Jordan Daily - Hotel occupancy rates in Aqaba reached 95% this week, while hotels in the Dead Sea area recorded occupancy of around 50%, the head of the Jordan Hotels Association said on Wednesday.
However, occupancy in the ancient city of Petra remained below 18%, with most visitors arriving through the domestic tourism initiative “Urdunna Jannah,” association president Hussein Helalat noted in press remarks seen by Jordan Daily.
Helalat said Petra’s tourism sector relies heavily on foreign visitors, who account for around 85% of total tourism activity in the area. The sector has been adversely affected by the suspension of low-cost flights and rising airfares, he added.
Regional tensions have also sharply reduced the number of international tourists visiting Jordan, Hilalat said.
The downturn has forced around 32 hotels in Petra to shut down, while approximately 1,000 employees in the hotel sector have lost their jobs due to the inability of businesses to cover operating costs, he added.
