Tourism records some JD3.5b in revenues in 11 months

AMMAN — Tourism revenues amounted to JD3.455 billion in  the first 11 months of 2018, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said on Monday.

In 2017, the sector’s revenues reached $4.6 billion, while it amounted to $4.1 billion in 2016, according to the Central Bank of Jordan.

The number of tourist groups significantly increased during November of this year, with 86,320 tourists visiting the Kingdom in groups, compared with 61,620 tourists for the same period of 2017, which constitutes an increase of 40.1 per cent, according to the ministry’s monthly statistical bulletin.

The sector’s performance indicates high growth rates during November, particularly in the rate of overnight tourists, which increased by 9.4 per cent to reach 298,333 visitors, compared with 272,654 in the same month of 2017, a ministry statement, carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, said. 

Overnight tourists from European countries represented the highest increase in numbers, with a 51.5-per cent increase, followed by Asia and the Pacific countries by 24.4 per cent, the North and South American countries by 22.9 per cent, and African countries by 21.6 per cent.

The sales of unified tickets during November amounted to JD1,238,995 for 17,101 tickets, compared with JD414,805 for 5,719 tickets during the same period of 2017, constituting an increase of 200 per cent, the statement added.