Madaba is one of Jordan's most important historical and cultural cities. It is known as the city of mosaics and features on the global tourist map, thanks to its unique landmarks, such as the Madaba Map in the Greek Orthodox Church. Even so, it remains a stopover for tourists rather than a destination to stay in.
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Most visitors make a brief trip lasting a few hours, usually to see the historic map before heading quickly to Mount Nebo, the Baptism Site or the Dead Sea. This deprives the local economy of the real financial returns from tourism and prevents this cultural wealth from becoming sustainable development. It raises questions about how the city can move from a passing stop to a place where visitors stay.
Strategic diversity and structural challenges
Activists believe the rapid turnaround in Madaba has several causes. These include the lack of an integrated internal tourist route, weak hotel infrastructure and hospitality services geared towards overnight stays, poor tourism marketing, and a limited range of events and interactive activities.
Tourism expert Emad Al-Tawal believes Madaba has a real opportunity to become a complete tourist destination, rather than a short stop visitors pass through before moving on. He said: "During their visit to the city, tourists focus on one or two main sites, the Greek Orthodox Church and the Madaba Museum, while the supporting tourist products that would encourage them to explore the old city's alleys, handicrafts and heritage markets are missing."
He added: "Although there are some distinctive hotels and heritage guesthouses, most of the infrastructure does not offer complete hospitality experiences that encourage people to stay several nights, compared with the city's proximity to Amman or to the Dead Sea and its luxury resorts." He explained that Madaba's marketing tends to focus on it as a one-day historical and religious stop, rather than a living cultural destination that combines mosaic history, local cuisine and community experiences with local people.
He stressed the importance of presenting the governorate as part of a connected tourist programme that allows visitors to explore more than one site and experience, rather than a quick visit to the city centre. He added that improving tourist services, marketing the sites more widely and encouraging investment suited to the governorate's character would lengthen visitors' stays and increase their spending.
Activist Laith Abu Qa'oud said that extending the length of tourists' stays in Madaba requires work on several fronts. These include suitable infrastructure, better access to archaeological sites outside the city centre, and clearer information for tourists about the sites, organised through defined tourist routes, with roads leading to them improved and signposts and the facilities visitors need provided.
He noted that the city lacks sustained seasonal festivals or live demonstrations of mosaic and handicraft workshops that engage tourists as active participants rather than passing observers. He stressed that the quality of services directly affects a tourist's impression and their wish to stay longer and return.
Abu Qa'oud believes turning Madaba from a transit city into a destination for settling in and spending on tourism requires a comprehensive strategy. It should connect the city's internal landmarks with safe walking and cycling routes in the old city, develop handicraft tourism so that visitors can take part in live workshops making mosaics, and build an emotional attachment to the place that encourages them to stay longer and spend more.
Activists warn that keeping Madaba as a transit stop for tourists wastes enormous potential. Culture and heritage could become a key driver of the local economy and of job creation. They argue the solution lies not only in promoting historical sites, but in improving the tourist experience so that Madaba becomes a place where visitors live and enjoy themselves for several days, rather than a passing stop on their way south or to the Dead Sea.
Activist Salama Abdul Hafith stressed that improving the tourist experience starts with the basic services visitors need while moving between sites. He named road maintenance, public cleanliness, parking, signposts and toilets as priorities, along with reliable water, sewerage and telecommunications in tourist areas.
He noted that meeting these needs requires coordination between the relevant bodies and a clear definition of their responsibilities, so that important sites do not fall short of the service standards visitors expect.
He also stressed the importance of supporting cultural industries and heritage kitchens serving traditional Jordanian and Madaba dishes, and of providing organised markets to sell authentic handicrafts away from informal trading. He said: "We must improve the urban scene by lighting heritage streets, providing modern interactive signs in several languages, and making the city centre fully pedestrian-friendly."
Abdul Hafith called for global and local marketing campaigns that highlight Madaba as a living capital, working with tour operators and travel agencies to include at least one overnight stay in Madaba in visitor programmes to the Kingdom. He added that training local tour guides from the areas around these sites would enhance the visitor experience and give them the chance to learn the place's history and stories.
Visions for revitalising tourism
The chairman of the council, Professor Dr Musa Shteiwi, stressed the importance of assessing the state of the tourism sector and listening to the views of people working in it, in order to reach practical recommendations that address challenges and boost investment opportunities. He said: "In the coming period, the priority is to connect tourist sites with clear routes, improve services and infrastructure, encourage investments that suit the character of the place, expand cultural and sporting events, and involve local communities in managing the tourism product and benefiting from its returns."
Activists and citizens stressed the need to diversify the tourism product and look beyond traditional models, such as natural and eco-tourism and adventure tourism, which attract a large group of visitors.
Amer Al-Rawahneh and Mohammad Hashem highlighted the importance of making use of natural resources and developing adventure tourism, hiking, exploration trips, climbing and sports activities. They called for adventure and challenge tourism to be developed through exploration and sports trips for those seeking different experiences, using the governorate's natural features to encourage visitors to stay a night or two to complete their programme.
Mohammad Al-Fuqaha believes that reusing the heritage houses found across Madaba governorate, converting them into guesthouses, cafés, restaurants and centres displaying handicrafts and heritage products, would create a unique tourist experience. He said this approach would enrich the visit and introduce visitors to the city's way of life.
Calls for investment support
Investor Samer Mu'aya believes Madaba has suitable assets for camping and campsite projects, particularly in areas near natural and archaeological sites, offering an additional form of accommodation and giving visitors the chance to discover the governorate and spend more time there. He said camping projects could boost economic activity and create jobs, while supporting restaurants, services and trip-related activities, which requires making procedures easier for investors.
Activist Mohammad Al-Nawafa'a stressed the need to clearly publicise the investment opportunities available in the tourism sector, and to provide information on licensing procedures and project requirements, so investors can identify opportunities and plan accordingly.
Investor Hussein Al-Sanad said the success of tourism projects depends on suitable infrastructure, above all the roads and services leading to the sites, as well as clear licensing procedures and a stable investment environment that helps investors plan and expand.
Investor Nour Al-Din Al-Hawatmeh highlighted the importance of attracting tourist delegations to Madaba through clear, organised visit programmes that introduce visitors to its archaeological, religious and cultural sites, rather than a quick pass through a limited number of landmarks. He said longer visits feed directly into restaurants, hotels and shops, and raise tourist spending in the city.
Data from the Madaba Tourism Directorate shows that the governorate's tourist sites recorded a rise in visitor numbers in 2025 compared with 2024. This reflects continued interest in Madaba as a key destination, and increases the responsibility to develop services. The data shows about 117 tourism facilities in the governorate, including 22 hotels, 30 tourist restaurants, 27 handicraft operators, 33 oriental antiques shops and five travel and tourism offices.
For its part, the official spokesman for the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Dr Ahmad Al-Rifai, said the ministry is focused on developing the tourist, archaeological and natural sites in Madaba governorate and highlighting their historical and religious value, while improving the visitor experience. He said the ministry is working with the European Union to develop the Machaerus site and highlight its historical and tourist value, in line with principles of sustainability and environmental protection.
He added that the ministry has set up a visitor centre at Tell Dhiban as part of its efforts to develop the governorate's tourist and archaeological sites and provide visitors with the services and information they need. He stressed that Madaba is well placed to attract many forms of tourism, including religious, cultural and natural tourism and adventure tourism, as well as music and cultural events and investment linked to the sector.
Al-Rifai emphasised the importance of responsible investment, stronger partnerships with the private sector and local communities, and making use of cooperation with international bodies to develop tourist sites and services. This would help create jobs and boost the local economy, while protecting the natural and archaeological resources that form the foundation of Madaba's tourism product.
Haitham Juwainat, chairman of the Greater Madaba Municipality committee, said the municipality is working to develop and rehabilitate Madaba's city centre, highlighting its beauty and old heritage character while preserving its historical identity, so that it becomes a destination for visitors and helps revive trade and investment. He said the municipality encourages high-quality investment projects that suit the city's character, noting that tourism investment is not limited to archaeological sites but also includes sports and cultural tourism and community events.
