On Thursday, the Jordan Hotels Association attributed the drop in hotel reservation rates in Aqaba and the Dead Sea due to the heat wave, according to its spokesman, Hussein Hilalat.

Hilalat said that the temperature touched 40 degrees Celsius in Aqaba, the Dead Sea and Petra, adding that this tangible rise led to a decrease in hotel occupancy rates compared to previous years.

Regarding the low occupancy rates in Petra hotels, Hilalat said that this is due to two reasons, which is that tourism in Jordan is seasonal and during the summer period there is a decrease in the number of tourists.

He added that in Aqaba and the Dead Sea, it was expected that the percentages would be the best, but they declined due to the temperatures.

He explained that during the heat wave, the direction of domestic tourism is specifically towards the northern regions of Jordan, because the weather there is moderate and acceptable, such as the regions of Ajloun and Jerash.

He explained that the decrease in the occupancy rate did not affect the tourism income of Jordan, as the occupancy rates were very high during the previous months of the current year, and until 30/6 the rates were better than their rates in previous years.

On the presence of losses for hotels in light of the low occupancy rates, Hilalat said: “During this period, there may be losses for hotels in some areas, but it is expected that these losses will be compensated during the next season, which is the autumn period.”

He continued, “It is well known that our problem in Jordan is that tourism is seasonal, and we hope that it will be moderate. Through the Tourism Promotion Authority and the Ministry of Tourism, marketing programs will be implemented for Jordan throughout the year, and these losses will recur for the next season.”

The percentage of reservations for 5-star hotels in the city of Aqaba from the 20th to the 22nd of this month reached 63%, compared to 55% in the Dead Sea, 57% in the capital Amman, and 35% in Petra, according to what Hilalat Al-Khamis told The Kingdom.

He said that occupancy rates in 4-star hotels in Aqaba amounted to 58%, the Dead Sea 48%, and the capital Amman 78%, while it was 33% in Petra.

He explained that 3-star hotels had an occupancy rate of 71% in Amman, 9% in Petra, and 43% in Aqaba.

In turn, the Meteorological Department said that the hot air mass may continue until the beginning of next month.

(The kingdom)