Cyprus-Jordan to work towards joint tourism packages

Cyprus and Jordan will join forces to promote joint tourist packages, particularly for those who have come from far away, in a bid to boost tourism sectors, Deputy Minister for Tourism Savvas Perdios told the Cyprus News Agency on Friday.

Perdios visited Jordan’s capital, Amman, aiming to continue an effort that started in 2019 between the two countries but was interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Then, the two countries had agreed on most issues, Perdios said from Amman.

Jordan recently lifted most coronavirus restrictions, and this is expected in Cyprus soon, the deputy minister said, explaining now “it is the right time to revisit the issue”.

During his stay in Amman, Perdios met with his Jordanian counterpart and had separate top-level contacts with Royal Jordanian airline and the country’s tourism board.

“The intention is there, it was decided to work in the coming months on the details,” he added.

The two countries aim to complement each other in promoting joint tourist packages as flying time between them is just 50 minutes, Perdios said, adding that Jordan and Cyprus will proceed with joint promotion campaigns.

He added that the aim is to promote joint tourist packages in the next season, with promotion expected to begin by the end of this year.

According to the deputy minister, Cyprus and Jordan can complement each other, with the sea and beaches, as well as the routes to villages Cyprus has to offer, and Jordan’s unique experiences in the desert, while the two countries have different and joint cultural and historic features.

He also said that the aim is to promote four or five-day visits for tourists visiting the two countries, as the campaign will target tourists from long-distance countries, whose vacations range between ten days and two weeks.

Asked whether this new effort could bear fruit this time after similar efforts in the past with other neighbouring countries, Perdios said the deputy ministry has made more than 20 trips to neighouring countries in the past few years, while he has visited Jordan five times.

“We feel that the potential with Jordan is great, we believe we are ready to assist each other with regard to joint tourist packages,” he added.

He also said that the 2019 agreement had to be updated as the Cypriot deputy ministry has added 12 new labels to its tourist experiences since then, as the Heartland of Legends.

According to World Bank data, tourist arrivals in Jordan in 2019 (pre-Covid-19) amounted to 5.36 million while arrivals in Cyprus in the same year reached an all-time record of 4 million.