Jordan tourism sector witnesses significant growth in inbound traffic

Her Excellency, the Minister of Tourism for Jordan, Ms. Alia Buran speaking at a press conference today said, ''There are definitely signs of recovery in tourism traffic into the Kingdom from what we saw this time last year. We welcomed over 331,000 visitors to Jordan in the first quarter this year, compared to 266,000 for the same time last year. The number of Arab travellers, our largest market, has risen by 5.1 percent - again for the same period - while the feeder market that has shown the most growth is the United States, where traffic has more than doubled showing a staggering 108 percent increase.'

This has been firmly supported by Jordan's promotion of its tourism sites at travel fairs and exhibitions around the world, and particularly in the Gulf. The number of holidaymakers on package tours has also increased by 120 per percent for January and February this year, while the average length of stay now equates to 4.19 days as opposed to 3.34 last year.

The Dead Sea resorts are certainly the country's biggest attraction, as well as the renowned rose tinted city of Petra which witnessed a considerable 243 percent growth, with over 64,000 visitors for the first quarter 2004. Um Quais, Madaba, Ajloun and Rum are also popular destinations.

'The travel sector is gaining back its position, and we're expecting the upcoming summer season to mark another milestone in the recovery of Jordan's tourism industry. Hotels across the Kingdom have received a high number of reservations since the start of this year and we are confident this will rise come the summer season,' said Marwan Khoury, Managing Director of the Jordan Tourism Board.

Tourism continues to be the largest contributor to the Kingdom's GDP as well as the biggest foreign currency earner of its economy, while at the same time providing high employment opportunities in the industry, as well as in other related sectors of the Kingdom.

'We are hosting 14 hotel groups and tour operators on our ATM stand this year, along with our national carrier Royal Jordanian. It's a busy summer ahead for us, and we will be using the show to promote the Jerash International Festival and Souq Okaz amongst other cultural events,' continued Khoury.

The JTB stand is located in Hall 8, Stand 1110 in the DWTC Exhibition.