Winter tourism plummets amid regional turmoil

AMMAN — The tourism industry has experienced a sharp decline in winter tourist arrivals, according to the latest figures from the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. 

The drop in visitors is mainly attributed to the ongoing war in Gaza and the upcoming Ramadan, which deterred many potential tourists from travelling to the region.

The recent ministerial data also revealed that the number of same-day visitors and tourists has declined by nearly 32 per cent in January when compared with the same month of 2023. Noting that 64,100 one-day visitors entered the country, while more than 95,000 excursionists were present in January last year.

The data added that the number of tourists (one-day and overnight visitors) reached 469,800 in January, while 504,000 tourists visited Jordan during the same month in 2023.

The number of Arab visitors to Jordan increased by 7.1 per cent in January, compared with the same month last year. Most of them were from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, said Othman Sawalha, owner of a souvenir shop in Amman. He told The Jordan Times that the number of Arab tourists did not decrease in number because they are more aware of the security conditions in Jordan.

The ministry also noted that only 47,200 European tourists visited Jordan in January this year, a drop of 45 per cent from the same period in 2023. Similarly, there were 29.6 per cent fewer Asian visitors to the Kingdom in January, reaching 16,600 visitors compared with 23,600 during the same period last year.

Talal Mheisen, owner of a coffee place in Madaba, said that same-day tourists push multi-front demand and thus creating economic growth for various local businesses.

Mheisen said that there are several factors beyond the ongoing war in Gaza that have led to a significant decrease in demand for tourism, including the fact that Ramadan is around the corner so tourists whether coming from Europe or elsewhere avoid this time of the year.