AMMAN — The number of visitors to
the Baptism Site of Jesus Christ at the Jordan River last year increased by 300
percent compared to the previous year, according to the acting director-general
of the
Baptism Site Commission, Dr Adulaziz Al-Adwan.
اضافة اعلان
Adwan told the Jordan News Agency, Petra,
that in 2022, the site received around 150,000 visitors, mainly of European and
North American (77 percent) and Arab nationalities, as well as
Jordanian citizens. In 2021, about 50,000 visitors were recorded.
According to Al-Ghad daily, the
director-general largely attributed this boost in visitor activity to the
lifting of COVID-related travel restrictions, as well as the rising number of
low-cost flights linking the Kingdom to foreign countries.
In December, His Majesty King Abdullah attended the launch of a masterplan to develop the area over 1,374 dunums surrounding the Baptism site.
Religious tourism developmentA new visitor center was opened in October
2022 to streamline the process of welcoming pilgrims and visitors to the
Baptism Site, Adwan said. He highlighted paths designed to allow persons with
disabilities to visit the hill of Mar Elias, the spring of
John the Baptist,
and the Jordan River.
The commission has also implemented
maintenance projects on water drains in the Baptism Site area to absorb heavy
rainfall, he said.
The new visitor center is only a small step
in ambitious plans to enhance religious tourism in the area.
In December, His Majesty King Abdullah
attended the launch of a masterplan to develop the area over 1,374 dunums
surrounding the Baptism site.
The Baptism Site of
Jesus Christ, located
9km north of the Dead Sea on the East Bank of the Jordan River, is one of the
holiest sites for Christianity on earth.
Efforts to preserve and protect it are in
line with the historical role of His Majesty towards holy sites under the
Hashemite Custodianship.
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