War in Gaza Drains Life From Petra as Tourist Numbers Plunge 61%

Jordan’s iconic heritage site reels from Middle East conflict fallout; hotels shut, jobs lost, and hopes dim

Petra, Jordan’s ancient wonder carved into rose-colored cliffs, has gone eerily quiet. Once packed with camera-toting tourists, the legendary site is now echoing with silence — collateral damage from a war taking place hundreds of kilometers away.

As the Gaza conflict enters its second year, tourism to one of the world’s most famous archaeological sites has collapsed. Figures show a staggering 61% drop in visitors in just one year, forcing dozens of hotels to close and sending hundreds of tourism workers packing.

From Peak to Plunge: Petra’s Tourist Collapse in Numbers

The numbers are as bleak as the mood among tour operators.

In 2023, nearly 1.2 million tourists came to Petra. By the end of 2024, that figure had crashed to just under 460,000. That’s not a slowdown — it’s a cliff dive.

Even though Jordan doesn’t share a border with Gaza, it shares the region’s anxiety. Travelers, especially from Europe and North America, have started to treat the entire Middle East as a no-go zone. That perception is proving hard to shake.

“Every day we feel the repercussions of the aggression on Gaza,” said Abdul Razzaq Arabiyat, the head of Jordan’s national tourism board. His remarks on Al Mamlaka TV didn’t mince words. The war, he said, has made tourists vanish.

One sentence: Fear has become the loudest tour guide in Petra.

Hotels Shut Their Doors, Workers Sent Home

The human toll is impossible to ignore.

According to data published by Petra’s tourism authority, the crash in foot traffic has forced 32 hotels in and around the city to shut down. Roughly 700 people have lost their jobs. These aren’t just numbers — they’re families.

Tour guides, drivers, receptionists, café workers — many of them depended on seasonal waves of tourists. Now, they wait in limbo, hoping the war will end and the tourists will return.

Here’s what the dominoes look like when tourism crumbles:

• Hotel occupancy dropped below 15% during peak travel months.

• Small businesses, from souvenir stands to camel rides, report losses of over 80%.

• Some local restaurants now open only on weekends — or not at all.

This isn’t just about Petra. Wadi Rum, Jerash, the Dead Sea — all are feeling the shockwaves.

Diplomatic Aid, but No Relief in Sight

Jordan has tried to stay active diplomatically. The Hashemite Kingdom joined forces with the UAE to fly humanitarian aid into Gaza. It’s called for ceasefires. It’s lobbied for peace. But the battlefield is still roaring, and regional perceptions aren’t budging.

Tourists looking for a holiday don’t want to hear about air corridors or shuttle diplomacy. They want peace of mind. And right now, Jordan — through no fault of its own — isn’t offering that.

Ironically, Petra has never been the problem. It’s the idea of “Middle East instability” that’s scaring people off. The map is guilty by association.

Unesco Site, Empty Streets

Petra is one of the planet’s most treasured archaeological wonders. It’s been a Unesco World Heritage site since 1985. Its temples, tombs, and corridors carved from rock pull in historians, backpackers, Instagrammers — people from every continent.

Or at least they used to.

Now, guides stand in the sun waiting for no one. The “Siq,” Petra’s narrow entrance path between towering sandstone walls, echoes with footsteps that are few and far between. The once-crowded Treasury building now gets more attention from wandering goats than from international visitors.

It’s not just quiet. It’s ghostly.

One man, a tour guide for over 20 years, said he hasn’t worked in six months. “No one is coming. Even the Jordanians don’t travel anymore,” he said. “We’re scared of losing everything.”

Regional Turbulence Spooks Travelers

There’s a pattern forming — and not just in Jordan.

Tourism across the Levant and parts of the Gulf has been on shaky ground ever since Hamas and Israel went back to war. Even countries that are technically far from the conflict are being hit. Egypt’s Sinai coast? Cancellations. Lebanon’s tourism sector? Frozen. Even Dubai saw fewer Western arrivals last winter.

The ripple effect is real. For Jordan, it’s proving economically painful.

A quick look at the tourism-dependent areas in Jordan shows the drop in revenue year-over-year:

With such sharp falls, even heavily promoted events like the Jerash Festival or Red Sea concerts haven’t brought the buzz they used to.

Jordan’s Tourism Lifeline Is Hanging By a Thread

Jordan’s economy has long leaned on tourism. It’s not just about historical pride. It’s about jobs, taxes, income — hard cash.

Petra alone is one of the Kingdom’s biggest tourism earners. Losing more than half its visitors is like pulling the plug on a key artery. Local officials are scrambling to keep what’s left alive.

Arabiyat said they’re pivoting to regional tourism — attracting Gulf and Arab travelers who may feel less nervous than Europeans or Americans. But he admitted it won’t be enough.

“If the war continues, we’ll lose another season,” one Petra hotel owner said. “Maybe two. How can we survive that?”