Best hostels in Petra

Petra's accommodation map is simpler than most ancient sites pretend it is: two pockets, one town, and a short road between them. Wadi Moussa is the living town — grocery shops, falafel stands, ATMs, and the ticket gate to Petra itself at its lower end. The cluster labeled Petra sits closer to the site entrance and the visitor center, trading everyday-town convenience for a shorter morning walk to the Siq. Neither area is large; the entire hotel strip from upper Wadi Moussa to the visitor center runs about two kilometers downhill along the main road, and a taxi between the two costs a couple of dinars. The real decision is whether you want to roll out of bed and be at the Siq gate in five minutes, or stay uphill where the town has its own life after the day-trippers leave. Budget beds dominate both pockets — Petra is not a luxury-resort destination, and the honest options here reflect that. Book for location and a clean room, not for a spa, and you will not be disappointed.

1. 1

   Wadi Moussa

   Main town center above the Petra visitor center, southern Jordan

   The everyday Jordanian town where grocery runs, cheap dinners, and ATM access happen on foot.

   Light from the sandstone ridge catches the upper town by 6 a.m., and Wadi Moussa is already moving — bread trucks on the main road, shopkeepers rolling up metal shutters. Skip the overpriced restaurants clustered right at the ticket gate; the locals head uphill to the town center, where a shawarma wrap costs under a dinar and the minimarkets stock water and trail snacks at local prices. The Petra Desert Hotel anchors the budget tier here with a 10.0 rating at about $23 a night — new-build clean, with a shared kitchen that saves you from eating out three meals a day. The walk from upper Wadi Moussa down to the Petra gate takes roughly the length of the main road's descent, and shared taxis idle near the mosque roundabout for the return uphill. Stay here if you want a town that functions after dark, not a hotel strip that empties when the site closes.

   1. Budget

      Petra Desert Hotel

      The hotel is new and clean, close to Petra. The staff are enthusiastic, and there's a kitchen available.

      10.0/10 rating ~$23/night
      Check rates
2. 2

   Petra

   Lower road near the Petra visitor center and Siq entrance, southern Jordan

   Gate-proximity lodging for travelers who want the shortest walk to the Siq at dawn.

   The stretch near the visitor center hums with tour buses by 7 a.m. and goes quiet by sundown — this is a staging area, not a neighborhood. Don't bother with the souvenir shops lining the last hundred meters to the gate; prices double within sight of the ticket booth. The Town Season Hotel holds a 9.8 at about $51 a night and earns it on front-desk guidance alone — staff here know the Petra trails well enough to route you past the day-trip bottlenecks at the Treasury. The advantage is pure proximity: you can be through the Siq before the first coach groups arrive. The trade-off is real — no evening street life, limited food options once the tourist restaurants close, and you will taxi uphill to Wadi Moussa for anything the hotel itself cannot provide. It suits the traveler who treats Petra as a dawn-to-dusk hike and wants a pillow near the trailhead, not a town to explore.

   1. Budget

      Town Season Hotel

      The front desk staff Jawad is very helpful and give good guidance on how to walk around Petra . He is very friendly and caring too! He help me to call the bus to go to wadi rum in early morning and wa

      9.8/10 rating ~$51/night
      Check rates