Top 10 things to see in Petra
If you’re traveling with kids, these are the absolute top 10 things to see in Petra, a UNESCO world heritage site and one of the new seven wonders of the world. Petra is also known as the Lost City for having been deserted between 7th century AD to early 19th century and the Rose Red City for the color of rock from which many of the city’s structures were carved. While it’s not known exactly when it was built, Petra began to prosper as the Nabataean capital around 1st century BC as it was a vital part of the major trading route between ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt. This prosperity is evident in Petra’s tourist attractions.
Refer to this post for a complete Jordan Itinerary. This will also include for places like Wadi Rum and Petra in Jordan, the best time to visit.
Is it doable with kids?
Having done it with a 3yr and an 8yr old, my experience is that its completely doable with kids. Plan to start early and expect to be completely exhausted by the end if you plan to hike with the kids. There are a lot of options available like horse ride, horse cart ride and donkey rides upto the Monastery too. You can check out the hiking route and more details about Petra here.
Also, I have seen a lot of people stop at Qasr Al Bint after having seen Treasury and don’t go all the way up to Monastery. You wouldn’t be missing much except for a panoramic view and a broader version of Treasury. you can totally skip High temple of Sacrifice in my view, especially given the precarious route it is, I wouldn’t recommend it doing with the kids. Although this list of top 10 things includes everything worth seeing in Petra, you can pick based on your kids and the situation.
Best time to visit Petra, Jordan
Just like most of the rest of the country, winters and shoulder season is the best time to visit Petra and Jordan both. Wadi Rum is expected to get very cold in Winters and you can make arrangements accordingly. We visited Petra in December and it was quite pleasant for most of it.
Petra by Day or Petra by Night
We did not do Petra by night so while I cannot comment from my own experience, my research revealed it does look stunning but your kids have to be ready to walk that stretch back and forth again and be willing to sit there for an hour watching a not so dazzling performance sitting somewhere on the ground or rocks. Our kids were not in the mood or the energy for it and so we skipped Petra by night. You can read more about it in other blogs which give some information about Petra by night.
Reaching Petra and Stay Options
Amman to Petra is about 3 hrs drive while Wadi Rum to Petra is about an hour and a half. Cars go all the way to the entrance of the archaeological site and its best to stay in hotels in Wadi Musa. The one we stayed in and highly recommend is the Hayat Zaman which takes you to another era with its lovely rooms and beduin look.
Top 10 things to see in Petra
1. Bab Al Siq and Djinn Blocks
Bab Al Siq is arabic for Gateway to Siq. Djinn blocks are square monuments which got these names as the Beduin inhabitants believed them to house spirits. There are about 25 of them in Petra. There is also the Obelisk tomb carved by Nabataeans in 1st century AD.
2. The Siq and its water channels
Siq is the narrow gorge, formed by natural splitting of the mountains, leading visitors into Petra. It is 1.2kms long and you can notice the 2 water channels that run parallel along the entire Siq. These were one of the most interesting tourist attractions of Petra for us due to the science behind them in a bygone era.
3. The Treasury (Al Khazanah)
This is the face of Petra for most of the tourists, and is also Petra’s most magnificent facades. It is almost 40mtrs high and intricately decorated with Corinthian capitals, friezes, figures and more. Treasury along with Monastery is the most popular and well known tourist attraction in Petra.
4. Street of Facades and Royal Tombs
This is the name given to the row of monumental Nabataean tombs carved in the Southern cliff face past Treasury.
Royal tombs are 4 magnificent facades adjacent to each other at the end of the main path. Do notice the huge 2nd century 5 storey facade, also known as the Palace tomb.
5. The Theatre
Carved into the side of the mountain and at the foot of the High Palace of Sacrifice, it could accomodate 4000 spectators. Notice the holes made all around the theatre in the mountains, this explains the excellent accoustics of this place. Try clapping hard and you can hear the sounds well. This is the only theatre which is carved into the mountains.
6. The Church
This was built around 5th century ad and has high quality floor mosaics like other churches and monuments in the rest of Jordan and other old churches in Turkey.
7. Great Temple
The great temple complex is one of the grandest architectural monuments of central Petra covering around 7000 sq mtrs. This was built around 1st century BC by the Nabataeans.
8. Qasr Al Bint
Translates to “Palace of the Daughter” in arabic, this was actually a temple dedicated to Dushara, built around 1st century AD.
9. Lion Triclinium
So called because of the 2 lions carved on both sides of the entrance along with the head of medusa at each end.
10.Optional: Monastery
12. Optional: High Temple of Sacrifice
How best to enjoy Petra: Guided or not?
We had taken a guided tour and while I did find the guide to be quite informative, you can also download the official Petra App (Go Petra) to have a great experience if you have data in your phone. The guide would usually take around USD 50 (Dec 2019), we were lucky to find one who was patient with the kids, didn’t rush us up at all, was happy to answer the questions and was more than eager to take photographs and show us some interesting vintage points.
What to carry when traveling with kids
Apart from water bottles and some snacks, you may need to carry light jackets depending on the weather. We went there in later November – early December and a light fleece jacket was required when coming back.
Since it’s a long walk having some dry snacks is a good idea. While there are some small coffee shops along the way, it will be difficult to find anything good there. Next to Qasr Al Bint, there is a restaurant being run professionally
Souvenir Shopping in Petra
What caught my eye in Petra were these antique locks and some of these super colorful hangings. Although for very different reasons. These colorful hangings had the same motifs and styles as of the Rajasthani and Kutchi (link) handicrafts. Its almost impossible to make out the difference, I’m not sure how that is. The antique locks surely looked unique and in style some what similar to what we had seen in Rajasthan
