Published on Jul, 2023
I did the one day tour of Petra from Eilat. I usually avoid tours because of the size and rigidness of schedule but doing this trip solo was just gonna be too much of a hassle with all the touts/language barrier etc so I opted for a tour. I’m glad I did because the day was effortless and relaxing. Only pushy salespeople at Petra itself.
From my hotel in Eilat I was picked up in a van along with four other participants. We were driven to the border crossing and aided by Ramzi who expedited the additional visa/exit fees, $140. From there we made our way through immigration and were met up with Fadi, our guide for the day. Here we also met up with a bus load of other participants coming from Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
It was a large group but Fadi was great. You can tell he’s passionate about his job and introducing Petra, his hometown, to us. We were told about the history of the site during our ride to Petra. There was a nice break to deprive us of some $ at a souvenir shop but that was expected. We were given about two hours at Petra this included about a 60-75 minute tour from the entrance to the Treasury by Fadi who did a wonderful job at keeping me entertained. There was about 45 mins to wander independently before meeting at Sandstone restaurant for our lunch buffet. I made it as far as the amphitheater before I turned around and headed to the resto.
I think a day is sufficient at Petra unless you arrive on a day that also has the night candle entry. If so I’d stay o/n and do the night entry in the evening and come back to Petra the following day and explore it further to the monastery.
Buffet lunch was ok with typical appetizers of the region and three meat dishes along with a very mushy vegetarian spaghetti entree. Only one small plastic cup of water was provided but you can purchase more beverages.
Return to the border back to Israel was straightforward. We made another pit stop for a coffee/watermelon break and more souvenirs.
For me the standout was Fadi, which is why I’m giving it 5/5. Otherwise, I think the tour would merit 3.5/5.
