Petra Travel Forum

I know that Petra is on the tourist trail, so to speak. However,when you arrive at, for example, the Treasury, are you one of 400 or so (or even more) gawping tourists? Is the site of Petra in general over-run with people? I'd really like to hear the experiences of those who have been there.

it's touristy but still totally amazing.
get up early in the morning as soon as the site opens and you will be there before the crowds arrive.
the area is huge and if you get ahead of the crowd, you will have a much better experience there.

There are tourists but not so much like in many country like Italy. The best time to see the treasury is in early morning or in early afternoon. There are too many things to see in that fantastic place!!! To see Petra is a fantastic experience. ciao

As already mentioned get there early, we were there for 6am it was amazing to have this magical place pretty much to ourselves! Also get away from the crowds by getting up to the Monastery & High Places.

Have a wonderful trip

(~_~)

The high spots are usually crowded, but especially after 10am when the day trip buses start to arrive. In the evening too you can be quite alone after about 4pm.

But almost any time of day you can find yourselves with nobody around if you look at a good map and wander around a bit away from the bottom of the valley. Try Wadi Farasa, as spectacular a wall of tombs as that opposite the theatre and invariably with nobody anywhere near. You can get up to the Roman soldier's tomb from there - that's another place where not many people go.

Many thanks for all the replies.

I was in Petra in May. I agree with the other posters, get there EARY, be there when the gate opens and walk through the Siq, I felt I had a better experience walking then the day we took a calesh in so I recommend walking through the Siq. You will be one of the first to get to the Treasury after that you can head into the Valley there are HUNDREDS of tombs to see, if you need a break from the crowds just look around for a minute and find an area least occupied and head off to it. Also most of the tour buses seem to get there around 10am and then get herded through the valley and out by around 4pm. My husband and I spent several days there and we took our time and wandered out just before the gate closed and after say 4 to 4:30pm we had the place practically to ourselves, it was AMAZING. I highly recommend sitting and watching the sun play across the Treasury for awhile before you leave in the evening. I have never seen som many colors come from 1 rock, as an artist even I couldn;t describe all the colors I saw. My husband and I would sit there and then after every couple of minutes one of us would go oh look its changing again, I can't stress how beautiful it is to watch the light flowing across the surface, its something you definitely should not miss. Also go to the monastery! Take water but don't worry if you run out theres a small cafe in a cave at the top! I could go on and on about all the sites and such but just remember it takes DAYS to see it all and even then you'll discover later something you should have seen but missed! If you have any additional questions I would be happy to try and answer them.

Terry