Many travellers write to me from Aqaba, on the Red Sea. Good news: the desert is very close. One hour on the road and you are standing below Jebel Rum. Here is how to get here, what happens when you arrive, and how to make the most of your time.
How long from Aqaba?
Wadi Rum is about 70 km from Aqaba. You drive north on the Desert Highway, then turn right towards Wadi Rum. Allow roughly one hour. The road is good, and in the last few kilometres the red mountains start rising in front of you.
To see where Wadi Rum sits in relation to Petra and Amman, have a look at our Wadi Rum map.
By taxi: the easiest way
This is what most of our guests choose. We can book a taxi for you with a driver we trust, at a fixed price, who drops you right at our meeting point.
- From Aqaba city: 25 JOD per taxi
- From Tala Bay (South Beach): 30 JOD per taxi
- From King Hussein Airport, Aqaba: 35 JOD per taxi
The price is per taxi, not per person. Just tell us your address and your departure time when you book your tour.
By bus
A JETT bus leaves the JETT station in Aqaba every morning at 8 am and goes to the Wadi Rum Visitor Center. It is the cheapest option, but there is only one departure, so check the time the day before.
There are also small local minibuses. They have no fixed timetable and often leave when they are full. If you have a tour booked at a set time, a taxi is more relaxed.
By rental car
Rented a car in Aqaba? Perfect, the drive is easy. You leave it in the large free car park next to the Rest House, and we head into the desert together by 4×4. Normal cars are not made for the sand.
Arriving: Visitor Center and Rest House
Before entering the protected area, everyone stops at the Visitor Center. Entry costs 7 JOD per person. If you have the Jordan Pass, entry is free: just show it. Keep your ticket with you for your whole stay.
Then it is about ten minutes to the village. Our meeting point is the Wadi Rum Rest House, at the entrance of the village. That is where I wait for you, or someone from my family. To learn more, read Wadi Rum Village and Visitor Center.
A day trip or a night?
A day trip
If you are short on time, one day is enough to discover the main sites: the red dunes, the canyons, the rock arches, the ancient inscriptions. Leave Aqaba early, join a jeep tour (half day from 35 JOD per person) and head back in the evening.
A night in the desert
But if you can, stay one night. The desert changes completely when the sun goes down. We light the fire, make tea, and dinner cooks slowly, often a zarb under the sand. Then the sky fills with stars. The next morning, you go back to Aqaba or carry on to Petra.
A night in the desert starts at 20 JOD per person, dinner and breakfast included. And the full-day 4×4 tour with the night starts at 45 JOD.
Going on to Petra?
We arrange the taxi between Wadi Rum and Petra. I do not guide inside Petra, but I explain everything so you can combine both: Petra and Wadi Rum.
My tips before you leave
- Take out dinars in Aqaba: the only ATM is at the Visitor Center and it does not always work
- Bring water, a hat, sunscreen and sunglasses
- Even in summer, pack a light layer for the evening
- Send us your arrival time, we adapt
- Coming from Amman or Petra? Read how to get to Wadi Rum
— Eid, your Bedouin guide at Wadi Rum Best Tours
