Petra by Night: is it worth it?

What it is

After dark, the path from the Visitor Centre through the Siq to the Treasury is lit with hundreds of candles in paper bags. You walk the two kilometres in near silence, the walls of the canyon close over your head, and at the end the Treasury appears in candlelight. Everyone sits on mats in front of it for Bedouin music, a short story of the Nabataeans, a glass of sweet tea, and a few minutes when the façade is lit in colour.

The details come from visitpetra.jo. The nights and the price have changed before, so check it the week you travel. Buy the ticket at the Visitor Centre during the day.

Is it worth it?

For most people, yes, with the right expectations. The walk is the best part: the Siq by candlelight is unlike anything you will see by day, and it is the reason to go. The programme at the Treasury is short and simple, and on busy nights several hundred people sit together, so it is a shared experience, not a private one.

It is worth it if you are already staying in Wadi Musa, if you like walking at night, and if you go on a night when you are not exhausted. It is less worth it if you have one day in Petra and have walked twenty kilometres since dawn.

How to do it well

• Arrive at the gate by 8:15 pm if you want a spot near the front at the Treasury. Or arrive late and walk the Siq when it is empty, after the crowd has gone ahead.
• Walk slowly on the way back. When the programme ends, most people rush out. Wait ten minutes and you have the candles to yourself.
• Bring a warm layer. Wadi Musa is a thousand metres up and the Siq is cold at night, even in spring.
• Leave the flash off. Phones struggle with candlelight anyway; take the memory instead.
• Wear the same shoes as by day. The path is uneven sand and stone.

Getting back

The walk out of the Siq ends at the Visitor Centre. From there, Edom Hotel is a minute up Tourism Street, so the night ends in bed, not in a taxi queue.