What's on in Petra (Wadi Musa), Jordan through the year

Quiet — school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Opening

  Petra by Night

  1 Jan – 31 DecBook early

  The Siq and the Treasury are lit by candle bags five evenings a week, Sunday to Thursday, ticketed separately from the day pass and not included in it. It runs to a fixed weekly schedule and is cancelled in bad weather. Source ↗

• Rule

  Jordan Pass and the visa waiver

  1 Jan – 31 Dec

  Buying the pass before you land waives the tourist visa fee and covers multi-day entry to the site, provided you stay in the country at least two whole nights. Bought after arrival it does none of that. Source ↗

• Hazard

  Snow and winter closures

  5 Jan – 28 Feb · usuallyExtreme coldClosures

  Wadi Musa sits high enough to take snow in some winters, most recently in February 2024, which can shut the site for a day or two while the Siq and the Monastery steps are icy. Hotels here are built for heat, so a cold snap is felt indoors as well. Source ↗

• Holiday

  Ramadan in Wadi Musa

  18 Feb – 19 MarRamadan & EidClosures

  The site stays open but the town above it does not: kitchens shut through the day, opening hours shorten, and the guides and horse handlers work a fasting shift. Everything returns at sunset. Source ↗

Still on: Winter opening hours (2 Oct – 1 Mar), Flash-flood closures (1 Nov – 31 Mar)

Busy — Ramadan in Wadi Musa, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Snow and winter closures (5 Jan – 28 Feb (usually)), Ramadan in Wadi Musa (18 Feb – 19 Mar), Winter opening hours (2 Oct – 1 Mar), Flash-flood closures (1 Nov – 31 Mar)

Busy — Ramadan in Wadi Musa, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Opening

  Spring trail season

  1 Mar – 15 MayBook early

  The Dana-to-Petra leg of the Jordan Trail and the back routes into the site work best between March and mid-May, when the wadis are dry and the days are long enough for a thirty-kilometre stage. Village homestays fill fast. Source ↗

• Hazard

  Khamsin dust days

  15 Mar – 31 May · usuallyDust season

  Hot southerly winds pull desert dust over the escarpment for a few days at a stretch in spring, turning the rock flat brown and the light useless for photographs. They pass through in two or three days. Source ↗

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Ramadan in Wadi Musa (18 Feb – 19 Mar), Winter opening hours (2 Oct – 1 Mar), Flash-flood closures (1 Nov – 31 Mar)

Busy — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Spring trail season (1 Mar – 15 May), Khamsin dust days (15 Mar – 31 May (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in May.

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Spring trail season (1 Mar – 15 May), Khamsin dust days (15 Mar – 31 May (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Season

  Bare rock in high summer

  1 Jun – 10 SepExtreme heat

  There is almost no shade past the Siq, and the climbs to the Monastery and the High Place of Sacrifice are unmanageable after about ten in the morning. Everyone who is here is at the gate for the six o'clock opening.

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Bare rock in high summer (1 Jun – 10 Sep)

Busy — Petra Desert Marathon, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Petra Desert Marathon

  28 Aug – 12 Sep · usuallyMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  A road and desert course starting from the site on the first Saturday of September. Wadi Musa's small hotel stock is taken over for the weekend, so it is either the reason to come or the weekend to avoid. Source ↗

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Bare rock in high summer (1 Jun – 10 Sep)

Busy — Petra Desert Marathon, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Opening

  Autumn trail season

  15 Sep – 15 NovBook early

  The second walking window, once the heat breaks and before the winter rain: the same trail sections reopen in practice and the Wadi Mujib water route is still running into October. Source ↗

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Bare rock in high summer (1 Jun – 10 Sep), Petra Desert Marathon (28 Aug – 12 Sep (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

• Rule

  Winter opening hours

  2 Oct – 1 MarClosures

  From early October the site closes in the late afternoon rather than at six, which takes the Monastery off the table for anyone arriving after lunch. Check the published hours for the day you go; they shift with the season change. Source ↗

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Autumn trail season (15 Sep – 15 Nov)

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Hazard

  Flash-flood closures

  1 Nov – 31 MarFlood seasonClosures

  The Siq is a drain for a wide catchment, and after heavy rain on the plateau the authority evacuates the site with little warning. It happens most winters and has cost lives; the dams above the entrance are there for a reason. Source ↗

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Autumn trail season (15 Sep – 15 Nov), Winter opening hours (2 Oct – 1 Mar)

Quiet — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Petra by Night (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Jordan Pass and the visa waiver (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Winter opening hours (2 Oct – 1 Mar), Flash-flood closures (1 Nov – 31 Mar)