Yes, it’s true, visitors to the Dead Sea may often end up in Jordan’s cluster of plush five-star Crowne Plaza and Marriott resorts rather than seeing the breadth and width of the country.
But a number of Jordanian institutions have also put an astonishing amount of effort and energy towards supporting and sustaining responsible tourism over the past 50 years – and that makes it relatively straightforward to plan a trip where your money is actually going back to local communities.
For instance, if you head out to the stunning Wadi Rum valley, you’ll find that virtually all of the tourist enterprises are run by local Bedouin families from the Zalabia tribe, from day tours to overnight camps, and collectively organised by the local Rum Tourism Cooperative.
Even when booking a visit to ultra-popular Petra, it’s not too difficult to skip past the big international tourism agencies and support brilliant local guides and homestays instead – one of the best-rated private tours on TripAdvisor is run by Abdullah Nawafleh, who grew up in the area working on the excavation site. (Guests rave about Abdullah’s brilliant knowledge of Petra, his love of Jordan, his kindness, and his singing ability.)
In the north of Jordan, Baraka Destinations organises tours and experiences run by locals (from archaeological hikes to basket-weaving and beekeeping).
And even if you head out for a hike across the many isolated wadis, canyons and waterfalls of the Dead Sea Trail, you could end up stumbling onto one of the handicraft workshops and shops which are run by Wild Jordan, an offshoot of Jordan’s longstanding Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature, with the aim of supporting craftswomen from local communities.
Back in 2018, the Jordanian tourism board actually created its own official ‘Meaningful Travel Map’, which encourages travellers to visit community-run sites, hotels, guest-houses and social enterprises across the country.
The map isn’t exhaustive, but it’s a great place to start and offers a wide range of different possibilities for your next trip (or your next tips for European tourists).
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