Much has been written already about this highly rated WHS. It’s among the most iconic and well-known tourist destinations in the world. So I don’t think a general introduction is necessary, and I’ll limit this review to a few observations from my 1.5-day visit in October 2012:

• One of the best experiences I found was the hike up to the Monastery, and settling myself in a cave right in front of it (across the square and above the café which sells a very refreshing lime & mint juice). Despite the number of visitors, Petra has plenty of spaces where you can roam around on your own or sit quietly and take it all in.
• Like all very popular WHS, it attracts a mixed crowd of nationalities and types of visitors. Although one has to do a lot of walking in Petra, more than one woman arrived in impressively high heels. Busloads are shipped directly from the beach resorts at the Red Sea, lots of loud Russians too. I also encountered groups of South Asians, whom I thought to be migrant workers in Jordan or the Gulf (my visit coincided with the Eid holiday).
• The number of visitors is actually dwindling since it almost reached the 1 million mark in 2009. It has fallen back to the level of 2007 (about 600,000). It certainly did not feel overly crowded, maybe only the plaza in front of the Treasury is. Both times that I entered via the Siq, one day at 12.30 pm and the next day at 8 a.m., I was able to take photos without any unwanted people in it.
• I wasn’t too bothered about the souvenir sellers or the donkey/camel/horse touts. They are not very persistent (Jordanians are pretty sedate in general), and do add a lively atmosphere to the otherwise huge archeological site.

In general, I was a tiny little bit disappointed by it. For me, the site lacked the real Wow factor, the excitement that for example Machu Picchu or Angkor have given me. The design of the sculptures and architecture often is Roman or Hellenistic, so pretty familiar. People say that you can spend days in Petra, but I think after 1.5 days (a total of 10 hours visiting) I have seen most of it. Only when you would like to explore the hiking trails you can spend more time.