerary gives a fuller account of that experience.

For your own visit, choose a manageable route rather than treating every landmark as compulsory. Use currently permitted trails and follow site staff’s instructions.

Why stay a second night in Wadi Musa?

The original trip continued to Aqaba after Petra. This version keeps you in Wadi Musa for another night, giving you time to eat, rest and recover before driving again.

That is the main reason for arriving the previous afternoon: you get a full Petra day without putting long road journeys on both sides of it.

If Petra is a priority, a second sightseeing day is the first extension to consider.

Stay: Wadi Musa.

Day 5: Petra to Wadi Rum and a night in the desert

After breakfast, drive towards Wadi Rum and meet your camp or excursion provider at the agreed location.

Confirm the meeting point before setting off. A camp’s map pin may not be somewhere you can reach in an ordinary rental car.

Arrange your desert tour through your camp or the visitor centre. Jordan’s tourism board describes guided 4x4 and camel excursions in Wadi Rum.

What happens to your hire car?

Ask where to park, how the camp transfer works and when you will be returned to the vehicle.

Do not assume hiring an SUV gives you permission to drive across the desert. Vehicle capability, rental-contract permission and local access arrangements are separate questions.

For this itinerary, use your rental car for the road journey and an arranged local excursion for exploring the desert.

What to confirm with your camp

Check the room or tent type, meals, transfers, excursion duration, payment arrangements and any additional charges.

The original family trip included an improvised second stay arranged after meeting a local guide. It became a memorable experience, but advance confirmation gives a week-long itinerary more predictability.

Stay: Wadi Rum.

Day 6: Drive from Wadi Rum to the Dead Sea

After breakfast and your transfer back to the car, begin the journey north.

Treat today primarily as a travel day. Avoid adding a long morning excursion and several sightseeing stops before expecting a relaxed Dead Sea afternoon.

Check the route to your actual accommodation: the Dead Sea covers a long shoreline, so the hotel location matters when planning the drive.

Choose somewhere with confirmed parking and beach access. If you arrive with time to spare, spend the afternoon relaxing rather than trying to fit in another major attraction.

Stay: Dead Sea.

Day 7: Dead Sea time and return to Amman Airport

Use the morning according to your departure time.

With a later flight, you may have time to enjoy your accommodation before checking out. With an early departure, the better plan may be to have moved closer to the airport the previous evening.

Bethany Beyond the Jordan, the Baptism Site, featured on the final day of the original trip. Add it only if current visitor arrangements and your flight schedule leave a comfortable margin.

Leave time for refuelling, locating the rental return, inspection and any transfer to departures.

The original family’s car return was delayed by another customer’s dispute. Their experience is a useful reminder that the drive to the airport is only part of the departure-day timetable.

What type of car should you hire in Jordan?

Choose the car around the roads you intend to use, your passengers and your luggage.

The original family completed their trip in a basic saloon. They would have preferred more ground clearance on the rougher approach to Wadi Bin Hammad.

This seven-day version leaves that canyon visit as an extension. Before choosing a vehicle, confirm that your planned roads are suitable and permitted under the rental agreement.

Compare:

• Enough space for passengers and luggage.
• Air conditioning and your preferred transmission.
• Child-seat availability where needed.
• Deposit and accepted payment-card requirements.
• Excess, exclusions and roadside assistance.
• Collection hours and delayed-flight arrangements.

A higher vehicle category does not automatically include broader insurance or permission to use unpaved roads.

For more detail, read the Jordan car-rental costs and insurance guide and the driving in Jordan guide.

How to extend your Jordan itinerary

Eight days: add a second full day in Petra

Keep the same route and add another night in Wadi Musa.

This gives you more time to explore Petra without making one day carry the whole visit. Check the ticket or pass you choose: the official Jordan Pass packages include options with different numbers of Petra visiting days.

Nine days: add Aqaba and the Red Sea

After Petra, continue to Aqaba for two nights before travelling to Wadi Rum.

That creates space for a full Red Sea day between the archaeological sites and desert. Aqaba featured in the original trip, where beach time and a water park provided a change of pace.

Keep the return to Amman in the plan unless you have separately confirmed suitable flights and a permitted one-way rental arrangement.

Ten days: add Petra time and Aqaba

Combine the extra Petra day with two nights in Aqaba:

More days: choose what you want to slow down

An extra night in Wadi Rum gives you more time for an arranged desert experience. Another day in Amman gives the capital attention the original family trip had little time for.

Wadi Bin Hammad was a highlight of their journey and could form a separate extension. Before adding it, check current local advice, weather, canyon access and road suitability. Its approach and walking conditions deserve their own planning rather than being treated as a quick roadside stop.