Is Petra by night worth it? After a full day exploring the stunning UNESCO World Heritage Site, should you head back to the Treasury by candlelight?
See also this guide to planning the perfect Jordan itinerary.
Is Petra by night worth it?
Petra by night involves walking through this UNESCO World Heritage Site under cover of darkness, save for thousands upon thousands of candles. It’s an experience in Jordan that people seem to love or hate and I think a lot of that comes down to expectations, plus a few practical travel tips that can be tweaked.
Here’s my experience of Petra by Night after visiting three times over the years. Plus, all the pros and cons you should consider before you book.
Petra By Night: My First Impressions
Usually, I manage to find something beautiful, something that moves me wherever I go. But last night, in Petra, that didn’t happen.
Lit only by candles and a shower of stars overhead, Petra’s passageway to the Treasury hides its main attraction beneath a reverential darkness. The curves and ripples of raspberry-rust rock that mesmerize by day disappear at night, lost in the inky silence.
Footsteps move across the stone and cats cry beyond in the shadows.
We are, after all, approaching a tomb. Or a temple. The Treasury was built not to store money – but to commemorate the dead or to worship the gods. Petra, as you might expect from a city that’s thousands of years old, has plenty of mysteries.
As we grow nearer, a voice sings to the solemn crowd, an invisible man among an expanse of candles shrouded in brown paper bags.
Petra by night wasn’t beautiful and it didn’t move me. Amid the half-light in Jordan, it overwhelmed me.
Related: 7 of the Best Things to Do in Jordan
What is Petra by night?
Petra by night is an evening excursion to the Treasury that you pay for separate to your main admission ticket. Always check the latest price, but expect to pay around 20USD per person and you can usually book on the day.
You will not be allowed to venture further than the Treasury with the At Night ticket.
When is Petra by night?
Again, always double check, but Petra by Night is not held every day. It’s typically on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday and leaves the visitor centre at 20:30 and lasts about two hours.
Staying nearby, at the Moevenpick in Wadi Musa, makes Petra by Night easier
Top Tips for a Magical Experience at Petra by Night
Top tips for making Petra by night worth visiting:
- Wear sturdy, comfortable shoes for the walk along to the Treasury.
- Wear layers to keep warm.
- Charge your camera and practice in the dark before you head off!
- Arrive on time and enjoy taking your time as you go.
- Wait until the very end to have the place to yourself.
- Stay in nearby Wadi Musa so that you can fall into your bed afterwards!
What happens during Petra by night?
You will join a (large!) group and walk for around 30 minutes over rough and uneven ground to reach the Treasury. The 1500 candles can seem eery, haunting and spectacular or just too plain dark depending on your mood. Update! I visited Petra by Night again in early 2022. The path has now been paved and is smooth, easy and reliable. The lighting is also more advanced, now, with coloured lights highlighting features along the siq as you go.
On arrival, you’ll need to sit on a rug on the floor and stay still until it’s time to walk back. Local Bedouin will play music and candles light up the stone but (and this is important) Petra by Night is really all about simple music and simple candlelight.
Don’t expect speakers, floodlights, or any cables and paraphernalia of an after dark show.
Do expect to be able to tilt your head back and enjoy spectacular stargazing in the desert in one of the most special places on earth. Or to really indulge yourself in some delicious night photography.
So why do some people think it’s not worth it?
Well, for one, we are all different, of course. In a way, it can seem like a lot of money for not that much effort on the part of the organisers. On the other hand, it’s not much money for an outstanding experience in this world.
I think a lot depends on who you are with and what you are expecting.
If your group consists of loud, annoying people who show no respect for you enjoying the view or taking a photo then, yes, your experience is a bit doomed. In that case, you just have to hope for the best!
If, however, you’re expecting a night time “show” then know in advance that that’s not what Petra by Night is about.
How to enjoy Petra by Night
One thing I’d highly recommend, though, is to visit Petra by day first. That way, you won’t feel as though you’re “missing out” on the view you’re longing to see and instead can sit back and appreciate the place for what it is. You’ll also (she cackled) likely be worn out and physically tired from the hike, making it far less likely you’ll be annoyed!
Another top tip for visiting Petra by Night is to visit in the off season. On my last visit, I travelled with Globus Travel on their Jordan Escape programme. This specifically plans travel during the off season for lower prices and fewer crowds. Since one of the chief complaints people have about Petra involves the crowds, this is a great way to practically have the place to yourself.
Related: Madaba in Jordan; Ancient Maps and A Call for Peace
Petra Night Photography: Take Your Time!
HOW TO TAKE PHOTOS OF PETRA AT NIGHT
Here are my top tips for getting great Petra night photos:
- Let everyone else get it out of their system first. You’re all there for a long enough time. Let others go first and then you will have time.
- Stand towards the back.
- You need a really long exposure for the photos to work as it will be so dark there. Many cameras can’t cope with it, so don’t despair! Try the next few tips and if that doesn’t work, move on to the last one.
- If you can, take a tripod.
- If you can’t, head toward the back and lean against the stone to steady yourself and the camera.
- Use the longest exposure you can manage and be as still as you can. That’s about it.
- Forget the flash. It won’t travel far enough.
- Don’t worry about it too much. This really isn’t the time and place for photography. Treat yourself to a break for once and sit, listen to the music, look at the stars and enjoy.
- Really!
Related: The Best Places to Visit in Jordan
Disclosure: I visited Jordan as a guest of the Jordan Tourist Board and Globus Travel, however, as ever, as always, all views remain my own.
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Visiting a place by night is as beautiful as visiting a place during the day
If the lighting’s done well, it can be even more spectacular, I think. It strips away some of the grittiness of reality, just leaving the beauty there to see…
This is so beautiful Abi. I don’t know how I missed it when you first posted it but I am very glad to discover it tonight when I needed a dose of inspiration.
Overwhelmed, in a good way? Or bad. Perplexed, yet intrigued, by your words.
Well, I suppose when you’re overwhelmed you have more than you can handle. At this point, I had more sensory input, ideas, thoughts and other vague and slightly tangled notions running through my head than I could make sense of.
Simply stopping to take the time to look at the stars always gets me thinking…about space and time and the significance (or lack of it) of my tiny life in such a vast universe. Then Petra itself reminded me that the work of individuals can live on for thousands of years. By day, that’s clear in the stone columns that bring inspiration and amazement to millions of visitors. But by night, with the music playing to a silent crowd, it got me thinking about how culture lives on when it isn’t, literally, set in stone…And all of that after very little sleep and a lot of scrambling around in the heat to try to get the right shots left me, well, overwhelmed!
I’ve an article in the pipeline about Petra that I hope explains things a little better…I’ve just been holding off right now because of the backlash in certain parts of the web.
Hope that clarifies a few things!
The last photo reminds me of Indiana Jones or something. Nice photos, nice writing. :)