Bucharest, Amman Linked through ‘Air Bridge’

On Sunday, the Queen Alia International Airport (QAIA) welcomed the first chartered flight carrying 134 Romanian tourists, marking the launch of an “air bridge” linking Amman with Bucharest, Ammon News reports.

The Jordan Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Nayef Fayez, stated in a press release that the launch of this tourism “air bridge,” with one flight per week until the end of the year, confirms the increase in the number of tourists arriving in Amman as a gateway to the Kingdom’s tourist and archaeological sites.

This air bridge results from the Jordan Tourism Board (JTB), the Ministry of Tourism, and Jordan’s embassy in Bucharest working together to facilitate low-cost flight routes to promote tourism activities. Inviting low-cost regular and charter flights from various countries to QAIA and King Hussein Airport in Aqaba would increase arrivals from Romania and other EU nations

JTB Managing Director Abed Al Razzaq Arabiyat

This is actually excellent news for lots of Romanians, as Jordan has recently become a desirable travel destination. While reaching Amman by a direct flight from Bucharest, Romanians are now more inclined to choose this destination. Moreover, the travel agencies in Romania will undoubtedly take advantage of this initiative and recommend the tourists to visit this country.

Meanwhile, this is another bad news for Romania’s economy. All the other countries understand the importance of supporting tourism, but the Romanian Government seems unaware of this immense opportunity to revive the economy.

Only around USD 400 million are spent in Romania by the foreign tourists arriving here, but the country has vast potential in this field. The neighbouring countries, such as Bulgaria and Hungary, are way above in tourism, in terms of quality and services.

Only recently, Bucharest City Hall decided to finance Bucharest Travel Board, an association meant to promote Romania’s Capital as a tourist destination. At the same time, the Romanian Government approached influencers to help the authorities promote the country. Even so, the lack of infrastructure, the lack of education regarding hospitality services and the lack of necessary funds all make Romania wait for better days in tourism. Until then, Romanians fly to Jordan and hundreds of other destinations, spending their money abroad and contributing to developing the respective destinations’ local economies.