The Jordan Pass and Visa Guide: Everything You Need Before You Travel

The Jordan Pass waives the tourist entry visa fee under two conditions together: you buy the pass online before you arrive in Jordan, and you stay at least two consecutive nights (three days). At the airport your passport is stamped with a visa without paying its fee. But if you leave before completing that duration, the waiver lapses and you may be asked to pay the visa fee on departure.

The pass is for visitors who arrive on a visa, and each pass is personalized to its holder and not shareable: every adult traveler needs their own pass. Children under 12 generally enter most sites free when accompanied by their parents and usually do not need a pass. Some nationalities need prior approval that the pass does not handle, so check the nationality and eligibility rules on the official site.

The practical point: as long as you are visiting Petra and staying two consecutive nights or more, the value of Petra entry alone often approaches or exceeds the price of the pass, with the visa waiver and the other sites coming as added value. That is what makes it worthwhile for most people planning to see Petra.

The Jordan Pass comes in three tiers that differ only in how many days of Petra entry you get, while the visa waiver and the other sites stay the same across all three. The base tier (Jordan Wanderer) allows one day at Petra, Jordan Explorer allows two consecutive days, and Jordan Expert allows three consecutive days. Re-entry to Petra is available only with the two higher tiers.

How to choose? One day is enough for most visitors to see the Treasury, the Siq and the main monuments. Choose two days if you want to climb to the Monastery and take Petra slowly without exhausting yourself. Choose three days if you love hiking and want the longer trails and high viewpoints. The price gaps between tiers are usually small compared with the value of an extra day inside Petra.

Important note: the Petra days in the higher tiers must be consecutive, so plan your nights in Wadi Musa accordingly. Prices and the details of each tier are subject to change, so confirm them on jordanpass.jo before buying.

Beyond Petra, the Jordan Pass includes entry to more than 40 sites, museums and castles across the country. Among the most notable: Jerash with its Roman theaters and colonnades, Ajloun Castle, the Roman Theater and the Amman Citadel in the capital, Umm Qais in the north, the desert castles east of Amman, plus sites and museums in Madaba, Karak, Wadi Rum and elsewhere.

That variety means if you plan a trip that combines the south (Petra and Wadi Rum) with the center and north (Amman, Jerash, Ajloun), you will use the pass at several stops rather than a single site, which raises its real value.

Heads up: some private attractions and evening events are not included and are paid separately, among them the Petra by Night event, which needs a separate ticket usually bought at the visitor center. The full, updated list of covered sites is published on the official website, so review it and build your route around what your pass actually covers.

The Jordan Pass is bought online from the official site jordanpass.jo before you arrive in Jordan. Choose the right tier (by number of Petra days), enter each traveler's passport details exactly as they appear in the passport, then pay by bank card. The pass arrives as a PDF file (and an image) carrying a QR code.

Practical steps: buy a pass for each adult traveler separately with their correct details, save the file on your phone and print a paper copy. The official site recommends showing the printed copy to the passport officer because the QR code may not scan from a screen. On arrival, show the pass at passport control so the visa fee is waived, then show the QR code at the gate of each site.

Buy it before you travel, not after: the visa-fee waiver depends on advance purchase, and the fee cannot be refunded if you pay it first on arrival. To confirm the current price, payment method and conditions, always rely on the official site and avoid unofficial reseller pages.

If you will stay two consecutive nights or more and visit Petra, the Jordan Pass is almost always the better-value choice: the value of Petra entry alone plus the visa waiver usually exceeds the price of the pass. But if your visit is shorter than the required duration, a transit, or includes no paid attraction, the visa on arrival may be simpler.

Remember the two conditions for the waiver: advance purchase and a stay of at least two consecutive nights. If you buy the pass and then leave before completing that duration, you may not benefit from the visa waiver. Plan your days first, then decide.

A trip-planning tip: decide where you will sleep and how many nights in each area before you buy the pass, since that settles which tier fits (one, two or three days at Petra). GoDiyar's free AI trip planner helps you sequence the days, and you can compare Wadi Musa stays near the Petra gate in clear Jordanian dinars with reviewed listings and request-based booking.

The most common mistakes: paying the visa on arrival and then realizing the pass was cheaper (advance purchase is required for the waiver), entering wrong passport details, assuming a single night is enough for the waiver, or buying the one-day tier and then wishing for a second day at Petra. Review your details before you pay.

Practical tips: make sure your stay is two consecutive nights or more before relying on the waiver, print the pass and save it offline on your phone in case of weak signal or an unreadable QR code, plan consecutive Petra days in advance for the higher tiers, and review the included-sites list so you build your route around it.

Finally, prices, the details of tiers, the stay condition and the included sites are subject to change, and this guide describes the structure rather than specific numbers; confirm everything about price, eligibility and conditions on the official site jordanpass.jo before you travel.