Jordan Border Delays At Allenby Bridge Disrupt Trips

Published on Nov 21, 2025, 4:23 pm CST

8 min read

Key points

Recent closures at the King Hussein, or Allenby, Bridge on September 23, 2025, and partial reopening from September 26 have turned Jordan West Bank crossings into high variability routes
Security checks and queues at Allenby Bridge now often take several hours, with bus links from Amman limited and many travelers relying on taxis or private transfers instead
Alternative crossings at Sheikh Hussein and Wadi Araba remain options for some itineraries, but they may not suit Palestinians and can add hours of extra driving time
Government advisories warn that protests in Amman and along the Dead Sea Highway can trigger checkpoints and temporary closures near border areas, especially late Thursday and on Fridays
Travelers should avoid tight same day links between flights into Queen Alia International Airport and onward land legs to Jerusalem or the Dead Sea, and should confirm crossing status on the day of travel

Impact

Where Delays Are Most Likely: Expect the longest waits and greatest risk of sudden closure at the King Hussein, or Allenby, Bridge, with knock on congestion on approach roads toward the Jordan Valley
Best Times To Travel: Aim for morning crossings on non protest days and avoid late Thursday and Friday daytime windows when demonstrations and roadblocks are more common
Onward Travel And Changes: Treat Amman to Jerusalem or Dead Sea legs as half day journeys each way, and be ready to reroute via Sheikh Hussein or Wadi Araba if Allenby Bridge is closed or severely delayed
What Travelers Should Do Now: Build generous buffers into itineraries, avoid tight airport connections, monitor official advisories and local media, and work with operators who can adjust routing at short notice
Health And Safety Factors: Stay away from demonstrations, follow police instructions at checkpoints, and avoid attempting border runs or shortcuts suggested in informal social media advice

Travelers trying to combine Jordan with the West Bank or Israel now face more friction at land crossings and on key approach roads, because recent closures and security alerts around the King Hussein, or Allenby, Bridge have turned what used to be a routine shuttle into a high variability transfer. On 23 September 2025, Israeli authorities closed the Allenby or King Hussein Bridge crossing to passengers and cargo, then moved to a partial reopening for people from 26 September while keeping freight suspended. At the same time, protests and heavier policing around Amman and the Jordan Valley have increased the odds that a same day plan can fail with little warning.

In practical terms, sustained political friction and security measures have turned Jordan border delays at Allenby Bridge into a structural risk for trips that link flights into Queen Alia International Airport with onward land legs to Jerusalem, Jericho, the Dead Sea, or the wider West Bank.

How The King Hussein, Or Allenby, Bridge Works Now

The King Hussein Bridge, called Allenby Bridge on the Israeli and West Bank side, is the closest land crossing between Amman and Jerusalem and remains the main outbound gateway for Palestinians from the West Bank. Under normal conditions, tour operators estimate two to four hours to clear exit formalities, the shuttle bus between terminals, and entry checks, and that is before any onward taxi, shared van, or bus rides. Those estimates now stretch when extra screening follows incidents at the crossing or when operations resume after a temporary closure.

After the 23 September shooting attack that killed Israeli soldiers at the crossing, Israel shut the bridge, briefly reopened it, then closed it again before announcing a passenger only restart. A late September statement by the European Union stressed that the closure affected freedom of movement between the West Bank and Jordan and disrupted humanitarian flows into Gaza, and urged that crossings remain open for people and aid. For individual travelers, the pattern to watch is not one closure but the move to short notice suspensions and partial reopenings that can leave buses, taxis, and tour groups backed up on both sides.

Jordanian and foreign advisories also remind visitors that they cannot buy a Jordan visa on arrival at King Hussein Bridge, and that entry visas must be arranged in advance or obtained at other land borders or at Queen Alia International Airport. That restriction remains in place and adds another layer of planning for anyone trying to combine Israel, the West Bank, and Jordan in one loop.

Other Jordan Israel Land Crossing Options

Travelers do have alternatives, although they involve trade offs. The Sheikh Hussein Bridge in the north and the Wadi Araba or Yitzhak Rabin crossing near Aqaba and Eilat both remain open to tourists, with more conventional queues and shorter processing times than Allenby in many seasons. They can be good pressure valves for itineraries that already include northern Israel, the Galilee, or Aqaba and Wadi Rum.

However, these crossings sit far from the Amman to Jerusalem corridor, and using them to dodge disruption at Allenby can add many hours of driving. They are also less usable for West Bank Palestinians, who rely heavily on the Allenby route. Most travelers will still find that if their primary aim is to stitch a short Amman stay to a Jerusalem or Bethlehem visit, Allenby is the logical choice, which is precisely why variability at this crossing now matters so much.

Practical transport options have also shifted. Local guides note that scheduled buses between Amman and the Allenby terminal are limited and that most visitors use taxis, ride hailed cars, or seats in vehicles arranged through agents and tour companies. That is helpful for flexibility but means that if the crossing closes mid day, those vehicles will join a growing line of idling traffic on approach roads.

Protest Patterns, Roadblocks, And Transfer Risk

Border delays are only one part of the picture. Demonstrations related to Gaza and regional politics have become a regular feature of civic life in Jordan, particularly in Amman, in other major cities, and at times near border approaches and the Dead Sea corridor. Canada, the United Kingdom, and other governments warn that even peaceful protests can turn confrontational, and that authorities may deploy checkpoints, rolling roadblocks, and temporary closures on main routes.

In Amman, rallies have often clustered near central mosques, government buildings, and the embassy district, then spilled into the arteries that feed Airport Road and the highways toward the Jordan Valley and the Dead Sea. Jordan specific advisories now explicitly warn that protests may force temporary closures of segments of the Dead Sea Highway and surrounding roads, and can lead to heavier screening near border areas.

The pattern is clear. Demonstrations tend to peak on Thursday evenings and after Friday noon prayers, with security forces staging early on expected routes and near sensitive sites. For travelers, that means the risk of a transfer being caught in a rolling closure is highest late Thursday through Friday, particularly if you are driving through downtown Amman, toward the Prime Ministry and embassy areas, or along the Dead Sea Highway toward the Jordan Valley crossings.

Planning Connections With Flights Into Amman

The biggest practical mistake now is to assume that a morning flight into Queen Alia International Airport and an afternoon crossing at Allenby Bridge still fit neatly into one short day. United States, Canadian, and European advisories all emphasize that security conditions can change quickly, that checkpoints and curfews can appear with little notice, and that movement restrictions in the West Bank remain common.

As a working rule, travelers should now treat the Amman to Jerusalem or Amman to Jericho land leg as a half day project each way, not as a quick hop. Arriving on an evening flight and expecting to clear immigration, drive to the bridge, cross, and still reach a West Bank or Jerusalem hotel the same night carries a higher failure risk than before. The same logic applies in reverse for flights leaving Amman, especially on Thursdays and Fridays when protest activity and roadblocks are more likely along Airport Road and the Dead Sea corridor.

If your itinerary is built around an unmissable long haul departure or a fixed group tour start, it is safer to overnight in Amman or on the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea the day before, rather than trusting a same day dash from Jerusalem through multiple layers of checkpoints and possible closures.

Practical Tips For Crossing And Staying Flexible

Tour operators and local guides offer broadly similar advice, which dovetails with government guidance. Aim to cross early in the day, check operating hours for both sides of the border, and arrive with visas and paperwork in order, particularly if you must use King Hussein Bridge, where Jordan does not issue visas on arrival.

Build redundancy into your plans by holding fully changeable hotel nights at least for the border leg, and by using transport providers who will wait out a delay or reroute you via another crossing if necessary. Given the heightened regional tensions, it is also smart to enroll in your home country's traveler registration program, keep embassy contact details handy, and store soft copies of passports and tickets in a secure cloud location.

On the Jordan side, lean on hotels, licensed drivers, or reputable inbound agencies to confirm day of conditions on the bridge and key highways, rather than trusting social media rumors or hearsay. Recent media coverage of travelers and aid workers attempting to bend rules at the border is a reminder that improvising at checkpoints can backfire, lead to denial of entry, or invite legal trouble.

When To Postpone Or Reroute

Some travelers should consider postponing or choosing a different regional combination altogether. If you are risk averse, traveling with young children, or on a very tight schedule, pairing Jordan with Egypt, Lebanon, or a Gulf stop rather than with Israel and the West Bank may offer a more predictable experience in the near term. Likewise, travelers with limited mobility or health needs that do not tolerate long waits in crowded halls may find the prospect of several hours in border queues unacceptable, even when operations are technically open.

For those who still want to make the trip, the key is to treat borders and protest patterns as core infrastructure, not as background noise. That means watching for official alerts, accepting that closures can cascade from a single incident, and investing time buffers upstream rather than trying to claw back minutes at the last minute.

Readers planning a broader circuit through Jordan can also review our earlier piece on Jordan protests and roadblocks in Amman and border areas for a deeper dive into demonstration patterns, Airport Road pinch points, and Dead Sea Highway impacts, and can pair this article with destination guides to Amman and the Dead Sea for non transit planning.