Table of Contents
The best way to travel around Jordan is to use a bus. It is cheap & convenient. But how do you book a bus in Jordan in 2025?
If you are planning to visit Jordan, the chances are that you have an engaging and exciting itinerary with several places to visit around the country. However, it is not straightforward to travel around Jordan, and there are some very important things that you need to know. Please read this article carefully. A little research and reading now will save you a lot of time, money, and stress later. Booking a bus in Jordan is not as straightforward as it may sound. That’s why we have written this article. Before we visited Jordan, we had plenty of questions about how to book buses and even ran into some problems that we had to troubleshoot and work out before our trip.
We have written this guide to highlight some of the problems and also help you troubleshoot. AND we have used our own first-hand experience to compile this article. We were unable to find this information online, so we really hope that our experience and advice enable you to plan an amazing trip to Jordan.
Also, we just want to point out that we have no affiliation with any bus company in Jordan. This is just our own independent, helpful advice. In this article, we have shown you how to book buses directly. This is the quickest, cheapest, and most efficient way to book buses. So the aim of this article really is to help you book the cheapest trip as easily and independently as possible.
Planning a Jordan trip. Don’t miss this intrepid 7 day Jordan itinerary AND don’t miss these things that you need to plan before you go to Jordan
ALSO don’t miss our full guide to transport around Jordan
Why Book a Bus in Jordan?
The short answer: Bus is the only way to travel cheaply around the country.
If you are planning to visit Jordan, you will probably want to visit the capital city, which is called Amman. You may also want to visit locations like Petra, the Dead Sea, and Wadi Rum. The best and cheapest way to travel around Jordan is to use a bus. Long-distance taxis in Jordan are very expensive. For example, a long-distance taxi journey from Amman to Petra is likely to cost at least 100 JOD. In contrast, the bus from Amman to Petra costs around 10 JOD – 20 JOD (depending on how you book). So one of the biggest reasons to book a bus in Jordan is to save money. This is genuinely a cheaper way of traveling around.
In addition to saving you money, booking a bus in Jordan is also less stressful than bartering with a local taxi driver. If you do choose to travel around Jordan by taxi, you will need to negotiate a deal with a driver. This can actually be quite stressful and challenging.
And finally, we recommend booking a bus in Jordan because this is one of the safest ways to travel around the country. Unfortunately, the roads in Jordan are not particularly safe. They tend to be quite fast and crowded, and cars do not allow sufficient stopping distance. Furthermore, many taxis in Jordan are poorly maintained and do not have working seat belts in the back. So not only is a bus a cheaper way to travel around Jordan, it is also a safer option.
Don’t miss our guide – Is it safe to travel Jordan NOW
What Bus Companies Operate in Jordan?
Now that we have convinced you that booking a bus is the best way to travel around Jordan, we need to start exploring the best way to book your bus. The bad news is that you don’t have a lot of choice when it comes to buses in Jordan. There is only one bus company that runs long-distance buses in Jordan. The bus company is called Jett.
There are no long-distance local buses in Jordan connecting the main tourist attractions and destinations. It is worth mentioning that you can get some local buses in Jordan. For example, if you are exploring Amman, you will find a local bus system. However, if you are looking to travel between the main tourist hotspots in Jordan, you will need to book a Jett bus.
What Is the Best and Cheapest Way to Book a Jett Bus in Jordan?
Again, you may think the answer is obvious here: Just book your bus directly with Jett. If you are thinking this, you are on the right lines. However, it is important to recognize that booking a bus in Jordan is not quite this simple.
1 Book in advance
Since there is only one bus company that operates in Jordan, you will need to book your bus ticket in advance. It is possible to book bus tickets up to 30 days in advance in Jordan. We recommend booking your bus at least one week in advance to ensure that you get seats. If you leave it past this date, there is a good chance that the bus will be full.
2 You may struggle to book a bus from overseas
Here is the main Jett home page to book bus tickets directly
However, if you are trying to book your bus early, you may run into another problem. Many people find that they are not able to book a bus on the Jett homepage unless they are in the country. The website will take all of your details up to the payment page but may reject your payment card if you’re trying to book your bus overseas. One way to get around this is to book your bus using a VPN and connect to Jordan. However, if this doesn’t work or if you don’t have access to a VPN, you will need to find a different option.
3 Avoid expensive third party websites
There are some expensive third-party websites that will allow you to book a bus outside of Jordan. However, the prices are higher than booking directly with Jett. There is, however, a solution if you are unable to book your bus with a VPN and you are struggling to make your payment. Keep reading.
4 Try booking your ticket as a day tour (different website but same company)
If you struggle to book on the main Jett home page, try booking a day tour on this page
If you are struggling to book from overseas you can try to book buses (through Jett) as a day tour. This is the best way to book a bus in Jordan if you are trying to book in advance and you are not yet in the country. If you select a Day Tour, you should be allowed to pay for your ticket from a different destination. This is what we chose to do, and we had no problems booking buses this way.
It is important to recognize that the Day Tour option is a transport-only tour, so you really are just getting bus tickets. Nothing else is included with this option. Booking a bus as a day tour in Jordan is more expensive than booking tickets directly on the Jett homepage. For example, if you are planning to travel from Amman to Petra, the home approach ticket price is 10 JOD one way. However, if you book this ticket as a day tour, the price is 18 JOD one way.
5 A day tour may be cheapest if you are booking with young kids
There is, however, one advantage of booking your tickets as a day tour. If you are traveling with kids under 6 years old, they can be added to your day tour for FREE. In contrast, if you book tickets on the homepage, children 2 years old and over need to pay a full adult price for tickets. So even though the Day Tour tickets are more expensive, the overall cost for a family may be cheaper than booking separate tickets for your whole group.
6 Don’t forget to request seats for your kids
If booking a bus in Jordan isn’t complicated enough already, there is one more complication. If you are traveling with kids and you choose to book a Jett Day Tour, younger kids may not be allocated a seat on the bus. It is important to enter the details of all your children when you book your tickets. Once you have booked your tickets and you get your email confirmation, we recommend emailing the Jett Tour department directly to request seats for your kids. They should be able to allocate seats to kids even if you haven’t paid for them. They were able to give our 3-year-old and 6-year-old their own seats.
What are the buses like in Jordan?
When you book your bus ticket in Jordan, you can choose one of two pick-up locations: Abdali (which is a few kilometers from the Amman Old City) or you can choose to be picked up at the 7th Circle office.
We recommend arriving at least 30 minutes before your scheduled departure time. There is bag storage space underneath the bus. What’s more, there are no additional fees to transport a bag on these buses. There’s not a lot of space for bags around your seat. There is no overhead storage, and there is only a little space to store bags under the seat in front of you.
The buses are generally quite crowded, so we recommend only bringing a small valuables bag on the bus with you. It is also important to be aware that buses may run an hour or two behind the published schedule. Even if they depart on time, buses tend to take stops for around 30 minutes. The Jett buses do have a small toilet on board; we recommend avoiding using this if possible.
How to book a bus in Jordan Summary
Here is a handy summary of the main points in this article:
- Traveling by bus is the best and most cost-effective way to explore Jordan.
- Booking a bus in Jordan can be tricky, and advance planning is crucial.
- Jordan has one main long-distance bus company called Jett for major tourist destinations.
- Book your Jett bus ticket in advance (at least one week if possible), as buses may fill up quickly.
- Booking a Jett bus online from outside Jordan can be challenging due to payment issues.
- An alternative is to book a Jett bus as a day tour, which allows payment from a different location. You could also try a VPN.
- Booking as a day tour is more expensive but can be cost-effective for families with young children.
- Be aware that buses may run behind schedule and have limited space for luggage on the bus (you can store big bags under the bus).
- Bus travel in Jordan is safer, cheaper, and less stressful than haggling with local taxi drivers.
