Wadi Rum (camping with Bedouins)

Camping with the beduins is expensive and it is hard
to find cheaper than 25JD for a night with dinner and breakfast. We
walked around town helped a guy fix his truck and he set us up with a
camp for 18JD and then we got a camel ride to Lawrence Spring (30min)
for 7JD. We then hiked around the desert for 4 hrs. The desert seemed
almost identical to Moab, Utah. Our camp was called Mohammed Hussain
Camping and it had bathrooms and a communal tent with a fire place and
then separate tent rooms with thin mattresses and thick blankets. Our
host was really friendly. We saw a couple other tents and they all
look similar. Leaving Wadi Rum we got on the bus that goes to Petra at
8:30am and for 2JD it dropped us at the main highway. Then we
hitchhiker to Aqaba which didn't take long at all and the guy from
Tennessee who picked us up took us all the way to the boarder. Leaving
Jordan you have to pay 8JD and then walk across to Israel.

Petra

I stayed at Valentine Inn near the central circle of Wadi Musa
(dorm 5.5JD, breakfast 1.5JD, lunch box 2.5JD, dinner 5JD) the dorm
had 9 beds and a bathroom with hot water from 5:00pm-8:30pm, free wifi
in the lobby and free shuttle bus to the Petra gate at 7 and 8am and
back from petra at 4 and 5pm. The dinner is a very big buffet that is
very good. Breakfast is a little weak, the lunch box is good.

Entrance to Petra is 50JD for one day! 55 for 2 days. Petra is huge
and would be a good place for longer hikes on days after seeing the
main sites. After passing through the Siq if you stay to the right and
walk along the tombs there is a path that leads up above the treasury
which is a really cool view point. The Monestary is a must see and it
may be better than the treasury. Also recommend going to the "Place of
high sacrifice". I did all that in one day starting at 8am and
finishing at 5pm but it was a pretty grueling day and I think it was
about 30km of hiking. Leaving Wadi Musa I caught the bus to Wadi Rum
for 5JD (2hrs) with a german guy to go camping in the desert.

Karak

The bus drops off at
the base of the hill and I hopped in a van up to the castle for
0.50JD. At the castle I went into the Tower Hotel near the gate and
talked to them about onward transport. They said they didn't think
there were anymore buses heading south but said i could try and They
let me keep my backpack there while I explored the castle.

The castle is really cool! I spent about 2 hours exploring it. It was
built by the crusaders and is in pretty good shape. Admission is 1JD
and it's helpful to have a flashlight because there are lots of
passages and caverns to explore.

After exploring the castle i decided to try to get a ride to Wadi Musa
(Petra) from one of the tour buses parked at the castle gate. I asked
a couple bus drivers but they said it was up to the tour guides. I
talked to the tour guide of a German group and he talked to his driver
and the Germans and they allowed me to hitch a ride! First guide i
asked, Awesome. It took about 2.5 hrs to get to Wadi Musa.

Amman

On the plane to Amman I met a nice woman from England who was being
picked up by her driver and offered me a ride which worked out great.
I booked the Abbasi Palace Hotel in downtown Amman (Saqf Al Sail -
Quraysh St. Tel: +962 6 4611686, qaser.abbasi@gmail.com) a dorm bed is
6JD and its a bed in a room with only 2 beds. The woman who runs the
place is very nice and she gave me a private room with a big bed,
heater, and shared bathroom with hot shower for 8JD and my room was
very quiet. All rates include breakfast which was quite filling and
they have free wifi. There is a nice common room and the staff is
extremely helpful. Its also in a good location for visiting the sites
of Amman. Recommend staying here.

I also looked at the Palace Hotel which is seemed slightly more
upmarket and had single rooms with shared bathroom for 12JD.

Jerash: did a day trip to Jerash to see the Roman ruins. Took a taxi
to the Northeast Bus station (2JD) then a minibus to Jerash (0.90JD).
Unfortunately I thought the bus ended in Jerash but it actually went
to Abdul so I rode the bus right through Jerish without realizing it
and went 30min too far. Then had to take another bus (0.50JD) back to
Jerish.

The ruins are right in the center of town and cover a pretty big area.
Admission is 8JD. I spent 2hrs exploring them and then took the last
bus back to Amman (1JD, 1hr) which left around 4:45pm. Upon returning
to the North East bus station I caught a shared taxi (white taxis) to
downtown center for 0.35JD. These taxis, also known as service taxis
are great cause they're so cheap but they only leave when full so
timing is an issue.

Going to Karak I took a taxi to the Southern bus station (2.10JD) and
caught the bus to Karak which ended up leaving around noon (1.60JD).
It was an old coach bus and took about 1:45hrs.