• Highlights/photos
• Safety/Security
• Language/Phrases
• Best Times to Go
• Great Itineraries
• How to Get There
• Transportation/Tours
• Where to Go/Sites
• Hotels/Resorts
• Shopping Treasures
• Dining/Entertainment
• Recommended Resources
• Estimated Costs
• Questions/Answers
• Jordan in Brief

13. What will it cost?

Money Matters
Tips for Handling Money in Jordan
Accommodations
Dining
Transportation
Entrance Fees
Taxes
Tours

While not real cheap, Jordan is one of those very affordable destinations that appeals to a variety of travel budgets and styles. You can travel this country on US$50 or US$500 a day, depending on your preferences.

Many budget travelers manage to get by comfortably for under US$50 a day. But most travelers can expect to spend from US$100 to US$200 a day per person, which includes accommodations, food, transportation, and entrance fees.

Shoppers find costs to be very unpredictable, depending on their sleuthing skills in discovering quality treasures. For them, costs and serendipity go hand in hand!

Money Matters

The Jordanian currency is the dinar (JD), which is frequently referred to as the “jaydee.” It's written with a number before or after the abbreviation. For example, 1 dinar is written “1 JD” or “JD1."

The dinar is divided into 100 piasters or 1,000 fils. Prices are usually written in dinars and piasters. For example, 3.25 translates into JD3 and 25 piasters or JD3.25.

The exchange rate (2007) for US dollars is: $1US = .71343 dinars (or JD1 = US$1.40).

You can check current exchange rates by going to these online currency converters:

www.oanda.com
www.xe.com
www.x-rates.com

Coins: 10, 25, 50, 100, 250, and 500 fils and one dinar

Banknotes: Printed in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 20, and 50 dinars

Avoid using money-changers along the streets.

Banks are open Sunday through Thursday, 8:30 AM to 3 PM.

If you carry traveler's checks, expect to get a slightly lower exchange rate
per check. Also, banks often charge transaction fees on traveler's checks,
which can be as high as JD5 per transaction.

It's best to carry traveler's checks in denominations of $100 or more. Lower
denominations can be a hassle when faced with local paper work and
commissions.

ATMs are readily available in Jordan's major cities. To locate an ATM, click on the following:

Visa
MasterCard
American Express

For pricing details on accommodations, including discounted hotels and resorts, check out our hotel and resort section.

Dining

Jordan offers a variety of dining options that appeal of all budgets and travel
lifestyles. If one of the highlights in visiting a country is to sample its best restaurants, you'll be able to find many excellent restaurants in Amman, Aqaba,
and the Dead Seas area.

Fakhr el-Din (www.fakhreldin.com), for example, is one of those classic must-visit restaurants that continues to get rave reviews for both its great dishes and atmosphere.

Top restaurants will cost from $50 to over $100 per person, depending on
your beverage choices (your choice of wine can be expensive, adding 50 to 150
percent to your bill). We identify many of Amman's and Aqaba's best places to dine in our restaurant section.

At the same time, you can find some excellent local restaurants and eateries
that offer substantial meals for as little as $3-5 per person. Your least
expensive (also known as local fast-food) dining choices are shwarma, roast
chicken, and falafel (fried ball stuffed with fava beans and/or chickpeas).

In Amman, the least expensive restaurants are disproportionately found in the
older parts of the city, especially in the Downtown and adjacent Jebel Amman areas.

Not surprisingly, the most expensive restaurants will be fine international restaurants attached to five-star hotels and resorts.

Transportation

The cost of getting to Jordan will vary greatly depending on the airline, time of
year, and special fares. Check our airline reservation system for special rates to Jordan.

The cost of local transportation can vary greatly. If you primarily use local buses,
which also are inconvenient, your cost of transportation will be dirt cheap.

Shared taxis, or serveeces, are relatively inexpensive in Amman, with most
rides costing about 150 fils (US$.20) per person. Longer rides across the city
may cost 200 fils or more.

Metered taxis cost more, but they are relatively reasonable by most international standards. Most 10- to 25-minute taxi rides in Amman, for example, cost between 700 fils (US$1) and JD1.8 (US$2.50).

A car and driver in Amman for eight hours can cost JD45 (US60) to JD70 (US$98) a day. Check with your hotel or travel agent for making such transportation arrangements.

Many travelers prefer renting a self-drive car for touring outside Amman. Daily
car rental costs can run from JD30 (US$42) to JD90 (US$125), depending on the car rental agency and size car you wish to rent. Four-wheel drive SUVs, for example, will be the most expensive rentals.

Rates tend to be very competitive given the large number of car rental agencies
operating in Jordan. Be sure to ask for discounts and special rates, especially
if you are renting a car for one week or more.

Entrance Fees

Many museums and historical/archeological sites are free or charge nominal
entrance fees (US$1-3). The most expensive entrance fees are the one- to three-day passes (the 4th day is free) to Petra:

1 day: JD23 (US$32)
2 days: JD26 (US$36)
3 days: JD31 (US$43)

Tours

You can select from a variety of package tours, independent tours, and local guides that can range from $50 to $500 a day per person.

For prices and other details on such services, check out these two links to the many travel agents, tour companies, and guides specializing on Jordan:

www.tourguides.com.jo
www.seejordan.org/planning_tour_jordan.shtml

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