Jordan Tours and News

 JERASH — Having zero additives is the secret behind the “unbeatable” taste of hummus and broad bean dishes, or foul, served at the Smadi Restaurant in the northern Jordanian city of Jerash, the owner said, and customers seconded that. 

 The ruined city of Jerash is Jordan s largest and most interesting Roman site, and a major tourist drawcard. Its imposing ceremonial gates, colonnaded avenues, temples and theatres all speak to the time when this was an important imperial centre. Even the most casual fan of archaeology will enjoy a half-day at the site – but take a hat and sunscreen in the warmer months, as the exposed ruins can be very hot to explore.

 DENVER — A superheated blast from the skies obliterated cities and farming settlements north of the Dead Sea around 3,700 years ago, preliminary findings suggest.

 AMMAN — When Aqaba-based Ayla Oasis planners perfected the concept of sustainability as an integral component of the mega development project, they foresaw every possible positive outcome of such integration, executives said. Except for one thing that came as a bonus, not only for the luxurious residential and commercial estate, but also for Aqaba and Jordan. 

 AMMAN — Urbanisation and the formation of Arab communities during the late Roman and the Byzantine times is “a complex question” that would receive multiple responses, said an American historian.

 AMMAN — Cultural heritage is not limited to monuments and collections of objects, but also includes traditions or living expressions inherited from our ancestors and passed onto our descendants, a Jordanian scholar said.

 AMMAN — The northeastern part of Jordan is one of the most overlooked regions in terms of touristic offers across the country, despite the existence of many archaeological sites, a Swiss archaeologist and architect remarked, citing the lack of tour operators’ attraction towards Mafraq Governorate.

 AMMAN — Beside the renowned historical and nature destinations attracting tourists to Jordan, Wadi Araba stands as a multi-themed trail for desert running challenges.

 AMMAN — The number of tourists grew by 7.1 per cent in the third quarter this year, while the increase was 7.8 per cent in the number of overnight visitors. 

 AMMAN — Tourism revenues have increased by 15.4 per cent at the end of August 2018, reaching $3.6 billion (some JD2.6 billion), compared to around $3.1 billion registered in the same period last year, according to preliminary data released by the Central Bank of Jordan (CBJ) on Monday.

 Jerash — After years of meticulous work, a French archaeological team that has been excavating the eastern Roman baths in Jerash, unearthed several intact sculptures from the Graeco-Roman period.

 AMMAN — A low-cost Ryanair plane flying from Rome on Tuesday landed at the King Hussein International Airport in Aqaba, the first of many direct flights reaching the port city from Italy, Greece, Bulgaria and Germany.

 AMMAN — A varied selection of artworks created by 11 local emerging artists last week was presented to the public, as part of the Bayt Al Graphic’s first salon show held in Jacaranda Images art gallery in Jabal Amman.

 Mofleh Bdoul grew up in the ancient city of Petra, scrambling up the rocky slopes along with herds of goats amid the ruins of tombs and temples.

 AMMAN — “Often, we are asked a question: ‘Why should we bother with cultural heritage while there are humanitarian crises, like in Syria?’” Director of Endangered Archaeology of Middle East and North Africa (EAMENA) Robert Bewley said on Sunday.

 AMMAN — Jordan was recently placed among the list of top countries to be visited in 2019 by Lonely Planet’s “Best in Travel” guide.

 AMMAN — European low-cost carriers Ryanair, EasyJet and Norwegian Airlines will start flights from several European cities to Amman and Aqaba as of November 1, an official said on Tuesday.

 AMMAN — Deputising for His Majesty King Abdullah, Minister of Agriculture and Environment Ibrahim Shahahdeh on Sunday inaugurated the 1st international date festival, organised by the Khalifa International Award for Date Palm and Agricultural Innovation, Ministry of Agriculture and the Jordan Dates Association (JODA) in cooperation with concerned international organisations.

 AMMAN — The 2018 World Tourism Awards will be presented to the Jordan Trail Association, alongside two other winners on November 5, as part of the opening day of World Travel Market London, according to a statement by World Tourism Awards.

 AMMAN — The works of 30 emerging Jordanian artists on Saturday was inaugurated at the JODAR Artistry community art space, as part of a unique creative event held under the patronage of HRH Princess Alia. 

A crucial corner of the Middle East, awash with biblical heritage, ancient sites, broad swathes of desert and – in Petra – one of the most iconic landmarks on the planet, Jordan could scarcely be called an unknown quantity.But it also has its unheralded areas and its little mysteries.

New event will focus on first features from the Arab world.

The Royal Film Commission Jordan (RFC) is launching a film festival aimed at debut features from the Arab world as well as promoting the country’s burgeoning pool of professional film and TV crew.

The ‘ExtraJORDANary’ campaign will run until September 2016 with the objective of attracting visitors to Jordan and increasing arrival figures in 2016 and into 2017.

The latest ransomware attack known as “Petya” paralyzed many organizations in Europe and the US. This is the second worldwide ransomware attack in the past two months, and we believe these attacks will only increase in frequency and become more sophisticated. The continuous string of attacks means that we need to face the reality that we are in a state of continuous compromise when it comes to cyberattacks.

AMMAN — Modern Ghor Safi, located at the southeastern end of the Dead Sea near the lowest point on earth, has been populated for over 12,000 years, as attested to by the “rich archaeological evidence” stretching from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic period to the Late Hellenistic/Nabataean, Roman, Byzantine, Islamic and Ottoman periods, a Greek scholar explained.

When Bom-yon Lee was working as a consul general at the Korean embassy in Japan three years ago, he came across a Korean TV drama that featured many tourist attractions in Jordan.

At 10:30 am, the light is at its best on the facade of Petra s Treasury, one of the world s most extraordinary archaeological beauties who was rendered even more famous by the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The area in front of the temple carved into sandstone cliff faces in the capital of the ancient Nabatean empire is at that time filled with tourists snapping selfies or being photographed on camels. Shortly afterwards, that same area is empty.

The relationship between tourism and sustainable growth was the focus of a regional conference that began in Amman on Monday.

Tourism revenues rose by 12.7 per cent during the first ten months of this year to around $3.9 billion, up from $2.4 billion generated during the same period in 2016, the Central Bank of Jordan said.

Jordan this year witnessed an increase in the number of overnight religious tourists from countries targeted by promotion efforts, an official said on Wednesday.

AMMAN — The Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) on Monday launched a campaign to promote tourism in the city of Amman, under the title “#Amman24”, which has triggered tremendous enthusiasm among a diversified audience worldwide, thanks to effective interaction by social media influencers.

Tourism Minister Lina Annab announced that the first regional conference on “Tourism in the Middle East and North Africa [MENA]: Competitiveness for Sustainable Growth”, will be held on November 13 and 14 at the Grand Hyatt Amman Hotel.

 Insulated in the desert wilderness of southern Jordan, bedouins of Wadi Rum, 330km south of Amman, still preserve customs and traditions that benefit their harsh habitat.

 The drop in the level of the Dead Sea is causing grave concerns among environmentalists and planners in the region, with most of the drop caused by diversion in the headwaters feeding the sea, a geologist has said.

Among Jordanians, the city of Jerash is famous for its high quality, fresh dairy products, which are still prepared using traditional methods. 

Visitors to Jerash often purchase Labaneh Jarashiyeh, a kind of strained yoghurt, which is a signature product of the city, 48km north of Amman. 

 A “first-of-its-kind” Hellenistic temple in the Levant region has been discovered in Umm Qais, an archaeologist said on Monday.

An archaeological excavation team from Yarmouk University has recently discovered a Hellenistic temple and network of water tunnels, Atef Sheyyab, president of the archaeology department at the university told the Jordan Times.

Jordanian archaeologists have discovered an ancient temple that was built in the Hellenistic era in the third century BC. 

The archaeologists believe that the temple, located 120 kilometres north of the capital, Amman, was dedicated to Poseidon, the Ancient Greek god of seas.

Jordan has advanced on the World Tourism Index and moved from the 77th place (2015) to the 75th place, according to the World Economic Forum s Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index.

Jordan s tourism revenues rose by 13.5 percent to $2.5 billion (JD1.8 billion) at the end of July, 2017 compared to $2.2 billion in the same period of 2016, according to Director General of Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) Abdul Razzaq Arabiyat.

AMMAN — The Second Janet Abu Lughod seminar, organised by Studio-X Amman and Sijal Institute for Arabic Language and Culture was a “wonderful opportunity to engage deeply with a diverse and bright group of participants in Amman on the singular topic of Qusayr Amra”, said Khaled Malas, a PhD candidate at the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University. 

The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities is planning to provide the Dead Sea area with more healthcare emergency services Tourism Minister Lina Annab said in a recent interview with The Jordan Times.

Annab said this is an “important” issue for the ministry, pointing out the increasing number of hotels and other tourism facilities in the area.

Amman, northern Jordan is home to other ancient cities of the Decapolis. These include Jarash (Gerasa), Umm Qays (Gadara), Tabaqat Fahl or Fihil (Pella), Bayt Ras (Capitolias), and Quwayliba (Abila). Jarash, straddling one of the ancient world s key trade routes, offers extensive and breathtaking ruins of colonnaded streets, arches, temples, and baths in a remarkable state of preservation and completeness.

Residents of Wadi Rum have complained of Tourism Ministry’s ban on tourists’ trips to their area, insisting that the area is safe for guests and unaffected by tribal protests over the Jafer case.

The Ministry of Tourism on Saturday instructed tour operators not to take tourists to Wadi Rum, according to a ministry document obtained by The Jordan Times on Monday.

The Central Bank of Jordan (CBJ) said on Sunday that the kingdom saw a rise in tourism revenues by 14.5% during the first half of the year to a total of $2.1 billion.

In a press release, the CBJ attributed the rise in the sector’s income to the growth in the number of tourists by 9.9% year-on-year.