Buses, Amman

For one day trip, Amman is pretty well located. During a weekend, I was willing to visit Jerash. One way of going there is to call a taxi. That’s what the concierge from the hotel suggested. Cost : 35JD + 7JD/hour. Another taxi driver proposed us the trip for 50JD…
Now there is another alternative, take the bus!! This is quite an experience, even not every local inhabitants have already done it ;-)
...but for 0.5 JD we arrived at Jerash without any problem!!

AMMAN-AQABA

TRUST and a similar express bus AFANA leave from Abdali station.

JETT bus station is about 5-10 minutes from Abdali. There are no stops or drop offs with express buses, so you CANNOT use it to get to Wadi Rum Junction.

PETRA, KARAK, MA'AN, WADI RUM

Mini buses South (Ma'an, Karak, Petra) are available at Wahadat Station downtown, a short taxi ride from the Amphitheatre in the opposite direction of Grand Husseini Mosque. Buses to Ma'an run late into the evening, if you missed your bus to Petra, catch one and from Amman to Ma'an, then take a taxi for 5JD from Ma'an to Petra.

To get to Wadi Rum take a mini bus to Aqaba or Ma'an (then another from Ma'an to Aqaba), get off at the Wadi Rum Junction, then take a taxi for a flat rate of 5JD to Rum Village or make arrangements to have your guide meet you.

Getting busses leaving Amman for other towns was one of the biggest frustrations I had. The travel guide (a very good guide in general, publsd – 2006) I used, was unfortunately inaccurate. It seems that most bus stations have changes location during the past year or so.
It is possible to get a public bus to Madaba, Petra, Salt, Jerash etc.
I took the bus from Petra to Amman, which was only 5 JD. To Madaba, Salt and Jerash from Amman, costs less than 1 JD.
I often saw JETT busses, but did not have the chance to use them – but, it does seem like a good option as they are air-conditioned and most probably more comfortable.

We found the bus services to be fine, both to and from Amman,

We used the Bus to get from Jerash to Amman thensouth to Karak, at the beginning of our trip.
Then again at the end to get the bus from Madaba to Amman.

I think the bus station in the photo is Zacara

At Abdali Bus Station are AFANA express buses to Aqaba for 4.35JD, buses leave 7:30am, 11:30am, 3:00pm, 5:00pm, 7:00pm. The schedule from Aqaba to Amman is the same. Travel time is 4 hrs, no stops or drop offs.

The drop off in Aqaba is in front of Dream Hotel.

Coffee, tea, mineral water and sodas available on board, buses are modern with A/C.

Once outside Amman, a movie (Arabic) is played.

The landscape through the Kings Highway is beautiful!

From Abdali Bus Station in Amman, buses to Jerash and Madaba run every hour, the fare is 0.400JD.

Tip: To get to Mount Nebo, take the bus to Madaba. Mount Nebo is another 8km away, to get there take a service taxi (white car) for 1JD at the traffic round about near St. George's Church with its famous mosaic map on the floor.

The three main bus station in Amman are Abdali station for transport to the north and west; Wahadat station for the south; and Raghadan station for Amman and nearby towns.

Private buses can be booked from the JETT office. It is located about 500m northwest of the Abdali Bus Station. They go to Aqaba, Hammamat Mai'n, King Hussein Bridge, and Petra.

JETT buses cost:
Aqaba 4.2 JD
King Hussein Bridge 6.5 JD
Petra 6 JD

Minibuses from Abdali cost:
Aljun 500 fils
Jerash 350 fils
Madaba 270 fils

Minibuses from Wahadat cost:
Aqaba 3 JD
Karak 800 fils
Petra 1.5 JD

You have 2 options:
1- Use local transportation,
Amman - Petra: you can take the bus from Wehdat bus station (or sometimes called south station), it's 4 JDs
OR you can take the JETT bus to Petra leaves everyday at 6:30am arriving at Petra around 9:30 (8 Jds one way) leaves from Abdalli - Jett company.
Petra - Aqaba: you can take the local buses to Aqaba, last one leaves around 5pm ... but you need to check as times changes in summer (so just ask when you first set foot in Petra about the Aqaba buses times)

2- Rent a car: AVIS has offices in Amman & Aqaba (both at airports and inside the city), so you should have no problem leaving your car in Aqaba after your trip is over. Prices also changes depending on the season and how long you want it for but it will cost no less than 40 JDs/day
Consult their website www.avis.com

1 more image

Tabarbour bus station is the main station to get you out of Amman to head North, to visit cities like Irbid, Ajloun, Oum Qais, Salt, Fuhais etc ...
Buses are available all day long till mid-night, this is the cheapest way to get around the country & is mostly reliable (ecxept when the bus break down sometimes)

To get from Amman to anywhere else, you must go by bus.

There are 3 bus stations, so you must see which you need. In general, the North station serves anywhere North, the West serves the W..... you get the idea.

West station is just about walkable from Downtown (15 mins), the other 2 are a taxi ride away (approx 2-3JD).

Buses tend not to have a time, they leave when full, so be prepared to sit on the bus for up to 2 hours.

Buses tend to run more in the early mornning, and are often cancelled after noon.