Useful Information About Jordan

General Information:

Official Name: The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
Population: 5 million (est).
Capital: Amman.
Main Cites: Amman, Zarqa, Irbid, Salt, Aqaba, and Karak.
Official Language: Arabic, although English is used in commerce and by many Jordanians.

Visa Requirements:

The Jordanian Visa can be easily obtained in advance at all Jordanian Consulates and Embassies all over the world. For some Nationalities a visa may also be issued on arrival in Jordan at Queen Alia International Airport, as long as your passport is valid for a minimum of three months upon your arrival date. Others might need an official invitation letter to the Jordanian Embassy in their country. Plesae check our Embassy  for exact situation at a very early time.

Currency:

The official Currency is the Jordanian Dinar (J.D). The Current Rate of Exchange for the US Dollar is approximately 0.70 J.D
The Jordanian Dinar (JD) is divided into, 1,000 fils. (Some Jordanians refer to piasters instead of fils) There are 100 piasters to the dinar.
Notes: 500 fils, 1.5, 10, 20, 50 dinars.
Coins: 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 250, 500 fils.

Transportation:

The Royal Jordanian Airline links Amman with many of the capitals of Europe, south Asia and the Arab World, and operates wide-body jets to New York. Many other international air carriers also operate regulary to Amman. The Queen Alia international Airport south of Amman is one of the most modern facilities in the Middle East.

Good international roads link Jordan with surrounding countries. Daily bus service and weekly Hijaz Railway trains connect Amman with Damascus. Taxi service is also available.

Travel within Jordan is efficient and enjoyable. A good road system is constantly being expanded and upgraded, and most of the sites a visitor would want too see are at most within a few hours drive from Amman. Jordan’s road signs are marked in English and Arabic, and there are petrol stations and rest houses at regular intervals throughout the country.

Shopping:

Jordanian handicrafts represent a traditional of skilled workmanship and folk art that dates back many thousands of years. The most common Jordanian craft items include Madaba rugs, carved olivewood, mother- of pearl, cross-stitch embroidery, and pottery, Hebron glass, silver jewelry, carved stone animals, Bedouin jewelry and artifacts, old swords and turn of the century rifles, sheepskin and leather goods and aqaba’s colored sand bottles. A walk through a downtown souq will bring you in touch with hundreds of small everyday items that you may wish to take home as an apt souvenir of you visit to Jordan.

Food and Drink:

Eating well and heartily is part of the Jordanian tradition, and there are many fine restaurants that offer a wide selection of authentic Arabic food at reasonable price. Hotels offer a mixed menu of Arabic and continental cuisine. Dishes to try are the national dish, mansaf, a whole stewed lamb with cooked yogurt sauce served on a bed of rice; musakhan, chicken with onions, olive oil, pine seeds and seasoning cooked in an oven on a thick loaf of Arabic bread; maglouba, a meat or fish and vegetable stew served with rice; and of course the basic shish kabab, pieces of lamb, marinated chicken and patties of minced and spiced lamp meat all cooked over a charcoal fire with anise flavored liquor that is mixed with water and ice.

Communications:

Excellent direct telephone, fax and telex communication is available internationally. Arabic and English Jordanian newspapers as well as foreign publications, are available at many news stands, Postage stamps can be purchased at hotels and post offices. Internet connections are available in most hotels.

Electricity: 220 volts AC, 50cycle.

Time:  
Plus two hours Greenwich Mean Time, Seven hours ahead of U.S. Eastern Standard Time.

Climate:  
Jordan has a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters, although in land it gets progressively drier.

Temperature in December evenings can be very cold Amman Petra
20 C; 68 F

25 C; 77 F

Tipping:

Most restaurants include a service charge in their bill, in which case it is not necessary to tip waiters. If service charge is not included, waiters should be tipped around ten percent of the bill. It is also customary to offer a tip to housekeeping personnel in hotels. Taxi drivers do not expect tips but one should agree on the fare before entering the taxi, if is not metered.

Holidays:

Friday is the official weekly day of rest, though many Christian shopkeepers close on Sunday instead.