Amman to Damascus Overland: Where to Pick Up Your Rental Car

The short answer

If you are coming to Syria through Jordan, plan to cross the border by taxi, transfer or bus, and pick up your Auris car once you reach Damascus. Arrange the handover around your actual arrival time rather than a fixed hour, because border waits are hard to predict.

How far is Amman from Damascus?

Roughly 200 kilometres. The route runs north from Amman to the Jaber crossing on the Jordanian side and Nassib on the Syrian side, then north on the highway to Damascus — roughly 100 kilometres from the border to the city. Driving time alone is around three hours. The border is what makes the total unpredictable: it can add very little or a great deal, depending on the day, the season and the queue.

Why pick up the car in Damascus, not at the border?

• Rental cars and borders. Taking a rental car across an international border is a separate permission, never a default. Auris cars rented in Syria are for driving inside Syria; if you want anything else, ask before you plan around it. The same applies to a car rented in Jordan — ask that company directly whether it can enter Syria.
• Timing. A handover at a fixed time on the border is hard to keep when the wait is unknown. In Damascus, the team can meet you when you actually arrive.
• Fatigue. After a flight and a border crossing, the last thing you need is to start driving immediately on unfamiliar roads.

Your pickup options in Damascus

• Delivery to your address, hotel or family home in Damascus, from $15.
• Kafr Sousa or Qaysar in Damascus.
• Damascus International Airport, if your plans change and you fly in after all — see our Damascus airport arrival guide.

How to time the handover

1. Book before you travel, with your expected date and a rough arrival window.

2. Share your progress on WhatsApp — when you leave Amman, when you reach the border, when you are through.

3. Confirm the handover once you are on the Syrian side, with a realistic arrival time in Damascus.

4. Have your documents ready: passport, driving licence (an International Driving Permit alongside it is recommended), and anything the team asked for at booking. Our documents guide has the full list.

Before you set off from Amman

• Check current entry rules for your nationality with official sources. We do not publish visa or border-fee information because it changes.
• Carry some cash in a currency that will be useful on both sides.
• Download offline maps for Damascus — see our navigation guide.
• Know the deposit before you arrive. The published Syria deposit is $300 or $500 depending on the car; our payment guide for Syria explains how payment and deposit work.

Coming from Beirut instead?

The Beirut route is shorter and works in the same way — cross by road, pick up the car in Damascus. Our Beirut airport to Damascus guide covers it.

Start on the Damascus car rental page.