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By Khetam Malkawi, Jordan Times, AmmanMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News Sept. 01--AMMAN -- Jordanians who travel abroad on holiday are an untapped market for the domestic tourism industry with the potential
to generate millions of dinars in revenues, a top government official said on Tuesday. Minister of Tourism Suzanne Afaneh said Jordanians spend millions outside the country, and convincing even 10 per cent of them to spend their vacations in the Kingdom instead would be a success. According to figures the minister provided, two million Jordanians travelled abroad in 2009, spending JD750 million, while only around JD61 million were spent on domestic tourism. Afaneh made her comments at a press conference yesterday, during which she announced preparations for the "Jordan is beautiful" campaign to encourage Jordanians to spend their Eid vacation in the country. The campaign, which will be launched today, provides Jordanians with low-cost local tourism packages for the upcoming Eid Al Fitr holiday, according to Afaneh, who noted that all the packages will be for one-day trips. "Our studies show that 78 per cent of Jordanians prefer the one-day tour, which helped us design tours to match their demands," Afaneh explained, adding that destinations will include Jerash, Ajloun, the Dead Sea and Aqaba. The 10-day campaign, she noted, is part of a long-term strategy with the goal of seeing more Jordanians stay in the Kingdom for their vacations. As part of this strategy, the ministry held talks with investors to encourage them to invest in facilities that cater to the domestic tourist market. Citing studies, Afaneh noted that Jordanians are not typically interested in staying and spending time in hotels, but rather prefer tourist sites where recreational activities are available. Because Jordanians have similar tastes to other Arab nationals in general, she pointed out that developing facilities to cater to Jordanians will also attract more tourists from the Arab region to extend their stays in the Kingdom and spend more money. "Arab tourists spend in Lebanon 10 times more than what they spend here, and we want to focus on their preferences as well," the minister explained, adding that average spending per Arab tourist in Jordan stands at JD474, compared to JD569 among non-Arab tourists. As for locals who prefer overnight tourism, the minister said the long-term plans will focus on encouraging tour operators to purchase hotel rooms in bulk in order to provide Jordanians with better offers. "Jordanians usually book rooms directly from the hotel, and have no idea that they can get them at a lower price through a travel agent. Our focus will be on convincing tour operators to purchase more rooms in bulk to create awareness among the public that they can arrange this service for a lower price through the operators," the minister revealed. People interested in obtaining more information about the "Jordan is beautiful" campaign can call 5777210. ----- To see more of the Jordan Times or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.jordantimes.com. Copyright (c) 2010, Jordan Times, Amman Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com, e-mail
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