Jordan · Jordan
January
Quiet and cool — Petra can have snow on the rose-red cliffs, and the Dead Sea fog lifts to extraordinary winter light.
Strong option
#7 of 12 months
There are better months for Jordan — see the full ranking below.
See when to go instead →Climate
High
12°C
Low
4°C
Rain
60mm
Sun
6.5hrs/day
30-year climate normals · Open Meteo ERA5
How January scores in Jordan
Weather
Above average
Value
Excellent
Crowds
Excellent
Events
Average
Atmosphere
Very good
What you gain in January
- ↑Petra in January is rarely crowded — the Treasury, the Siq, and the remote High Place of Sacrifice trail can be explored without the tour group density of spring; the cool temperatures (12°C) make the 8km full-day hike to the Monastery genuinely comfortable rather than the heat ordeal it becomes in summer
- ↑Occasional snowfall in Petra (the site sits at 900m elevation) transforms the rose-red cliffs and carved facades into an extraordinary combination of pink sandstone and white snow that no other month produces; a 1-in-3 chance in January, but those who catch it photograph one of the world's most singular heritage spectacles
- ↑Dead Sea floating in winter: the 32°C mineral-dense water feels even more contrast-rich against the cool January air; the salt pans and surrounding mountains in winter light have a stark, austere quality more compelling than the summer haze
What you sacrifice
- ↓Jordan in January can be genuinely cold at altitude — Petra at 900m and Wadi Rum at night (dropping to 0°C or below) require proper warm layers; the romantic idea of desert warmth does not apply to Jordanian winter nights
- ↓Wadi Rum camping is cold comfort in January: the luxury Bedouin camps are operational but nights under canvas in the desert require sleeping bags rated to -5°C, and the romantic stargazing is traded against genuinely cold temperature exposure
- ↓Some rainfall (60mm, dry by world standards) falls in winter — mostly brief heavy showers that can temporarily flood the Siq entrance to Petra; the site closes temporarily during active flash flooding and opens immediately after
How January compares to October (best month)
| Factor | January | October ★ |
|---|---|---|
| Weather | 5 | 10 |
| Value | 8 | 5 |
| Crowds | 8 | 4 |
January in other destinations
Lisbon (13.6°C)Barcelona (13.2°C)Tokyo (9.8°C)Bali (30.2°C)Santorini (13.4°C)Paris (7°C)New York (3.3°C)Marrakech (17.3°C)Amsterdam (5.6°C)Maldives (30.1°C)Rome (11.6°C)Bangkok (31.1°C)Istanbul (8.7°C)Vienna (3.2°C)Seoul (1.1°C)Dubrovnik (11.1°C)Rio de Janeiro (30.9°C)Kyoto (9.2°C)Phuket (31.5°C)Cape Town (26.1°C)Prague (2°C)Amalfi Coast (12°C)Mexico City (21°C)Medellín (28°C)Fiji (31°C)London (8°C)Sydney (26°C)Iceland (2°C)Tulum (28°C)Dubai (24°C)Singapore (30°C)Hoi An (24°C)Chiang Mai (29°C)Miami (24.1°C)Florence (9.2°C)Queenstown (22°C)Madrid (9.4°C)Porto (14°C)Edinburgh (7°C)Copenhagen (4°C)Budapest (4°C)Kraków (2°C)Tbilisi (6°C)Palawan (29°C)Hanoi (18°C)Osaka (9°C)Goa (32°C)Cusco (19°C)Buenos Aires (30°C)Mykonos (13°C)Zanzibar (32°C)Sri Lanka (31°C)Costa Rica (25°C)Cancun (28°C)Krabi (32°C)Athens (13°C)Seville (15°C)Cartagena (31°C)Siem Reap (29°C)Havana (26°C)Split (10°C)Taipei (19°C)Kuala Lumpur (32°C)Valletta (15°C)Ho Chi Minh City (33°C)Hawaii (27°C)Cappadocia (4°C)Dominican Republic (28°C)Jamaica (30°C)Tanzania (28°C)Seychelles (30°C)Nepal (18°C)Azores (17°C)Bora Bora (30°C)Los Angeles (19.8°C)Cairo (19.1°C)Kenya (26.8°C)Jaipur (22.2°C)Las Vegas (13.9°C)San Francisco (13.2°C)Madeira (19.5°C)Vancouver (6.9°C)Muscat (26.4°C)Lima (26.2°C)Cinque Terre (11°C)Kotor (10°C)Tel Aviv (18°C)Santiago (30°C)Bogotá (19°C)Bruges (5.8°C)Penang (31.5°C)Lombok (30.8°C)Cape Verde (26.2°C)Fez (13.8°C)Kerala (31°C)Kigali (26°C)Hong Kong (18°C)Oslo (-1°C)Auckland (24°C)
Climate data: 30-year normals (1991–2020) from Open Meteo ERA5 reanalysis. Scores compare months within Jordan, not across destinations. Methodology →