Renting a Car in Jordan
If you are wanting to travel in Jordan at your own pace, spend more than one day in Jordan, or wanting to go visit several sites in Jordan. I would highly recommend renting a car.
We spent three full days in Jordan, picking up our car in Amman and dropping it off in Aqaba and it cost us $187. Much cheaper than paying for two people via the bus and taxis. Plus, we got to visit Petra much earlier and longer than if we had taken a bus.
It sounds daunting to rent a vehicle in another country, but let me assure you, you can do it and you will be glad you did. I booked our car through rentalcars.com agency and ended up renting with Dollar Car Rental. We picked our car up at the airport, the people at the desk spoke English and answered any questions we had. We were able to rent our car with our U.S. diver’s license. Signed the contract and we were off. A very simple process.
In Jordan they drive on the right side and have the same road rules as the U.S. Most signs with popular destination (i.e. Petra) will have English on them and GoogleMaps will work in Jordan. We ended up getting turned around on our way to Petra, but the people in the area are use to tourist and were very kind and helped us to the correct route.
The roads from Amman to Petra and Petra to Aqaba are paved and easy to drive. Some portions of the road have potholes, or no dividing lines, but easy to navigate. There are no security check points and not at any point did we feel unsafe.
Driving not only saved us money, but it allowed us to see the area and local communities.
If you have ever rented a car in the U.S. then the process is just about the same. You’ve got this!
