Airport
Queen Alia International Airport
IATA Code: AMMLocation: The airport is situated 10 miles (16km) south of Amman.
Time: Local time is GMT +2 (GMT +3 from April to October).
Contacts: Tel: +962 (0)6 445 1739.
Transfer to the city: There is a public bus service to and from Amman leaving every 30 minutes between 7am to 10pm; every 60 minutes from 10pm to 7am. Tickets cost JOD 1,500 per person and luggage an additional JOD 0.25 per piece.
Taxis: Yellow metered taxis are inexpensive and readily available. Prices are fixed at around JOD 20.
Car rental: Car rental is available and includes major companies such as Avis and Hertz.
Facilities: Facilities include a bank and bureau de change, duty-free shopping, wireless Internet access, bars and restaurants. There are also bedrooms, showers and playrooms for rent by the hour. A tourist help desk is also available. Facilities for the disabled are good.
Parking: There are six lots with space for over 1,400 cars/
Departure tax: JOD 5 (typically pre-paid in the fare)
Website: www.amman-airport.com
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Amman
Originally spread over seven hills, or jabals, the capital of the Hashemite kingdom now sprawls over 19 hills and is home to over a million people, almost half of Jordan's population. Known as the White City, the hills are covered in a jumble of light-coloured stone houses, consistently box-like in shape with flat roofs characteristic of a typical desert city. Faded minarets, pavement markets, Arabian sweet shops and the crumbling remains of ancient civilisations contrast wonderfully with the contemporary edifices, fashionable boutiques and international restaurants. This blend of the old and the new combines in the noisy and chaotic downtown area where the city's extraordinarily friendly residents go about their business.
At the heart of downtown is the Ottoman-style King Hussein Mosque, around which the buzz and bustle is at its most interesting. Even busier at prayer times, the surrounding streets are filled with the essence of Arabia, exotic smells and rows of glittering treasures in the souq (market) amid the noise of frenetic haggling.
Just as overwhelming is Amman's sense of history, dating back 5,500 years to its position as the ancient capital of the Ammonites, Rabbath-Ammon of the Old Testament, and later as Philadelphia, the Roman city that became part of the Decapolis. Overlooking the city from atop Jabal al-Qala'a is the Citadel, the site of the ancient Rabbath-Ammon, and at its foot lies the impressive Roman amphitheatre that is the most remarkable remnant of ancient Philadelphia.
Amman is one of the oldest, continuously inhabited cities in the world, and today functions as a thriving commercial and administrative centre with modern facilities, historical attractions and a longstanding tradition of hospitality. It is an excellent base from which to explore the surrounds, even the rest of the country, being no more than five hours drive from anywhere, and is surprisingly agreeable for a capital city.
