Tourism update for Jordan (part 1)
First half of 2021
In March of 2020, the Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission ciruclated a drastic and important NOTAM1 : All commercial flights to all airports in Jordan are to be cancelled (except for cargo or emergency).
This was a severe blow to the Jordanians stuck abroad as well as the tourism and aviation industry. From March until September, only a handful of flights could land in Jordan, bringing in only the emergency cases of those stuck abroad.
Then in September, another NOTAM was issued. The airports and borders reopened with little restrictions.
Source: CARC
Jordanian expats, Royal Jordanian and the Airport Group breathed a sigh of relief: things are open again. Thankfully there were no other measures implemented in 2021.
So let’s look at the numbers.
Jordan VS Turkey
As shown in the Hotel Newsletter, the number of arrivals to Jordan had dropped by 77% in 2020 compared to 2019, falling from 8.4 million to 1.9 million arrivals.
In 2021, from January until May, the number of arrivals was 666,600, a drop of 56% compared to the same period in 2020 (taking into account that borders were closed during April and May of last year). 376,000 or 56% of those arrivals were Jordanians. These are somewhat disappointing numbers but understandable at the same time, seeing that most countries in the Northern Hemisphere were witnessing their 3rd or 4th wave of the pandemic and restrictions were still in place.
With the slow but incremental rollout of the vaccine and easing of restrictions, it was expected that tourism would pick up during the Summer and it sort of did.
As stated by the Minister of Tourism:
Joking aside, things did actually pick up, especially during the summer month of July which coincided with the Eid holidays. According to CARC’s Chief Commissioner Haitham Misto, 622,000 passengers travelled through Queen Alia Airport alone. 75,000 of whom were Jordanians travelling to Turkey and expats coming to visit their families.
Moving to Turkey and comparing the data with said neighbour, Jordan could’ve done much better in gaining market share. During the first 5 months, the number of arrivals to Turkey was only 14% lower compared to 2020.
Source: KTB
Add to that the numbers for June and July, Turkey saw an impressive improvement compared to 2020:
Source: KTB
Future Plans
Despite the slight improvements in airport traffic, the Ministry of Tourism should start sounding the alarm bells. Jordan’s tourism season is almost over. Winter is right around the corner. And not everyone benefited.
Travel agencies, tour operators and guides, as well as wedding halls and hotels are still pleading for a government bailout and a comprehensive rescue package (delay loan and tax payments, sector to be included in the social security istidama umbrella program etc.)
With tourism representing 10-15% of national income pre-COVID, the government should do its best to save its sector. It already started out the Urduna Jannah program and they are looking ahead with a plan to attract 4.5 million tourists by 2023.
But in my opinion, the private sector should jump in as well. Similar to the “himatt watan” fund launched last year, a new fund dedicated to Tourism should immediately start raising local donations to implement projects to attract tourists in the least well known sites in the country.
Source: Ministry of Tourism
Part of the resources of the fund could go to advertising campaigns (focusing mostly on digital ones).
The other part should focus on the neglected areas in Jordan.
Here are my suggestions:
Cultural: Salt was recently recognised as the “City of Tolerance and Urban Hospitality”. According to the above list, in 2019 only 461 foreigners visited Salt Museum. The city along with the ministry should focus on attracting both tourists and locals through activities such as book fairs, music festivals, food festivals and much more.
Religious: Not listed above are the mosques of the Prophet’s (PBUH) Companions that are located everywhere in Jordan, North to South. 2020 saw little to no visitors. Also neglected is the Mar Elias, Prophet Elijah’s church, in Ajloun and Makawer in Madaba district. Special tours should be done to local and foreign pilgrims. (Full Brochure here)
Source: AlGhad
Warfare: This is a growing segment in tourism be it Medieval, Ancient or Modern. Royal Tank Museum and the Martyr’s Museum come to mind. But I am looking more to warfare reenactments (bigger than what is currently done in Jerash and the Arab Revolt train), be it virtual or physical. Karak and Shobak castles are not as famous as Ajloun and could be targets for battle reenactments using ancient weapons. Husban area (also not on the list) is also neglected and was the location to many famous historic battles.
Climate: As we said earlier, Winter is coming. Russian and European tourists would want to escape the cold and the “Golden Triangle” (Aqaba-Petra-Rum) could be the ideal location to welcome them, promoting it as a warm, safe and COVID free area. A possible deal can be done with Egypt.
Other important things they can do:
A - pay locals do to a full clean up of the areas as the garbage is piling up and the local municipalities aren’t doing their jobs. We don’t want to greet our foreign guests in this mess
B - Ask JETT to connect to all areas in Jordan through a strict and timely schedule. Some tourists have a hard time renting and driving their own car in Jordan.
C- Have a local company redevelop an audio guide which can be downloaded on your phone.
Let’s hope we make it through the winter.
https://www.skybrary.aero/index.php/Notice_To_Airmen_(NOTAM)
Point B is very helpful. Difficult to get to anywhere without a car!