WASHINGTON - The Hashimite Kingdom of Jordan will be on the minds
of many delegates to the ASTA Congress this fall, when Queen Noor
al Hussein delivers the keynote address.
"Her Majesty was present at [International Travel Bourse] in
Berlin in 1994, speaking about her country and peace at a time when
the peace process was beginning" said Akel Biltaji, Jordan's
minister of tourism and antiquities.
Queen Noor's
participation at the Los Angeles meeting will be sponsored by
American Express, in association with the World Monuments Fund,
both of which are involved in the excavation and preservation of
Petra, the jewel of Jordan's tourist attractions.
Biltaji said during an interview with Travel Weekly, "We are
certain that, with the push from ASTA, combined with the exciting
archaeological finds from the Christian era and the comfort being
added to our visitor infrastructure, travel planners will
appreciate that Jordan is emerging as a leading visitor
destination."
While visitors come to Jordan to see Petra, the ministry of
tourism will be looking to the U.S. market to extend its stays
beyond this Unesco World Heritage Site and to explore more of the
country. That market will be served, according to Biltaji, by a
rapidly expanding hotel capacity, increasing from 10,000 to 17,000
rooms.
Hyatt International, ITT Sheraton and Holiday Inn are the new
international properties in Jordan's capital and gateway city of
Amman, while the established Inter-Continental is expanding its
hotel and Four Seasons has broken ground.
Biltaji reported that Aqaba on the Red Sea is slated for upscale
resort development, including 13 hotels and two golf courses, and
that Marriott and Movenpick - both with other properties in Jordan
- are building at the Dead Sea, an area known for its thermal
waters.
Jordan's visitor appeal comes in great part from its antiquity
and its association with many of the great empires of history -
Hittite, Assyrian, Greek and Roman: Each has left its indelible
mark. Jordan also is the Holy Land, and recent discoveries of
sacred Christian sites are the centerpieces of the tourism
ministry's focus on promoting pilgrimage travel.
For instance, in June, a basilica unearthed at Aqaba may prove
to be the oldest church in Jordan. It is believed to date from the
3rd century. The basilica is considered the most important find of
excavations made by an American and Canadian team, which has been
working since 1994 to document ancient Aila lying within the modern
city of Aqaba.
According to Biltaji, part of the promotion of faith tourism
will include celebrating the millennium with the opening of
Bethany, the church that was built in honor of St. John the
Baptist. The settlements of Bethany have been excavated and
protected at the head of the Jordan Valley just over a mile east of
the Jordan River.
Other newly opened Christian sites include the Mechaerus
fortress, once the palace of Herod Antipas, where John the Baptist
was beheaded; the fortress-palace is accessible at Mukawir, east of
the Dead Sea.
In Jordan, the Christian pilgrim and history-minded visitor can
trace the route of the Decapolis through which Jesus passed in his
last journey from Galilee to Jerusalem. The Decapolis cities in
Jordan are Amman, formerly Roman Philadelphia and presently the
country capital, and Jerash, most famous for its Greco-Roman ruins,
but also an ancient site incorporating many Christian churches from
the Byzantine era.
Already on Jordan itineraries is the trip south from Amman along
the 5,000-year-old King's Highway, one of the most memorable
journeys in the Holy Land. The first stop is Madaba, known as the
City of Mosaics. Its most famous work is a 6th century Byzantine
mosaic map showing Jerusalem and other holy sites, housed in the
Greek Orthodox church of St. George.
Scattered throughout Madaba's churches and homes are hundreds of
other mosaics from the 5th through the 7th centuries. Ten minutes
to the west is the most revered site in Jordan: Mount Nebo, the
presumed scene of Moses' death and burial. Excavations here have
revealed a basilica and a large cluster of monastic buildings, and
from a platform in front of the church visitors can see across the
Jordan Valley and the Dead Sea to the rooftops of Jerusalem and
Bethlehem.
According to Biltaji, Jordan will soon be spotlighted in two
"National Geographic" articles: one on Petra and another on
Lawrence of Arabia. "Readers and potential travelers will have a
chance to learn of the fabulous new discoveries at Petra, including
a small Byzantine chapel, and view the desert landscapes of the
Wadi Rum - from the dunes of Wadi Arabah to the Wadi Mujib, a
wildlife reserve and Jordan's answer to the Grand Canyon."
Biltaji feels that this corner of the country - with challenging
trekking, casual hiking, hot air ballooning, camel riding or a
night under the stars in a Bedouin tent - is yet another attraction
on a list that also includes desert and Crusader castles, that
makes Jordan an exciting destination sell in the U.S. travel
market.
Jordan Tourism Board
Phone: (202) 244-1451
Fax: (202) 966-3110
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.jordanembassyus.orgi