Petra in two days: the quiet trails.
Updated October 2026
Two days in Petra let you walk the main trail and the Monastery on the first day and spend the second on the quieter trails: the High Place of Sacrifice, the Al-Khubtha viewpoint above the Treasury, or the back trail from Little Petra. A two-day ticket costs 55 JD and must be used on consecutive days.
Why two days
Most visitors see Petra in one day and leave tired. With two, the first day covers the famous places and the second gives you the trails where you walk for an hour and meet nobody. It also takes the pressure off: if your legs give up after the Monastery, there is tomorrow.
Day one: the main trail
Walk the classic route: the Siq at opening, the Treasury, the Street of Facades, the Royal Tombs, the city centre and the Monastery. Our one-day itinerary has the timings. If it is a Petra by Night evening, go tonight, when you already know the Siq.
Day two: pick a trail
The High Place of Sacrifice
Steps climb from just after the Theatre to a mountaintop altar with views over the whole site. Come down the other side through Wadi Farasa, past the Lion Fountain, the Garden Tomb and the painted Roman Soldier Tomb, and you reach the city centre by a route few people take. Allow three to four hours.
Al-Khubtha and the Treasury view
The trail starts near the Royal Tombs and climbs to a ledge that looks straight down onto the Treasury: the photo from above. It is steep, with steps all the way, and best in the morning when the Treasury is in sun. Allow two to three hours.
The back trail from Little Petra
Take a car to Little Petra, twenty minutes north, and walk in the back way, over the hills to the Monastery and down through Petra to the main gate. It is the most beautiful approach and the least walked. Allow four to five hours, carry plenty of water, and consider a local guide for the first half. We can arrange the car: see Little Petra and back.
Tickets
A two-day ticket is 55 JD for visitors staying a night in Jordan, and the days must be consecutive. The Jordan Explorer pass covers two days. See tickets and opening hours.
Between the days
The evening between is what makes day two possible: the hammam and a massage for the legs, dinner in the cave, an early night. Order the packed lunch for the next day at reception before you go up.
Short answers.
Is two days in Petra worth it?
Yes. Day one covers the main sights; day two lets you walk the quiet trails such as the High Place of Sacrifice or the back trail from Little Petra.
How much is a two-day Petra ticket?
55 JD for visitors spending a night in Jordan, used on consecutive days.
What is the back trail to the Monastery?
A trail from Little Petra over the hills to the Monastery, the quietest way into Petra. It takes four to five hours to the main gate.
Where is the viewpoint above the Treasury?
On the Al-Khubtha trail, which starts near the Royal Tombs. It takes two to three hours there and back.
Can I do Petra by Night between the two days?
Yes, if it falls on a Sunday to Thursday evening. Many guests go on the first night.