PETRA, May 7: Ukrainian tourist Ruslana Novak and her friend had Jordan's ancient city of Petra almost entirely to themselves as they marvelled at the massive edifice carved into pink sandstone.
Since the Middle East war erupted in late February, the famed Rose City has been all but abandoned by the usual crowds of tourists that flock to the site every year.
"Of course, we heard about the war... It is not a problem because I am from Ukraine, and we know about war," Novak, an insurance agent, told AFP under a blazing sun.
"This country is surrounded by countries that have war, but Jordan is... very calm," she said, describing it as safe and beautiful.
Nearby, Mexican tourist Constanza Venian said she was delighted to avoid the usual crowds at the UNESCO World Heritage site: "I was lucky I chose the right time."
Yet she had considered cancelling her trip after Israel and the United States launched their strikes against Iran, plunging the region into conflict.
"I was afraid in the beginning, but I was reading about Jordan and entered Facebook groups and asked questions... Everyone said Jordan is safe," the 33-year-old said.
At the site's entrance, Khalid al-Saidat and his fellow souvenir sellers killed time in front of their stalls, cigarettes dangling from their lips. The donkeys and horses usually popular with tourists also stood idle.
'Captain Marvel' blasts into USD 1 billion league
The site embodied "the collapse of tourism" in Jordan, the 36-year-old shop owner told AFP.
While "the war in Gaza had led to an 80 to 90 percent drop in tourism", the Iran conflict reduced the number of foreign visitors to "almost zero", Saidat said.
"We open every day without knowing whether we'll earn enough to live on."
- In free fall -
According to official figures, tourism accounts for 14 percent of Jordan's gross domestic product (GDP), with 60,000 people directly employed in the sector while another 300,000 depend on it.
Last year, more than seven million visitors generated $7.8 billion in revenues.
Beyond Petra, Jordan is home to many major sites, including the lunar landscapes of Wadi Rum, the Dead Sea and the famed archeological site of Jerash.
The year had begun well, "with 112,000 foreign visitors in the first two months, which is very good", said Adnan al-Sawair, chairman of the board of commissioners of the Petra tourism authority.
But everything changed with the war, which Sawair said had an immediate effect: the number of visitors to Petra in March and April dropped to between 28,000 and 30,000.
The wave of cancellations has even led some hotels to consider closing.
The authorities have launched a scheme to boost local tourism, but its impact remained "negligible", Sawair said, as the sector depends above all on foreign tourist groups.
- 'No tourism anymore' -
The situation is no different in Jerash, around 50 kilometres (30 miles) north of Amman.
"We were hoping for the best season since 2020, after the pandemic, but there's no tourism anymore," said local guide Amer Nizami.
Some 5,000 foreign visitors used to flock to the site every day, the 47-year-old said. Today, they can be counted on one hand.
A guide usually "does at least two tours a day during a good season. The last time I did a paid tour in Jerash was about 20 days ago", he added.
With every regional crisis, "tourism stops here, even though Jordan doesn't have any problems", Nizami said.
Since the beginning of the war, drone and missile debris has fallen on the kingdom, which does not host any foreign military bases but does have limited contingents from several countries under collective defence and cooperation agreements.
Jordan's army said 281 Iranian missiles and drones had been fired at the country from the war's onset until the beginning of the April ceasefire -- most of them intercepted.
According to the national travel agency association, pre-war booking calendars were almost full, but they emptied abruptly, plunging some 1,400 licenced guides into crisis.
Given the lack of customers, souvenir seller Ibrahim al-Atmeh decided to pack up his wares earlier than usual.
"We were hoping for an excellent spring season, but... our hopes are gone," the 31-year-old said.
