AMMAN -- A group of tourist sector entities are heading to Spain to promote the country's prize historical attractions at the FITUR International Tourist Fair this week.
The five-day event, which opens Wednesday, will provide global industry players a key platform to network, discuss the latest tourist business developments and boost their countries as vacation destinations.
More than 12,000 exhibiting companies, 150,000 trade participants and 65,000 visitors are taking part.
A Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) official said the Jordanian delegation includes 10 tour operators, five hotels and officials from the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority as well as Royal Jordanian.
"We will be looking at this platform to enhance our promotional efforts and communication plans with current markets as well as target new markets we have great interest in," JTB Managing Director Mazen Homoud told The Jordan Times.
"The Spanish market will continue to be a key focus for us at the event, but we will also be looking at the South American market," he added.
The JTB, which continues to work hard to enhance the country's competitive edge as a vacation destination, is looking to attract visitors to the Kingdom from Argentina, Brazil and Chile, according to Homoud.
The JTB official noted that large numbers of visitors from these markets have been registered in other countries in the region such as Egypt and Israel.
"There is a good amount of tourist traffic from these countries and FITUR will help us establish and enhance more contacts with this market," he added.
FITUR 2007, to be opened by King Juan Carlos I of Spain, is one of the largest international tourism and trade gatherings of global industry leaders from both the private and public sectors.
Organisers of this year's event will be holding various conferences, seminars and press conferences, where professionals can review and analyse the current and future climate of the international tourist industry.
As part of its promotional efforts, the JTB secured a 500-square-metre pavilion to showcase some of the Kingdom's most distinguished historical and archaeological sites.
Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Osama Dabbas, who is heading the Jordanian delegation, left for Madrid on Saturday.
Dabbas said the event is considered a key platform from which to expand and build on current developments and enhance contacts for future cooperation.
He described the Spanish tourist market as a leading market for Jordan with a high volume of tourist traffic to the country.
Official figures show that the number of Spanish visitors to Petra is second largest after the UK and US, their figures increasing 250 per cent between 2004 and 2005.
Dabbas is scheduled to hold talks with his counterparts from various countries as well as members of the press and industry leaders during the event, according to the Ministry of Tourism.
The minister will also meet with UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Secretary General Franco Frangialli to discuss issues of cooperation on various levels, including training and development in tourism, as well as technical assistance by the UNWTO experts.
The latest issue of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer, to be released just before FITUR, will offer final figures for 2006, and the first regional forecasts for 2007.
The organisation will also organise an international think tank of experts from 20 countries as well as a conference on excellence in tourism governance to foster competitiveness.
The gathering will include officials and representatives from Spanish organisations, wholesalers, tour operators, travel agencies, hotels, service companies, trade associations, the travel media and entities in the field of tourism training and education.
By Dalya Dajani
© Jordan Times 2007
