January 17, 2026

Cairo, Egypt > Amman, Jordan > Petra, Jordan

Obviously a travel day. This morning, we were up at 05:30 and in the lobby at 06:00.  The Cairo Kensington representative met us in the lobby and directed up out to our car.  We were on our way to the airport right on schedule at 06:00. Cutting it a little tight this morning as our flight is at 08:40. However, the airport assistance guy knows his thing. Using the business class check-in even though we were economy class. Walking us though the diplomatic passport control rather than stand in line with the rest of economy class.

We were off to the gate in no time. The duty-free maze was the last obstacle before we could head for the gate. We got to the gate before the first call for boarding. As we were handing our boarding cards to the agent, he told us we had been upgraded to first class. We didn’t ask questions, just accepted this good fortune.

Once on board we took our seats. The plane filled up, although first class was basically empty, and we were off. They served us breakfast, which was nice especially since we hadn’t had an opportunity to have breakfast before boarding. An hour-and-a-half later were were in Amman. We lost an hour due to the time change, so we landed at 11:00.

When we landed we were met by the Amman representative who again walked us through passport control. It was nice to have him because there was some issue with one of the stamps on one of our passports. Apparently, it was too light and unreadable. However, he took care of it in quick course. Nice service!

Luggage claim and waiting. Stop at the ATM for for Jordanian Dinars. The out to our driver Khalili and our Guide Sami, whom we had last time we were in Amman. Into the van and off to Petra. About an hour later we stoped at the Petra Tourist Complex where we had lunch. We were still two hours from Petra, but this was apparently a good place to stop for lunch.

The truth is that is a branch of the tourist shop we visited in Amman a week ago. Larger, better laid out and now including a restaurant. We let Sami order a typical Bedouin dish of lamb shanks and rice. It was really nice and we followed the Bedouin custom and ate with our right hand. We walked around the shop a little before heading back to the car and restarting our drive to Petra.

We all took little naps on the way to Petra. There is a lot of desert and a lot of nothing. As you approach Petra the number of buildings increases and continues to grow as you enter the valley in which modern Petra is located. We are staying at the Mövenpick Hotel and Resort. The highway leading here is either new or very well maintained. We took a short cut through the town of Petra before getting to the hotel.

Both Khalili and Sami are from Petra. As we drove though the village Sami pointed out their homes, school and other places they visit. We got to the hotel which is right across the street from the Petra visitors center and entrance to old Petra.

The hotel is a nice hotel but doesn’t deserve five stars. The star ratings on a hotel can be very deceptive. There is no universal or government standard. So, the interpretation of how many star you deserve is up to the hotel. Self-governing, which means marketing wins over substance. 1-Star (⭐️): Basic, budget-friendly lodging, clean but minimal amenities (shared baths possible), essential comforts like heat and a bed. 2-Star (⭐️⭐️): Modest comfort, private bathrooms, TV, better cleaning, perhaps a simple breakfast. 3-Star (⭐️⭐️⭐️): Mid-range, more services like a restaurant/bar, fitness center, air conditioning, concierge, and better room amenities. 4-Star (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️): Upscale, high-quality decor, minibars, room service, concierge, extensive facilities (gym, spa). 5-Star (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️): Luxury, extensive amenities (spas, multiple dining), personalized service, valet, premium furnishings, world-class experience. 

This hotel is nice. There is a spa, V is trying it out right now, but they don’t have facilities for pedicures or manicures. It would have been nice to have one of each. They have three dinning rooms. Two of which apparently share the same menu, one is just more formal than the other. There is a third “Mediterranean” restaurant which we will try tomorrow night. They did have a menu posted and it looked interesting.

There is a fitness center for V to use. There is a concierge. Premium furnishings, that would be a bit of a stretch. They maybe premium for Petra, but premium in the sense of competing with say the Majestic in Bologna or Milano, no. The service has been very good. We asked for more water, you can’t drink the tap water here, and it was delivered very quickly. World-class experience? Well, maybe if your world consisted of Motel 6. It is clean and we feel safe. It is just that the advertising hype isn’t;t quite living up to the reality.

We did go down to the bar/lounge about 19:00 thinking it would be nice to get some snacks or a little bit to eat. We ordered drinks and a mix grill of meats, some bread, hummus, and a club sandwich. The first thing the waitress said was that the mix grill would take about twenty minutes. Ok, we can handle that.

It would be about an hour before our food came. Well, to be honest the breadbasket only took about fifteen minutes. The rest took an hour. The food was very good, just the service was slow.

After dinner it was back to the room and off to sleep. Tomorrow starts at 08:30 for breakfast and the tour of Petra at 09:00.  

Buonanotte e ciao

Enrico e Maria