(MENAFN- Jordan Times) AMMAN — Sitting at his house in Saudi Arabia, Missad Al Harby started receiving a number of photos depicting the blossoming of spring in Jordan, which triggered his desire to visit the Kingdom.
'As soon as I arrived in Jordan, I was taken aback by the beautiful greenery, the mountains and the agricultural scene in the northern region. Roman attractions and heritage sites also added a unique element to Jordan's history,' the Saudi tourist told The Jordan Times.
Al Harby is among the many Saudi tourists who have been flocking to the northern part of the Kingdom following the content shared by his Saudi peers on social media.
'I chose to visit Jordan because of the lack of rainfall in Saudi Arabia. When I saw the photos of spring in Jordan, I decided to come,' he added, referring to the video footages taken by Abdul Hakeem Khilawi, a Saudi social media influencer, of the Jordanian spring scene.
These videos posted by Saudi tourists have become a great way to promote the Kingdom to a wider range of tourists.'The videos I took encouraged my fellow Saudis to visit Jordan and many of them called me to get further details about the country. I also gave them maps and details of the people who guided us there,' Al Harby recalled.
Jordan Tourism Board's (JTB) Managing Director Abed Al Razzaq Arabiyat said there has been an increase in the percentage of Saudis visiting Jordan this year.
'For January and February, we witnessed an increase of 20 per cent in tourists from Saudi Arabia,' he told The Jordan Times, adding that JTB is very aware of the power of social media in promoting the Kingdom.
'We are hosting one of the top bloggers from the UAE and we will have another two coming from Saudi Arabia. We need to take advantage of this opportunity during spring time and the greenery in the north,' he added.
The official expressed appreciation of the positive impact of Khilawi's posts for Jordan. 'He came and promoted Jordan in a very nice way,' he said, adding that these videos also contributed to enhancing local tourism.
"Khilawi's videos have a very local and original content, showing how simple and hospitable Jordanians are, in addition to highlighting scenes ofJordan's greenery," Arabiyat continued.
As of March 22, a total of 38,642 vehicles with Saudi plates entered the Kingdom since the beginning of the year, according to official statistics from the Jordan Customs Department.
For Saudi tourist Mohammad Al Wahabi, social media play a crucial role in boosting tourism nowadays. 'Social media are very important. I have been visiting Jordan for 20 years and I only knew about these places through social media. Khilawi managed to draw thousands of Saudi tourists into the area and I did not know that these places would be that beautiful,' he said.
Arabiyat said he strongly believes it is not only the role of JTB to promote the country.'I consider each Jordanian as a media company. Every Jordanian has a good number of followers on social media and I encourage them to share their videos to show the world how beautiful Jordan is,' he said, urging tour operators to offer packages for the Gulf Cooperation Council tourists.
The JTB official said he is ready to support anyone who would like to invite foreign bloggers and influencers. 'Jordan is a sample of continents. We have all kinds of tourism and we want to send the right message that Jordan is safe and hospitable,' he added.
Mohammad Rababah, administrator of Irbid City Facebook page, said the number of Saudi vehicles heading to green locations in the governorate has been on the rise.
'I live in Kofr Rakib where most of these videos where shot and I noticed that many Saudi and Jordanian people have been heading there. Many Jordanians also asked our page for maps to this location,' he told The Jordan Times, noting that local shop owners have benefited a lot from this wave of tourists.
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