By Khetam Malkawi, Jordan Times

AMMAN – Although the total number of visitors to the Kingdom decreased by 31 per cent in July 2011 compared to same month last year, the number of Saudi tourists increased by 21 per cent, according to a Ministry of Tourism report released on Monday.

The report indicated that 807,000 tourists visited the country last month compared to 1.170 million in July 2010.

The number of Saudi tourists reached 159,000 during the same period, a 21 per cent increase compared to July 2010 when the figure stood at 131,000.

The report attributed the rise in the number of Saudi tourists, who constituted 86 per cent of the total visitors from Gulf countries, to promotion campaigns conducted by the ministry in the Gulf state, in cooperation with other sector representatives to compensate for the drop in the number of visitors from other countries.

Meanwhile, tourist arrivals in the January-July period dropped by 18 per cent, with 3.9 million visitors registered in the first months of this year, compared to 4.8 million in the same period of last year.

The report cited turmoil in some of the region’s countries as the main reason behind the decline in visitor numbers as the situation prompted potential tourists to cancel trips to the Middle East, including Jordan.

read more here from Jordan Times

According to Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities figures, 807,000 Saudi tourists visited the country in July (Photo by Sahem Rababah)