The number of foreign and local visitors to Jordan’s tourist jewel, the ancient city of Petra, rose during October of 2021, marking a staggering recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdowns and closures.
Figures released Tuesday by the Petra Tourism Development Region Authority (PDTRA) indicated that the number of tourists visiting the city in October stood at 39,272, of which 25,383 were foreigners, 11,615 were Jordanians and 2,274 were Arabs, compared to only 360 visitors during the same month of 2020, a period when the Kingdom had enforced a partial lockdown leaving only a few sectors open.
Last September, Petra recorded an increase in the number of visitors, reaching 23,751 visitors in total, of which 12,637 were foreigners, 8,161 were Jordanians and 2,946 were Arabs.
PDTRA’s Chief Commissioner Suleiman Farajat said that the increase in the number of foreign visitors to the red-rose city is a promising indicator of the recovery of the tourism sector in Petra, noting that there are sufficient bookings following the re-opening of the southern crossing and the introduction of low-cost flights to the Kingdom.
The tourism movement, Farajat added, reanimated most of the hotel establishments, restaurants, shops and tourist bazaars to carry out their work and revitalized the commercial movement in the Petra District, which took a blow following the coronavirus breakout.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AGENCY