WHAT OUR LOCAL FILM FIXERS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT FILMING IN JORDAN
AN INSIGHT PROVIDED BY HOODLUM FILM FIXERS JORDAN
Jordan is part of Western Asia. Known by its official name, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, this country is located on the East Bank of the Jordan River, hence its name. Jordan is also an Arab country.
While the Middle East remains a place of much documented tensions, and few places can be considered completely safe in this troubled era, Jordan is a pocket of relative calm in a maelstrom of a region. Jordan is a very safe country, petty theft and crime does exist. Exercise the same safety precautions you would at home and be especially careful with your passport. Carry the business card of where you’re staying so a taxi can bring you right to the door.
The official language of Jordan is Arabic, but English is widely spoken especially in the cities. The different forms of Jordanian Arabic are found in the Afro-Asiatic language group with origins from the Middle East. These dialects have lexical influences from French, Turkish and English languages.
Although mostly desert, within its compact area, there are 3 distinct climatic zones; the Jordan valley, Mountain Heights Plateau and the Desert or Badia region, which constitutes 75% of the total land area of Jordan. Jordan is a very sunny country, with over 310 days of sunshine a year. The weather is almost exclusively dry and sunny from May to October, where there is barely any rainfall. Summers are hot but relatively pleasant due to the low humidity in the mountain heights with daytime temperatures frequently exceeding 36°C and averaging about 32°C, while nights are almost exclusively cool and pleasant. The best time to film in Jordan is from March through June, during the country’s beautiful spring season.
The Jordanian Dinar is the official currency of Jordan, and is pegged to the United States Dollar at 0.709 JOD = 1 USD. Although US$ are widely accepted, it is prudent to carry Jordanian dinars while you travel through Jordan.
Jordan is one of the most liberal countries in the Middle East. Jordanian people and is likely to be that they are, almost without exception, decent, honest, respectful and courteous. Despite that Jordan’s culture is extremely influenced by the western traditions, it has in common Arabic and Islamic characteristics.
Compared to neighbouring Middle Eastern countries, such as Egypt, Jordan is actually quite expensive.
There are 2 major roads in Jordan, the north-south Desert Highway from Amman to Al Aqabah and the east-west highway from Al Mafraq to the Iraqi border. Jordan is a very small country that can be driven across in 5 hours, but in spite of its size, the country has a 6,200 kilometer (3,852 mile) road network. In addition, Jordan has a very small rail system that is used only for transporting raw materials to the southern port of Aqaba. There are 3 main airports, Queen Alia International Airport, 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) south of Amman; the old international airport at Marka; and King Abdullah Airport in Amman, used primarily by the Royal Jordanian Air Force.
Public transport in Jordan is easy to use and provides a more authentic way to travel. Although the buses in Jordan do not follow timetable schedules, they are a very reliable form of public transport and a great way to see the local area. Uber is much better than Yellow taxis. They won’t try to rip you off. The cost to rent a car in on average is about $120 per day.
The Hilton and Movenpick 4-5 star hotel cost between $150 and @200 per night per person.