Petra by Night: What It Actually Is (and What It Isn't)

Petra by Night is the event that launches a thousand expectations, roughly half of which are wrong. Somewhere on the internet a rumor persists that it involves colored spotlights, projected imagery and possibly a drone show. It does not. What it actually is: a walk through the Siq lit by around 1,500 candles in paper bags, ending in front of the Treasury by candlelight, with Bedouin music and a cup of tea.

Whether that sounds magical or underwhelming depends entirely on what you walked in expecting — which is exactly why we wrote this. Manage the expectation and Petra by Night is one of the quietest, strangest, most memorable hours of a Jordan trip. Show up expecting Las Vegas and you will spend the whole time waiting for the show to "start."

What is Petra by Night, exactly?

Petra by Night is a candlelit evening walk from the visitor gate through the 1.2 km Siq to the Treasury, where you sit on mats in the sand while musicians play and a storyteller speaks. That is the whole event — a mood, not a production.

The walk in is the underrated part. The Siq at night, lined with flickering candles and empty of the daytime crowds, is genuinely otherworldly; you hear your own footsteps and not much else. At the Treasury you get music, tea and time to simply look up. It runs roughly two hours in total, most of it spent walking and sitting rather than being performed at. Treat it as a slow, contemplative experience and it delivers.

How much is Petra by Night and when does it run?

Petra by Night costs about 17 JOD, and — importantly — it is not covered by your daytime Petra ticket or the Jordan Pass. It is a separate ticket you buy on top, typically at your hotel or the visitor center.

Historically it runs three nights a week — Monday, Wednesday and Thursday — starting around 20:30 and finishing near 22:30. We say "historically" with real emphasis: the days, times and even whether it runs at all can change with season, weather and demand. Do not build a travel plan around it sight unseen. Check the current schedule locally when you arrive in Wadi Musa, ideally the day before. Nothing deflates an evening like arriving for a candlelit walk on a night it is not happening.

Can you take good photos at Petra by Night?

Honestly? It is hard, and that is the reality check. It is dark — that is the entire point — so phone photos of the candlelit Treasury tend to come out as a blurry orange smudge surrounded by the backs of other people's heads. Flash is discouraged and also useless at that distance, and it flattens the very atmosphere you came for.

If you are serious about a shot, bring a small tripod or a steady surface and shoot a long exposure; a phone in night mode braced against a rock does surprisingly well. But our real advice is to take two or three attempts, accept they will be imperfect, then put the phone away and actually be there. The candlelit Siq is a "live it, do not film it" experience. The memory outperforms the camera roll every single time.

Is Petra by Night worth it?

For most people, yes — if you go in understanding it is atmosphere rather than spectacle. The candlelit Siq alone justifies the ~17 JOD for many of our guests, and the silence after a crowded daytime Petra is a completely different flavor of the same place.

It suits travelers who like quiet, slow, sensory moments. It disappoints those chasing a big visual event or a fresh set of dramatic photos. If you have two nights in Wadi Musa and the schedule lines up, we usually say do it. Our drivers can drop you at the gate for the evening and collect you after — just tell us your night, and confirm the current Petra by Night schedule locally before you commit, because it does shift.