Amman · Downtown

What to see in downtown Amman

Amman began on the hill above our street. The Citadel sits on top with its Roman, Byzantine and Umayyad ruins, the Roman Theatre lies below, and the old town fills the valley between. All of it is walkable from our door, the Citadel 20 minutes uphill. Every time here is measured from the hotel, and where there is a climb, we say so.

On Citadel Hill

The oldest part of Amman, and the highest. Allow an hour and a half, and go early or late: there is little shade.

Citadel

Amman Citadel

The hill the city began on — Roman, Byzantine and Umayyad in one site.

20 min walk · uphill
Citadel

Temple of Hercules

Roman temple on the Citadel. The standing hand is all that remains of the statue.

20 min walk · uphill
Citadel

Umayyad Palace

8th-century domed audience hall at the top of the Citadel.

20 min walk · uphill

The Roman city below

Down the hill from the Citadel, on the same walk.

Roman

Nymphaeum

Roman public fountain, 2nd century, still being excavated.

13 min walk
Roman

Roman Theatre

6,000 seats, cut into the hill around 160 AD. Still used.

17 min walk

The old town around our door

The souks, the mosque, the money museum and the places Amman eats, all within ten minutes.

Museum

Currency Museum (Central Bank)

Jordan's currency since 1927, inside the Central Bank. Free.

2 min walk
Eat

Hashem Restaurant

Falafel and fuul since 1956. Open all night, cash only.

7 min walk
House

Duke's Diwan

1924 merchant house, later a hotel, now a free gallery.

8 min walk
Souk

Grand Husseini Mosque

The 1924 mosque and the fruit and gold souks around it.

10 min walk

A longer walk

Twenty minutes or more, uphill or across town.

Street

Rainbow Street

Cafés, galleries and the Friday market, up in Jabal Amman.

22 min walk · uphill
Museum

The Jordan Museum

The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Ain Ghazal statues.

27 min walk