A US based travel channel has recently begun broadcasting a documentary on Jordan, reported Al-Sharq Al-Awsat. The film is hosted by King Abdullah and features some of Jordan’s top tourist attractions including Petra and Aqaba, in an attempt to promote Jordan as a vacationing hot spot.
The special was initially set to air in mid-September, but was rescheduled due to the September 11 terror attacks on the United States. The incidents have caused a dramatic drop in tourist reservations in the kingdom, by at least 10 percent for October and November.
Some 300 tour groups from the United States and Europe have cancelled visits to Jordan since the terror attacks on New York and Washington; a top tourism official said Wednesday, September 19.
Since the outbreak of the Intifada in the Palestinian territories a year ago, Jordan’s tourism sector has suffered a rate of 40 percent reservation cancellation.
The number of arrivals from the United States plunged 39.5 percent for the first eight months of this year compared with the previous year, while arrivals from Europe dropped by 30.1 percent. Tourism revenues also fell to $717 million in 2000 compared to $789 million the previous year reported AFP . — (Mena Report)
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