King's Highway
An ancient road running through Jordan's western highlands, from Amman south through Madaba, Wadi Mujib, Karak Castle, and Dana to Petra, Jordan's most scenic self-drive route.
The King's Highway is a north-south ancient road across Jordan's western highlands, with more than 3,000 years of history. It is called the 'King's Highway' in the Old Testament, and Nabataeans, Romans, Crusaders, and pilgrims all traveled along it. Today, Highway 35 runs south from Amman through Madaba, Karak, Tafila, Dana, and Shobak to Petra. It then continues south to join the Desert Highway toward Aqaba. The total length is about 400 km. It is much slower than the straight Desert Highway, but the route is full of ruins and canyons. Highlights include the Byzantine mosaic map in St. George's Church in Madaba; Mount Nebo, with views over the Dead Sea and the Jordan Valley; Wadi Mujib, the 'Grand Canyon of Jordan', where the road winds down to a reservoir on the canyon floor and climbs back up, with a sweeping viewpoint at the canyon mouth; the two Crusader castles at Karak and Shobak; the cliff-side village in the Dana Biosphere Reserve; and finally Petra, where you can spend two days. For 2–4 days: day one from Amman through Madaba to Karak, day two from Dana through Shobak to Petra. Afterward you can continue via Wadi Rum to Aqaba. The road is fully paved, but the mountain roads have many sharp bends and sections without guardrails, and there are many trucks. Gas stations are available between towns, and Dana and Wadi Musa have the most accommodation.