Jordan- Tourism board to focus on promoting religious sites in 2012 

(MENAFN - Jordan Times) The Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) will focus this year on promoting the Kingdom's religious tourism sites, JTB acting Director General Abdul Razzaq Arabiyat said on Wednesday.

In a statement sent to The Jordan Times yesterday, he noted that the Kingdom has several religious sites of importance to Christians, which will be promoted to attract more pilgrims to the country.

Last week, the JTB hosted Christian clergymen from Arab countries on a field visit to Christian sites in the Kingdom, Arabiyat added.

Meanwhile, Dia Madani, director of the Baptism Site, said more than 160,000 tourists visited the site last year, 85 per cent of them for religious purposes.

He explained that the number of visitors is expected to increase this year as the site, where Jesus is believed to have been baptised, is being promoted as part of a tourism package for Christian pilgrims.

"The site used to be promoted in joint packages that included religious, historical and recreational sites," Madani told The Jordan Times, noting that under the new plan, inbound tour operators were asked to design packages including only the religious sites for marketing to pilgrims.

According to Madani, various Christian denominations have already begun constructing churches at the site, while a bus system is being implemented to connect the site with other religious attractions including Mount Nebo, Madaba, and Um Al Rassas.