Archive for Jordan Travel
Jordan’s hotels to be reclassified under new system
Posted by: | CommentsVisitors to Jordan will soon have a new guide for choosing their accommodations under an upgraded hotel classification system unveiled on Monday.
The new system, based on service criteria, was launched in a ceremony yesterday attended by Ministry of Tourism officials and industry representatives.
Under the previous system, developed in 1993, hotels were graded mainly on physical attributes such as size, type of flooring and the presence of a swimming pool.
Under the new standards, developed by the Ministry of Tourism, the USAID-Jordan Tourism Development Project (JTDP) and the Jordan Hotels Association, all hotels’ basic and additional amenities will be graded, ranging from electronic-locking mechanisms to the presence of safes in every room.
Each hotel will be given a three-month period to rectify its violations, and by 2011 all hotels will be reclassified in line with the new standards, according to the ministry.
Crowne Plaza Amman General Manager Oussama Massoud, who served on the committee that developed the new classification, said the system aims to serve as a tool for visitors, hotel managers and investors alike.
“Hotel owners can now understand what they have to do to reach a certain classification: Whether they have to invest in a swimming pool or a conference room, and what type of air conditioning units,” he told The Jordan Times on the sidelines of the ceremony.
According to Massoud, the standards also place an emphasis on staff, at the personnel and managerial level, in order to ensure facilities have an adequate number of employees to provide optimum service at all times.
The new classification system, developed over a period of three years, was tested in “mock inspections” and is specifically tailored to the Jordanian market, he added.
In her address at the launch, Tourism Minister Maha Khatib underlined the need to extend premium services to accompany the grandeur and variety of the Kingdom’s tourist sites.
“It is important not only to attract large numbers of tourists, but to have high-quality services in the sector… to guarantee that visitors come back for a second or third time,” she said, underlining that the classification system represented a “model of cooperation” between the public and private sectors.
USAID Jordan Mission Director Jay Knott noted that the tourism industry has grown “leaps and bounds” and has weathered the global economic downturn.
“It is one thing to have what the tourist wants, but the second thing is you have to communicate that in a way that can be trusted. This new classification system provides that,” he said yesterday.
According to Nabel Matar, general manager of the Thuraya Hotel, the new standards will make it easier for hoteliers to gauge the criteria and prepare their hotels accordingly.
“It was more confusing in the past; now we know where we stand before we open our doors,” said Matar, whose three-star hotel became the first to be classified under the new standards earlier this month.
As part of the nationwide hotel reclassification, 12 inspectors will tour facilities in the northern, central and southern parts of the country and upload their reports electronically and directly, reducing the lag time between the inspection and the recording of a hotel’s standards, the USAID-JTDP said.
In addition to the 134 basic criteria a hotel will have to meet in order to receive a 3-, 4-, or 5-star rating, 250 optional standards will determine ranking, ranging from the presence of a safe in each hotel room to wireless Internet access.
The standards also offer new classes of hotels: Boutique hotels and tourist resorts. The first must meet three-star standards, be located in a historical district and have distinct and unified design and architecture, while the second should be located near a resort area, offer fitness or wellness activities and provide meals, among other amenities.
As part of the reclassification, apartment hotels will also be held to new standards, such as including kitchenette equipment and guest bathrooms, in order to maintain their rating.
Source: Jordan Times (http://www.jordantimes.com/?news=23471)
Century on, Russian Pilgrims Flock to River Jordan
Posted by: | CommentsIt took Andrei Borisovich a lifetime to follow in the footsteps of his forebears and make the pilgrimage from Russia to the Holy Land.
On Monday, the St. Petersburg pensioner reached his goal, amid throngs of Orthodox faithful on the muddy banks of the Jordan to mark Epiphany — for eastern Christians the feast of Jesus’s baptism and the traditional high point of pilgrimages from Russia that are now enjoying a post-Communist revival.
“I wanted to come for so long,” said the 73-year-old, beaming despite the unusually rain-laden skies over the desert dunes as he recounted how one of his forebears — he can’t quite recall how many “greats” to put before “grandfather” — walked for seven months from Russia to this spot in the 19th century.
“He was an industrialist, at Perm in the Urals. His journey to the Holy Land changed his life. When he returned home he founded schools, an orphanage,” Andrei Borisovich said proudly.
“Of course, it all turned to dust with the Revolution.”
Unlike the devout Russians of his ancestor’s day, who risked death and disease to stream in their multitudes by land and sea to Jerusalem as the Ottoman imperial lock on the Middle East faltered, Andrei Borisovich and his fellow pilgrims made few sacrifices — they were on a week-long package tour by air.
But for those seeking confirmation that the long hiatus in the spiritual life of the Russians after the Bolshevik triumph of 1917 is over, then the eve of Epiphany — January 6 on the old church calendar — on the river Jordan is a place to see it.
“For every Christian, it is important to come here,” said Abbess Nikodima, the superior of a convent in the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Odessa, who has brought groups of pilgrims annually for the Epiphany rite on the Jordan since 1994.
It is also a trend that Israel, whose army very visibly controls the West Bank of the river, is keen to encourage as it looks to capitalize on religion to bolster tourism numbers.
“We are fewer this year, because of the recession,” Nikodima said, as her 30-strong flock of Russians and Ukrainians jostled with visiting Greeks and Romanians, as well as local Palestinian Christians, for a better view of the rush-bounded pool where they believe John the Baptist plunged Jesus under the waters.
“But,” Nikodima added, “Pilgrimage remains very important to us. It is here we see the mystery of repentance.”
RELIGIOUS FERVOUR UNDER TSARS
Accounts from tsarist times speak of fervent peasants and devout Russian nobles flocking to Jerusalem, especially between Christmas and Easter. The latter left their mark in the holy city with onion domes and icons that have been burnished of late as the Kremlin leadership has rediscovered the Orthodox Church.
On Epiphany, aged peasants, some half dead from the rigors of the months-long journey, wrapped themselves in the shrouds they hoped to be buried in before wading into the Jordan, seeking reassurance for the afterlife.
On Monday, dozens made it into the river from the Jordanian bank. But Israeli police made sure the faithful on their side had to content themselves with immersing shrouds in basins marked “Jordan Water: Not Drinking”.
As well as the translation into Russian of the “Danger, Mines!” signs that line the razor wire along the route through the dunes to the sluggish, 5-meter (20-foot) wide stream that marks the frontier with Jordan, there are other indications that Israel, now home to a 15-percent, mainly Jewish Russian-speaking minority, is putting out the welcome mat for Russian Christians.
The Moscow-born Israeli tourism minister is targeting a new surge in visitor numbers from the former Soviet Union, on top of a boom in the past few years that has made Russia second only to the United States as a source of tourists for Israel, which makes 6 percent of its national income from the sector.
On the far bank, Jordan is also developing its promotion of Christian tourism, as the cranes and construction sites rising out of the desert just north of the Dead Sea attest.
Easier Israeli visa rules for Russians have helped treble visits from there in the past three years. The government aims to do the same for Ukrainians, despite critics who fear helping crime gangs which have flourished among ex-Soviet immigrants.
For the Christians on the Jordan on Monday, the important thing was just to be there. Many could not even see the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem release a dove of peace or plunge a cross into the sacred water in celebration of Epiphany.
“It is just good to be in the Holy Land,” said one Moscow pensioner who did not want to give her name. “Now, no one forbids us to pray,” she said, gesturing as if firing a rifle to depict the fate some Christians feared under communism.
“Now the pilgrim’s way is open again.”
Source: New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2010/01/18/world/international-us-religion-orthodox.html?_r=1)
Most UK travellers unaware of Jordan’s tourist offerings
Posted by: | CommentsOther than Petra, British travellers are largely unaware of the tourist sites the Kingdom has to offer, according to a report released on Tuesday.
The qualitative research project unveiled yesterday was carried out to better understand the perceptions of UK tourists, who form an important source of tourism revenue, according to industry officials.
British tourists have long represented a traditional market, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Maha Khatib said, stressing that the market needs to be further utilised in order to maintain Jordan’s status as a major destination.
“We do not need effort in understanding it, but we need to recognise the gaps, protect that market and make it grow as fast as possible,” she said.
Supported by a grant from the USAID Jordan Tourism Development Project and carried out by the Jordan Tourism Board, the project sought to gauge levels of awareness and perception of Jordan as a tourism destination in the UK market.
The report stressed the rising potential market of tourists with disabilities in the UK, who have a combined income of $6 billion.
British travellers are relying less on tourism boards and traditional guidebooks when considering travel destinations and are referring more to the experiences of previous travellers, with 70 per cent stating that they trust user-generated content on Internet forums, Twitter, Facebook and elsewhere.
Khatib underlined the misconception of Jordan as a “seasonal destination”, identifying the need to promote the Kingdom, known for its temperate weather, as a year-round destination.
“We need to stress that Jordan is a place where you can enjoy your time in the coldest days of the winter and the warmest days of summer,” she added.
Although the Kingdom witnessed a 56 per cent increase in British tourists in 2007, the same year Petra was named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, this figure has declined by 6.2 per cent over the last two years, according to the JTB
In the first half of 2009, UK visitors represented 11 per cent of the European market, according to the JTB and tend to spend more money while in the Kingdom in comparison to other travellers.
According to the survey, some respondents were unaware that Petra was located in Jordan.
Other associations made with the Kingdom included Roman ruins, and connections to films such as Lawrence of Arabia and Indiana Jones. The romantic and far-away scenery of the desert, such as Wadi Rum, appealed to the British market, as did the Kingdom’s safety.
However, many of the visitors said Jordan exceeded their expectations as they were unaware of the diversity of sites the Kingdom has to offer.
British travellers, many of whom arrived in the Kingdom on package tours, tended to have longer stays, the report indicated, with an average stay of around 10 days.
The reliance of visitors on package tours bucked the trend of British travellers in general, an increasing proportion of whom are looking to travel independently, the study showed.
British visitors to Jordan were most likely to have visited Petra, as 93.2 per cent polled said they went to the rose-red city, closely followed by Aqaba and Wadi Rum.
Most of those who have yet to travel to the Kingdom, expressed interest in visiting Petra (90.3 per cent), followed by Wadi Rum (79 per cent) and the Dead Sea (78.2 per cent), according to the study.
British travellers who seek adventure tourism are not looking for physical activities, but rather to travel to far-off and exotic locations, the study showed.
Demand for eco-tourism is also rising in the UK, the report said, noting that the Kingdom can capitalise on its unique natural beauty in order to fully exploit the market.
Director Nayef Fayez stressed that the board is taking the study into consideration in reaching out to the UK market, underlining the need for further support from the private sector.
Source: Zawya (http://www.zawya.com/Story.cfm/sidZAWYA20100113034053/Most%20UK%20travellers%20unaware%20of%20Jordan%27s%20tourist%20offerings)
Madaba suffers a drop in tourist numbers
Posted by: | CommentsThe total number of visitors to the tourist and archeological sites in Madaba governorate during 2009 reached 304.000, compared with 330.00 in 2008. According to Director of Madaba Tourism Wael Ja’anini attributed this decline to the global financial crisis and the spread of swine flu lately.
French tourists,46000, topped the list of foreign visitors to the city in 2009, followed by 37000 tourists from Spain, Italy around 36000, Germany 29000 and about 11000 from Switzerland. Ja’anini stated that the Directorate intends to carry out two major projects this year with an estimated total cost of JD 750.000.
The two projects include expanding Madaba visitors’ Center and decorating facades of shopping centers and other facilities. Located about 30 kilometers to the southwest of Amman, Madaba is a pleasant, relaxed little town well known for its Byzantine mosaics and being the most Christian town in the Kingdom.
The city includes many holy sites, such as Mount Nebo, where Moses is believed to have seen the Holy Land for the first time, Bethany, where Jesus believed to have been baptized. The best known site in Madaba is the” Mosaic map” which lies in St George’s Church. This Greek Orthodox Church built on the site of a much larger church dating to Byzantine times.Unearthed during construction of the new church in 1896, the mosaic was once a clear map with 157 captions (in Greek) of all major biblical sites from Lebanon to Egypt. The citizens of the City of Mosaics are proud of their Christian heritage, and they are proud of the tolerance between both Christians and Muslims in the city.
Source: FANA News (http://www.fananews.com/look/english/article.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=2&NrArticle=716008&NrIssue=1&NrSection=1)
Eilat tour guides seek Peres intervention on Petra fee hikes
Posted by: | CommentsTour operators in Eilat have asked President Shimon Peres to intervene on their behalf with Jordan’s King Abdullah II and reverse the Hashemite Kingdom’s decision to charge Petra day-trippers coming from Israel more than other tourists.
As reported in TheMarker this week, the entry fee to the Nabatean city for visitors entering Jordan from Israel who do not stay in the country overnight will be $130, beginning October 1 of this year. Those arriving from Egypt or other countries will pay $74 to tour Petra. The tour operators say the price difference will drive tourists to spend a night in a hotel in Aqaba or Egypt rather than in Eilat to avoid the extra charge.
The new fee schedule is to apply to anyone entering Jordan from Israel, irrespective of their nationality.
Tourism operators have already complained to Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and Tourism Minister Stas Misezhnikov about the discrimination, and are hoping that the strong personal ties between Peres and the Jordanian king will work in their favor.
The Israeli tour organizers also sent a letter to their Jordanian colleagues, asking them to do whatever they can to repeal the decision in the name of cooperation.
On Monday Petra tour organizers held an emergency meeting in Eilat, during which they passed a unanimous resolution to cancel all tours scheduled to set out for Petra on January 15, next Friday. They also agreed to hold a protest at the Arava border crossing if tangible progress is not made on the issue by next week.
Source: Haartez.com (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1141283.html)
