The Jordan Inbound Tourism Association and the Jordan Hotels Association met with representatives of Syria's tourism sector on Tuesday to explore ways to strengthen bilateral tourism cooperation and develop joint programmes to support the movement of tourists between the two countries.
اضافة اعلان
Participants included Hussein Halalat, president of the Jordan Hotels Association; Nabih Riyal, president of the Jordan Inbound Tourism Association; Samer Al-Masri, president of the Latakia Tourism Chamber in Syria and a member of the Federation of Syrian Tourism Chambers; and Mohammad Al-Qasim, a member of the board of directors of the Jordan Hotels Association.
Those present agreed on the need to move Jordan-Syria tourism cooperation into concrete steps, including developing joint tourism programmes and marketing the two countries together as a single integrated destination to attract visitors from regional and international markets.
The meeting also addressed easing entry for Syrian nationals into Jordan and accelerating visa procedures, particularly for individual travellers, as well as streamlining processes at the Jordanian-Syrian border to boost tourism flows and freedom of movement between the two countries.
Participants discussed drawing on Jordanian expertise to develop Syria's tourism product, including training and qualifying Syrian personnel across various tourism fields and contributing to the development of tourism facilities and services.
The group also examined practical mechanisms to facilitate Syrian weddings and events held in Jordan - covering entry procedures, visas and related requirements - noting that this segment represents a significant opportunity for Jordanian hotels and tourism establishments.
Participants agreed on the importance of organising familiarisation trips for travel and tourism agents in both countries, with the aim of showcasing Jordanian and Syrian tourism assets and opening the door to direct partnerships between tourism companies on both sides.
Those at the meeting affirmed that developing Jordan-Syria tourism cooperation represents a genuine opportunity to build an integrated tourism partnership that serves the interests of both countries' tourism sectors, increases visitor flows, enables the exchange of expertise, and raises the profile of both countries on the regional and international tourism map.
This article was originally written in Arabic for Al Ghad.
