Petra is the most famous ruin in Jordan, and it earns the fame. The Nabataeans, an Arab people who grew rich on the incense and spice trade, carved their capital into the rose-coloured sandstone cliffs of a hidden valley more than two thousand years ago. You approach through the Siq, a narrow gorge about a kilometre long, with walls rising on either side until, at the end, the Treasury appears in a slice of light, a monumental facade cut straight out of the rock.
The city declined after the Romans annexed it in the early second century and after earthquakes and shifts in trade routes weakened it. For centuries it was known only to local Bedouin, until the Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt reached it in 1812, disguised as a Muslim pilgrim. The poet John William Burgon later called it a rose-red city half as old as time. UNESCO listed the site in 1985, and today it draws visitors from all over the world.
You will probably ride in along the Kings Highway, the old route that runs along the plateau above the Rift Valley from Madaba and Karak in the north to Aqaba in the south. It is one of the great riding roads of the Middle East, with long curves, wide views and fields and villages along the way. Surfaces are generally good on the main route, though goats and slow trucks can appear around any corner, and the weather in winter can be cold with rain and sometimes snow on the high plateau.
The modern town of Wadi Musa lies at the gate of the site and has fuel stations, hotels, cafes and everything a traveller needs. Go into Petra early, because the heat builds fast and the site is huge. The walk to the Monastery is steep, with hundreds of rock-cut steps, but the view at the top is worth it. Take more water than you think you need, and wear shoes you can walk in.