Jordan - self-drive or a tour
Jul 30, 2016, 2:20 pm
#1
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Jordan - self-drive or a tour
Will visit Jordan in January followed by UAE and HKG (I know it is the worst month to visit Jordan due to the rain and coldness).
Have allocated about a week for Jordan. Petra and Jerash are the 2 sites that we definitely will visit. Other areas are included in the planning but not necessarily "must see".
We plan to rent a car but would also look into customized tours.
Could those have done Jordan give some insights on their trips, especially those who have done a customized tours, recommendation of the companies are much appreciated.
Have allocated about a week for Jordan. Petra and Jerash are the 2 sites that we definitely will visit. Other areas are included in the planning but not necessarily "must see".
We plan to rent a car but would also look into customized tours.
Could those have done Jordan give some insights on their trips, especially those who have done a customized tours, recommendation of the companies are much appreciated.
Jul 30, 2016, 4:26 pm
#2
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Have you tried doing a search?
"Jordan tours" brings up myriad results, including this one http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/middl...ate-guide.html
"Jordan tours" brings up myriad results, including this one http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/middl...ate-guide.html
Jul 30, 2016, 4:40 pm
#3
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Have you tried doing a search?
"Jordan tours" brings up myriad results, including this one http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/middl...ate-guide.html
"Jordan tours" brings up myriad results, including this one http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/middl...ate-guide.html
Sent an email to Jordan Select Tours and still waiting for their response.
Ditto for another operator.
Though I have gotten a reply from an operator not mentioned in FT but found on TripAdvisor.
However, the primary goal for this thread is to ask IF there are any readers have done self-drive in Jordan?
On Non-English sites I have read a few self-drive trip reports that show self-drive is relatively easy in Jordan so I thought may be some FTers would have done the self-drive and could share their experiences.
Jul 31, 2016, 9:03 am
#5
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Jordanian here. Self driving is definitely the preferred option,much cheaper and offers more flexibility.
Driving outside Amman is really easy in my opinion,in Amman itself it's a bit harder because of ...well the driving culture and difficulty to find parking spots in some places.
PS:Feel free to PM me your dates,would be happy to meet a fellow FTer if I am in town during your visit.
Driving outside Amman is really easy in my opinion,in Amman itself it's a bit harder because of ...well the driving culture and difficulty to find parking spots in some places.
PS:Feel free to PM me your dates,would be happy to meet a fellow FTer if I am in town during your visit.
Jul 31, 2016, 9:11 am
#6
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yes but driving in Amman is not for the faint of heart. The roundabouts are a nuisance as well as traffic. if you are doing a week in Jordan, Im assuming you are doing Aqaba as well or at least a resort in the Dead Sea. Petra is a must see. but it can be done as a day trip from Amman. Jerash is a half day trip unless you are a massive history buff. Did the drive to Aqaba two years ago - extremely easy. but the car rental agencies there aren't the most reliable. had rented an SUV - ended up with a corolla. You can rent a driver for the day easily at most hotels, and just rent guides at Petra or jerash. if driving to Wadi Rum and Aqaba I would rent a car, otherwise its a hassle if your base is in Amman
Jul 31, 2016, 9:36 am
#7
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That's changing fairly soon with plans for most circles (except 1st and 2nd) to be converted into traffic light intersections. 7th and 8th circle have already been converted into traffic light intersections and driving thru them is a breeze.
Jul 31, 2016, 9:40 am
#8
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We used the tour company recommended by kokonutz and were well pleased with it. My husband is very comfortable driving almost anywhere around the world, but having a driver allowed him to relax and meant we didn't have to concern ourselves with navigation and parking. We filled our schedule with more activities since the driver could confidently find everything. Excellent guides were prebooked for us at major stops. In Amman, we were taken to restaurants, juice bars, and shops. I can't imagine doing our own driving to them. We booked our own hotels.
Jordan Select Tours
Tel. +962 6 5930588
Fax. +962 6 5930811
[email protected] - agent we used
www.select.jo
Jordan Select Tours
Tel. +962 6 5930588
Fax. +962 6 5930811
[email protected] - agent we used
www.select.jo
Jul 31, 2016, 11:48 am
#9
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Jul 31, 2016, 12:20 pm
#10
Join Date: Sep 2009
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Posts: 77
Self Drive way to go
Yes I did. Please see my other post about the Dakkak tours email address found on its website is not functional.
Sent an email to Jordan Select Tours and still waiting for their response.
Ditto for another operator.
Though I have gotten a reply from an operator not mentioned in FT but found on TripAdvisor.
However, the primary goal for this thread is to ask IF there are any readers have done self-drive in Jordan?
On Non-English sites I have read a few self-drive trip reports that show self-drive is relatively easy in Jordan so I thought may be some FTers would have done the self-drive and could share their experiences.
Sent an email to Jordan Select Tours and still waiting for their response.
Ditto for another operator.
Though I have gotten a reply from an operator not mentioned in FT but found on TripAdvisor.
However, the primary goal for this thread is to ask IF there are any readers have done self-drive in Jordan?
On Non-English sites I have read a few self-drive trip reports that show self-drive is relatively easy in Jordan so I thought may be some FTers would have done the self-drive and could share their experiences.
Jul 31, 2016, 3:08 pm
#11
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Thank you guys for your suggestions.
We are inclined to do self-drive as that offers much more flexibility.
@Rami Tamimi -
Will send you a PM. While our trip is in Jan 2017, we might get to meet much earlier based on the location(s) listed in your profile.
Currently we are thinking about Grand Hyatt or Le Meridian in Amman. I know Grand Hyatt is at 3rd circle, a bit away from the center of old town but still is classified as old town. How is the degree of difficult finding Grand Hyatt when driving to town from AMM?
@Ashasan2005 -
We dont plan to base in Amman. If we do self-drive we would most likely immediately go to Madaba after our arrival at AMM as our flight arrives just past 6pm. Can't see the reason to fight the traffic to go in Amman proper (let alone the old city), then the next day we would head south to Petra or Aqaba.
Just read someone's note on their Jordan portion (Jan 2016) of a 50 days trip - that the road from Dead Sea to Petra was not in good condition (but it would pass Little Petra so the view was excellent). The road condition Aqaba - Wadi Rum - Petra is in a lot better condition.
Preliminary thought is to go to Madaba after arrival. Then head south to Aqaba the next day. Aqada-Wadi Rum - Petra the next day. Since it is January, dont plan to spend the night inside Wadi Rum. In fact probably would not even get inside Wadi Rum as the views are quite similar to what one would see in our National Parks in Southwest such as Utah.
Currently do not know if we want to stop at Dead Sea for a night. The tour operator quoted a night at Dead Sea. We have seen the Israel's side of Dead Sea. While we realize the Jordan's side is much prettier, not sure we need a night there other than it being a Pit Stop to rest.
We can go straight to Jerash in the morning, then return to AMM to turn in our car. Take a taxi to Amman proper to spend a night in old town. Fly to AUH or DXB the next day. Have not arranged this flight yet - it depends on how many days we need to spend in Jordan.
@stimpy -
Quite a bit of difference between driving in Amman especially the old town and driving round the circle of Are de Triumph. Your analogy makes no sense even without considering the cultural difference. Just the design of the city would make your analogy totally without base - Paris is vastly different from Amman, from the historical time when the cities were designed, to the geographic setting. FYI, Amman sits on 7 "hills", while Paris is not, at least only a small part of the city is on hill.
In practice, driving around Arc de Triumph is very easy - if you are not sure which road to turn into, just round another round. Besides, any of the 8 boulevards you turn into, are straight, main roads with at least 2 lanes each side, often doubled, versus many streets in old town Amman are very narrow, short, wounding and have no sense of direction.
Basically you are comparing vanilla and chocolate.
@SanDiego1K
Thanks for your recommendation of the tour operator. I did contact them 2 days ago and got a quote from them today - the itinerary while they claimed being customized, really is not - just their 6 days itinerary without hotels in Amman and Petra (I told them we would have our own hotels). Many of the sites they include in the itinerary we are not interested.
There is another "one-man" operation I have contacted, whose name I found in several threads on TA and a blog. Will wait for his detailed reply on how the itinerary looks like. (I gave him our preliminary self-drive route and what sites are must see and what other sites can be included if they are enroute.)
My husband prefers self-drive than has a car and a driver.
Even we self-drive I think we would probably get a local guide at Petra, primarily for the side trip to Little Petra, which from what I read, takes some effort to find. Having a guide would save effort and time.
@Teresita
Thanks a lot for the encouragement!
<< I paid extra for liability insurance.>> I understand the rental car rates include the liability insurance AND CDW with an excess (deductible). But I also read about the subject of buying extra liability insurance which is to cover property loss and bodily injury (to others).
Do you mind to offer some details on that, as well as the hotel which come to pick you up at AMM? Did you rent your car from local company or from the worldwide company?
We also plan to stay in Madaba the first night but with the rental car picked up at AMM.
Again, thank y'all for posting. Hope more suggestions would come in.
We are inclined to do self-drive as that offers much more flexibility.
@Rami Tamimi -
Will send you a PM. While our trip is in Jan 2017, we might get to meet much earlier based on the location(s) listed in your profile.
Currently we are thinking about Grand Hyatt or Le Meridian in Amman. I know Grand Hyatt is at 3rd circle, a bit away from the center of old town but still is classified as old town. How is the degree of difficult finding Grand Hyatt when driving to town from AMM?
@Ashasan2005 -
We dont plan to base in Amman. If we do self-drive we would most likely immediately go to Madaba after our arrival at AMM as our flight arrives just past 6pm. Can't see the reason to fight the traffic to go in Amman proper (let alone the old city), then the next day we would head south to Petra or Aqaba.
Just read someone's note on their Jordan portion (Jan 2016) of a 50 days trip - that the road from Dead Sea to Petra was not in good condition (but it would pass Little Petra so the view was excellent). The road condition Aqaba - Wadi Rum - Petra is in a lot better condition.
Preliminary thought is to go to Madaba after arrival. Then head south to Aqaba the next day. Aqada-Wadi Rum - Petra the next day. Since it is January, dont plan to spend the night inside Wadi Rum. In fact probably would not even get inside Wadi Rum as the views are quite similar to what one would see in our National Parks in Southwest such as Utah.
Currently do not know if we want to stop at Dead Sea for a night. The tour operator quoted a night at Dead Sea. We have seen the Israel's side of Dead Sea. While we realize the Jordan's side is much prettier, not sure we need a night there other than it being a Pit Stop to rest.
We can go straight to Jerash in the morning, then return to AMM to turn in our car. Take a taxi to Amman proper to spend a night in old town. Fly to AUH or DXB the next day. Have not arranged this flight yet - it depends on how many days we need to spend in Jordan.
@stimpy -
Quite a bit of difference between driving in Amman especially the old town and driving round the circle of Are de Triumph. Your analogy makes no sense even without considering the cultural difference. Just the design of the city would make your analogy totally without base - Paris is vastly different from Amman, from the historical time when the cities were designed, to the geographic setting. FYI, Amman sits on 7 "hills", while Paris is not, at least only a small part of the city is on hill.
In practice, driving around Arc de Triumph is very easy - if you are not sure which road to turn into, just round another round. Besides, any of the 8 boulevards you turn into, are straight, main roads with at least 2 lanes each side, often doubled, versus many streets in old town Amman are very narrow, short, wounding and have no sense of direction.
Basically you are comparing vanilla and chocolate.
@SanDiego1K
Thanks for your recommendation of the tour operator. I did contact them 2 days ago and got a quote from them today - the itinerary while they claimed being customized, really is not - just their 6 days itinerary without hotels in Amman and Petra (I told them we would have our own hotels). Many of the sites they include in the itinerary we are not interested.
There is another "one-man" operation I have contacted, whose name I found in several threads on TA and a blog. Will wait for his detailed reply on how the itinerary looks like. (I gave him our preliminary self-drive route and what sites are must see and what other sites can be included if they are enroute.)
My husband prefers self-drive than has a car and a driver.
Even we self-drive I think we would probably get a local guide at Petra, primarily for the side trip to Little Petra, which from what I read, takes some effort to find. Having a guide would save effort and time.
@Teresita
Thanks a lot for the encouragement!
<< I paid extra for liability insurance.>> I understand the rental car rates include the liability insurance AND CDW with an excess (deductible). But I also read about the subject of buying extra liability insurance which is to cover property loss and bodily injury (to others).
Do you mind to offer some details on that, as well as the hotel which come to pick you up at AMM? Did you rent your car from local company or from the worldwide company?
We also plan to stay in Madaba the first night but with the rental car picked up at AMM.
Again, thank y'all for posting. Hope more suggestions would come in.
Jul 31, 2016, 3:26 pm
#12
Join Date: Oct 2012
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Posts: 2,188
Currently we are thinking about Grand Hyatt or Le Meridian in Amman. I know Grand Hyatt is at 3rd circle, a bit away from the center of old town but still is classified as old town. How is the degree of difficult finding Grand Hyatt when driving to town from AMM?
A lot of my friends and a few Flyertalkers who visited Amman stayed at Hyatt and were extremely satisfied.
We dont plan to base in Amman. If we do self-drive we would most likely immediately go to Madaba after our arrival at AMM as our flight arrives just past 6pm
Jul 31, 2016, 4:04 pm
#13
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: Aadvantage
Posts: 77
Rental car
@Teresita
Thanks a lot for the encouragement!
<< I paid extra for liability insurance.>> I understand the rental car rates include the liability insurance AND CDW with an excess (deductible). But I also read about the subject of buying extra liability insurance which is to cover property loss and bodily injury (to others).
Do you mind to offer some details on that, as well as the hotel which come to pick you up at AMM? Did you rent your car from local company or from the worldwide company?
We also plan to stay in Madaba the first night but with the rental car picked up at AMM.
Again, thank y'all for posting. Hope more suggestions would come in.[/QUOTE]
Hi, we stayed at the Mariam Hotel in Madaba, which was OK, but I am not 30 anymore! Just look through the reviews and pick a newer one. I am sure any hotel in Madaba will arrange for an airport pick-up (equidistant as Amman). We used Reliable Rental Car. They dropped off and picked up the car in Madaba. We spent our last night in Madaba and booked an airport transfer from the hotel. BTW, The Miriam Hotel Website has useful information under their "Organized Tours" section---we didn't take any, as we had the car---but distances in kilometers and hours were good to know. About the car---Here is a CUT & PASTE from an email I sent someone else:
We booked the company below, Reliable, as they would deliver the car to our Madaba hotel, and we could leave it there. Then the hotel drove us to the airport the next day. But most of the major companies are in Jordan, if you already have a Hertz membership, for instance. Reliable was fine. I insisted on liability insurance (CDW is included) as I don't have coverage outside of Mexico, and my girlfriend wasn't sure about her USA policy. That jacked up the price quite a bit----so check this out ahead of time with your CC or auto insurance policy. Liability is not required, but some Jordanian roads and drivers are not the best. I was glad I had a lot of experience driving in Mexico. Renting a car is just fine, but be on your toes, look for speed bumps (both of you!) and have GPS coordinates of hotels, sites, in advance.
http://www.rentareliablecar.com
Re GPS sites---good to program them in the night before (they are online). I don't remember any trouble finding Little Petra. At Petra itself, there is an interesting hike from the backway, that a local guide took us on (check at your hotel). We stayed at a B&B, but I would have rather stayed at one of the two hotels at the site. There are foldable walking poles on sale everywhere. I wish I had bought some---they fit in a carry-on. You will have a wonderful time!
Thanks a lot for the encouragement!
<< I paid extra for liability insurance.>> I understand the rental car rates include the liability insurance AND CDW with an excess (deductible). But I also read about the subject of buying extra liability insurance which is to cover property loss and bodily injury (to others).
Do you mind to offer some details on that, as well as the hotel which come to pick you up at AMM? Did you rent your car from local company or from the worldwide company?
We also plan to stay in Madaba the first night but with the rental car picked up at AMM.
Again, thank y'all for posting. Hope more suggestions would come in.[/QUOTE]
Hi, we stayed at the Mariam Hotel in Madaba, which was OK, but I am not 30 anymore! Just look through the reviews and pick a newer one. I am sure any hotel in Madaba will arrange for an airport pick-up (equidistant as Amman). We used Reliable Rental Car. They dropped off and picked up the car in Madaba. We spent our last night in Madaba and booked an airport transfer from the hotel. BTW, The Miriam Hotel Website has useful information under their "Organized Tours" section---we didn't take any, as we had the car---but distances in kilometers and hours were good to know. About the car---Here is a CUT & PASTE from an email I sent someone else:
We booked the company below, Reliable, as they would deliver the car to our Madaba hotel, and we could leave it there. Then the hotel drove us to the airport the next day. But most of the major companies are in Jordan, if you already have a Hertz membership, for instance. Reliable was fine. I insisted on liability insurance (CDW is included) as I don't have coverage outside of Mexico, and my girlfriend wasn't sure about her USA policy. That jacked up the price quite a bit----so check this out ahead of time with your CC or auto insurance policy. Liability is not required, but some Jordanian roads and drivers are not the best. I was glad I had a lot of experience driving in Mexico. Renting a car is just fine, but be on your toes, look for speed bumps (both of you!) and have GPS coordinates of hotels, sites, in advance.
http://www.rentareliablecar.com
Re GPS sites---good to program them in the night before (they are online). I don't remember any trouble finding Little Petra. At Petra itself, there is an interesting hike from the backway, that a local guide took us on (check at your hotel). We stayed at a B&B, but I would have rather stayed at one of the two hotels at the site. There are foldable walking poles on sale everywhere. I wish I had bought some---they fit in a carry-on. You will have a wonderful time!
Jul 31, 2016, 4:26 pm
#14
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Join Date: Feb 1999
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Posts: 34,339
@stimpy -
Quite a bit of difference between driving in Amman especially the old town and driving round the circle of Are de Triumph. Your analogy makes no sense even without considering the cultural difference. Just the design of the city would make your analogy totally without base - Paris is vastly different from Amman, from the historical time when the cities were designed, to the geographic setting. FYI, Amman sits on 7 "hills", while Paris is not, at least only a small part of the city is on hill.
In practice, driving around Arc de Triumph is very easy - if you are not sure which road to turn into, just round another round. Besides, any of the 8 boulevards you turn into, are straight, main roads with at least 2 lanes each side, often doubled, versus many streets in old town Amman are very narrow, short, wounding and have no sense of direction.
Quite a bit of difference between driving in Amman especially the old town and driving round the circle of Are de Triumph. Your analogy makes no sense even without considering the cultural difference. Just the design of the city would make your analogy totally without base - Paris is vastly different from Amman, from the historical time when the cities were designed, to the geographic setting. FYI, Amman sits on 7 "hills", while Paris is not, at least only a small part of the city is on hill.
In practice, driving around Arc de Triumph is very easy - if you are not sure which road to turn into, just round another round. Besides, any of the 8 boulevards you turn into, are straight, main roads with at least 2 lanes each side, often doubled, versus many streets in old town Amman are very narrow, short, wounding and have no sense of direction.
A. There are no lanes at either.
B. There are aggressive drivers at both zipping through in all directions
C. You have to have your head on a swivel, but as long as you pay attention and be a bit aggressive yourself, you'll be fine.
Aug 1, 2016, 2:04 pm
#15
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Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 29,755
@Rami Tamimi
Thanks for the good tip on how to get to Grand Hyatt as well as the recommendation at Madaba.
@Teresita
I have looked into the liability insurance in Jordan rental cars. Liability insurance is included in the rental rate but is at the minimum level required by the government. Hence there is recommendation to buy extra liability insurance.
CDW seems to be mandatory in Jordan as I see Avis site grayed out the option and included the CDW in the rate, ditto SIXT and Thrifty.
Yes we have Hertz Gold but Hertz rates are not competitive. Thrifty's prices are better than Avis, and slightly better than SIXT which seems to charge additional for services that normally are included in Avis / Hertz / Thrifty's rate, such as basic road side assistance. Albeit in a country like Jordan, I suspect whatever road assistance one might have, would still come much much later. Therefore the quality of the car makes some difference.
I checked with TomTom site on the map for Middle East. Unfortunately it is not available for our existing model.
Yes we always input the coordinates into our TomTom before we leave for the trip. Now we need to figure out if we should buy another TomTom just so to be able to buy the map! May need to rely on Google once we get a SIM card for the phone. Maps.Me has fairly good offline map with some crude route function. It works well on tablet, even gives coordinates at touch - which Google Map is unable to do on tablet.
Preliminary research indicates that one can drive from Petra to Little Petra, where the Bedouin village is at - from Little Petra there is a trail leads to the top of the Monastery - seems to save a lot of the uphill walk from the usual way that leads to the front of the Monastery. This worth exploring!
Thanks for the good tip on how to get to Grand Hyatt as well as the recommendation at Madaba.
@Teresita
I have looked into the liability insurance in Jordan rental cars. Liability insurance is included in the rental rate but is at the minimum level required by the government. Hence there is recommendation to buy extra liability insurance.
CDW seems to be mandatory in Jordan as I see Avis site grayed out the option and included the CDW in the rate, ditto SIXT and Thrifty.
Yes we have Hertz Gold but Hertz rates are not competitive. Thrifty's prices are better than Avis, and slightly better than SIXT which seems to charge additional for services that normally are included in Avis / Hertz / Thrifty's rate, such as basic road side assistance. Albeit in a country like Jordan, I suspect whatever road assistance one might have, would still come much much later. Therefore the quality of the car makes some difference.
I checked with TomTom site on the map for Middle East. Unfortunately it is not available for our existing model.
Yes we always input the coordinates into our TomTom before we leave for the trip. Now we need to figure out if we should buy another TomTom just so to be able to buy the map! May need to rely on Google once we get a SIM card for the phone. Maps.Me has fairly good offline map with some crude route function. It works well on tablet, even gives coordinates at touch - which Google Map is unable to do on tablet.
Preliminary research indicates that one can drive from Petra to Little Petra, where the Bedouin village is at - from Little Petra there is a trail leads to the top of the Monastery - seems to save a lot of the uphill walk from the usual way that leads to the front of the Monastery. This worth exploring!