ATM 2026 marks a significant milestone for Jordan Tourism Board with new strategic partnerships, enhanced regional connectivity, and an expanded roadmap for GCC market growth.
Dubai, UAE – 30 September 2026
The Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) concluded a successful participation at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2026, reinforcing Jordan’s position as one of the Middle East’s leading tourism destinations and reaffirming its commitment to growing visitor arrivals from the Gulf region.
The Jordan Pavilion featured a delegation of eight tourism industry partners from Jordan, demonstrating the country’s collaborative approach to tourism development and international market engagement. Together with Royal Jordanian Airlines and the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA), the Jordan Tourism Board showcased the Kingdom’s diverse tourism experiences, ranging from the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Petra and the dramatic desert landscapes of Wadi Rum to the wellness attractions of the Dead Sea, the coastal destination of Aqaba, and a rich array of cultural, religious, adventure, and experiential travel offerings. The pavilion provided a valuable platform for strengthening relationships with travel trade and media partners while reinforcing Jordan’s position as a year-round destination for GCC travellers.
ATM 2026 also marked several important milestones in Jordan’s GCC market strategy. As part of its efforts to strengthen market representation and industry engagement, the Jordan Tourism Board appointed VFS Global Tourism Services as its official GCC representative, supporting the destination’s long-term growth ambitions and market development initiatives across the region.
Building on the momentum generated during the exhibition, the Jordan Tourism Board also announced a strategic memorandum of understanding with Qatar Airways, further strengthening connectivity and collaborative destination marketing efforts in key regional and international markets. The partnership is expected to support visitor growth through joint promotional campaigns, travel trade engagement, and enhanced destination visibility.
Throughout the exhibition, the Jordan Tourism Board held productive discussions with leading tourism stakeholders, airlines, media organisations, online travel agencies, MICE planners, and destination partners to explore new avenues for collaboration and visitor growth. The destination also conducted multiple media interviews and industry briefings, highlighting Jordan’s unique tourism experiences and upcoming initiatives designed to attract leisure, family, luxury, wellness, adventure, and cultural travellers from the GCC.
Commenting on the successful participation, Ramzi Maaytah, Managing Director of the Jordan Tourism Board, said:
“The Arabian Travel Market continues to be one of the most important platforms for engaging with our partners across the Gulf region and beyond. This year’s participation provided an excellent opportunity to showcase Jordan’s evolving tourism offerings, strengthen existing relationships, and establish new strategic partnerships that will contribute to the continued growth of the destination. The GCC remains a priority market for Jordan, and we are committed to delivering compelling experiences that resonate with travellers from the region.”
Arzan Khambatta, Head of Tourism Services at VFS Global, added:
“Jordan’s successful participation at ATM 2026 reflects the destination’s strong appeal to travellers from the GCC and the wider region. We are proud to support the Jordan Tourism Board in its efforts to further strengthen market engagement, build meaningful partnerships with the travel trade and media, and increase awareness of Jordan’s diverse tourism experiences. The momentum generated through ATM, combined with strategic initiatives planned for the GCC market, creates a strong foundation for sustained visitor growth and deeper industry collaboration across the region.”
Looking ahead, the Jordan Tourism Board is preparing a comprehensive programme of destination marketing and trade engagement activities across the GCC. These initiatives will include trade partnerships, targeted consumer campaigns, media outreach, influencer collaborations, airline partnerships, roadshows, destination training programmes, and participation in key travel industry events aimed at increasing awareness and driving visitation to the Kingdom. The newly established GCC representation by VFS Global, together with enhanced airline collaborations and strategic trade partnerships, will further support Jordan’s efforts to deepen market penetration and strengthen its position among leisure, family, luxury, adventure, wellness, and MICE travellers.
Regional connectivity to Aqaba has also been strengthened through Royal Jordanian Airlines’ direct services from the UAE and Saudi Arabia. The airline commenced two weekly flights between Abu Dhabi and Aqaba on 18 September 2026, offering UAE travellers direct access to Jordan’s Red Sea coast and the Golden Triangle of Aqaba, Petra and Wadi Rum. Royal Jordanian also commenced two weekly nonstop flights between Riyadh and Aqaba on 17 September 2026, supported by the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA), creating a direct gateway for Saudi travellers to Aqaba and southern Jordan. With strong momentum from ATM 2026, an expanding portfolio of strategic partnerships, and a focused growth strategy for the GCC, Jordan continues to strengthen its position as a preferred destination for travellers seeking authentic cultural experiences, breathtaking natural landscapes, wellness escapes, adventure tourism, and world-class hospitality.
About Jordan Tourism Board
The Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) is responsible for promoting and marketing Jordan as a premier global tourism destination. Working closely with tourism stakeholders, government entities, and international partners, JTB showcases the Kingdom’s unique cultural, historical, leisure, religious, wellness, and adventure tourism experiences to travellers worldwide.
About VFS Global Tourism Services
VFS Global has established its regional and global footprints in the space of tourism services, complementing its core visa services business. With 16 years of experience, the Tourism Services Unit has served more than 25 destinations. The team partners client destinations, across different countries, to enable the achievement of their travel and tourism promotional objectives and business targets. We specialize in destination representation, outsourced tourism office management and trade support services for national tourism authorities from client governments. We facilitate them in a wide range of destination promotional activities.
Some of the key services include dedicated tourism support offices, destination training, product development, B2B roadshows & workshops, consumer events, digital campaigns, MICE engagement program, public relations and e-learning modules. The team is able to partner client destinations across different countries to deliver the desired tourist arrival and spend targets.
About VFS Global
As the global leader in trusted technology services, empowering secure mobility for governments and citizens, VFS Global embraces technological innovation, including Generative AI, to support governments and diplomatic missions worldwide. The company manages non-judgmental and administrative tasks related to applications for visa, passport, and consular services for its client governments, increasing productivity and enabling them to focus entirely on the critical task of assessment.
With a responsible approach to technology development, adoption and integration, the company prioritises ethical practices and sustainability while serving as the trusted partner to 71 client governments. Operating over 4,300 Application Centres in 170 countries, VFS Global has efficiently processed more than 567 million transactions* since 2001.
Headquartered in Zurich and Dubai, VFS Global is majority owned by Blackstone, the world’s largest alternative asset manager, along with minority shareholders including Swiss-based Kuoni and Hugentobler Foundation, Singapore based Temasek and UAE based Dubai Holdings.
* Comprising 349.06 million transactions by VFS Global and 218.52 million transactions by CiX Citizen Experience