6,845 vehicles enter Jordan from Saudi Arabia in three days

AMMAN — A total of 6,845 private cars entered Jordan from Saudi Arabia between Wednesday and Friday through the Omari border crossing as Saudis and expatriates come to spend a 10-day holiday here, according to official data. 

Spring break, also known as the second semester break for schools in Saudi Arabia, started Friday, and Saudi families usually head to Jordan during this period.

Jihad Hajji, media director at the Jordan Customs Department (JCD), said 1,556 private cars crossed the border last Wednesday, with the number of vehicles increasing to 2,502 on Thursday and 2,787 on Friday. 

Hajji added that the Saudi visitors came to spend the holiday in Jordan, which is the case every year, and Jordanian expatriates were among the visitors. 

The number of automobiles that entered Jordan over the past weekend was more than four times higher than average, as around 500 vehicles usually enter the Kingdom on a daily basis, according to the JCD official.

Hajji told The Jordan Times that the JCD and border authorities are gearing up for summer as Jordan is expected to be a preferred destination for tourists from the Gulf region, particularly Saudi Arabia. 

The customs department has boosted its cadres at the Omari crossing and has taken several measures to facilitate and speed up entry procedures for visitors from the Gulf, he said. 

The increase in visitor inflow from the Gulf state was also registered at Queen Alia International Airport, according to an official at its operator, Airport International Group, who said that thousands of Saudis arrived in Jordan by air over the weekend. 

The official, who preferred to remain unnamed, told The Jordan Times that no exact figures were available but noted that several thousand Saudis landed at the airport between Wednesday and Friday. 

Travellers from Saudi Arabia constitute the largest number of tourists to Jordan, with an estimated 1 million people entering the Kingdom by land, according to official figures. Last summer, 154,920 cars entered the Kingdom from Saudi Arabia through the Omari crossing. Official figures estimate the number of Jordanian expatriates at around 750,000, the majority of whom live in the Gulf states.

Over 300,000 Jordanian professionals are based in Saudi Arabia, followed by the UAE with nearly 200,000.