Hi!
Is this a good Jordan itenerary?
We only have these 11 days round New Year.
Cheers!
Karsten
There are plenty of people who are far more qualified to respond than I since I haven't even been to Jordan yet but I've been doing research so I'll give you my opinion.
You may want to consider starting in Madaba. It's actually closer and probably easier to get to from the airport (assuming you are flying in) than Amman. Do the Dead Sea - Mt Nebo thing from there then hit Kerak on your way south. You can arrange transport from Madaba to Petra that will stop at the castle for an hour on the way. Otherwise it will take 4-5 hrs. getting from Jerash, or more likely Amman,
down to Aqaba. This won't leave you much time there if you're going to spend any time in Wadi Rum the next day and night before heading to Petra. For me Wadi Rum and Petra will be my highlights. If you feel the same way you may want to hit those places early so you can spend an extra day there if you want and give up a day in Amman at the end. If you go to Aqaba from Petra or Wadi Rum you will probably have more time that day to do some snorkling or enjoying the beach before taking an express bus back to Amman. If you enjoy ruins then Jerash is a must see. Perhaps one of the best Roman sites in the Middle East. Remember that travel time is an important part of any itinerary. Again this is not from 1st hand experience only from what I've picked up on TT and other sources. In any case it sounds like you'll have plenty of time to think about it.
Yes, scrap the days in Amman at the beginning, unless you use that as a base from which to visit Jerash and the Dead Sea. There's not really very much for a tourist in Amman; although the little shops down town and the Citadel would use up one day there are far more interesting places to visit in Jordan when you have a limited time there.
The idea of basing yourself in Madaba instead is a good one and an advantage of keeping Aqaba for the end is that it is a place to relax and swim/snorkle and with a tiny bit of luck with the weather to lie on the beach. This is all the more appreciable at the end of a busy holiday.
If you follow our advice that 2+ days in Amman are excessive you might want to keep some of that time "in reserve." At the time of your visit the weather in Jordan, except perhaps the far south, can be every bit as miserable as in Denmark - cold, grey and rainy. Petra in drizzle is no fun and if a more serious weather phenomenon occurs (this winter there were at least two periods with heavy snowfall if I counted correctly) the whole country may grind to a halt for 12 or 24 hours.
start off in madaba and avoid the bustle of amman during your first days. madaba has a very relaxed vibe in the morning. i arrived at around 5am and no one was around, my hotel was closed. i took it upon myself to wander around and by 9am, i had visited everything in madaba. from madaba you can visit mount nebo, dead sea, al maghtas (bethany) in the same day. from there you can make your way to petra but make stops along the way to dhibban and wadi mujib. even if you get to petra right away, you'll need a good two days to see it and pace yourself while you're there. i rushed it all into one day and i was drained. you can arrange for transport to wadi rum from there and after that head to aqaba to relax. take a bus to amman (about 5 hours but cheap) and use that as your base to visit umm qais, jerash, ajlun, and the desert castles.
