Jordan Times
Friday, October 6, 2006
Visitors to Petra
register decline following Lebanon war
By Dalya Dajani
AMMAN — September was a slow month for tourism in Petra with visitor numbers
dwindling significantly as a result of recent instabilities in the region.
Malek Amarat, head of Petra’s Tourism Department, said an estimated 16,000
tourists visited the popular site in the south of the country last month,
compared to 32,000 tourists in the same period of 2005.
“We expected the drop in light of the cancellations that came immediately
following the conflict in Lebanon in July, but we’re hopeful that the impact
will be short-lived,” Amarat told The Jordan Times.
The tourism official said several travel agents have already registered new
bookings for the months of November and December, paving the way for a revival.
Petra, the Kingdom’s leading tourist magnet and largest generator of tourism fee
revenues, is a favourite destination for foreigners and tour groups.
Even those here on a business trip will often be found making a stop to see the
unique attractions and historical treasures of the Nabataean age.
Some 215,000 tourists visited the rose-red city in the first six months of the
year, with foreigners topping the list — a 9 per cent increase compared to the
same period of 2005.
Most tourism marketing strategies are focused on promoting Petra as part of
packaged tours to the region.
The Ministry of Tourism and the Petra Region Authority have undertaken major
developments in the area over the past four years, including upgrading basic
infrastructure, visitors’ facilities and services in the area.
Construction of a new £3 million gateway to Petra is also under way to enhance
visitor access to the tourist site. The Tourism Ministry is implementing the
project with funds from the World Bank.
Both the hospitality industry and businesses in the area, however, have faced
their share of ups and downs from recurring regional instabilities over the past
few years.
The Palestinian Intifada in October 2000 brought tourist flow through Petra to a
snail’s pace, and it almost came to a standstill following the September 11
attacks.
The government took a series of interventive measures at the time to boost
tourism in the area by introducing Petra Charm, a subsidised room rate
initiative, and reductions in entry fees.
Fortunately, tourism has since become less vulnerable to the shocks of regional
conflict, with any impact usually short-lived.
The Kingdom continued to see healthy growth in tourist traffic to the country in
the months following the terrorist attack on three of the capital’s hotels in
November last year.
Figures released by the Tourism Ministry earlier this year indicated a 7.1 per
cent increase in tourist arrivals during the first five months of this year
compared to the same period of 2005. A total of 1.98 million tourists visited
the country between January and May compared to 1.85 million during the same
period of last year, according to the statistics.