SUSTAINABLE TOURISM AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES A CASE STUDY FROM AMMAN/JORDAN

Jordan is a country in the Middle East endowed by a vast range of heritage resources ranging from religious heritage sites to historical heritage sites. The heritage resources and archaeological sites attract thousands of tourists from different parts of the globe annually. However, despite the importance of tourism and its development in the country, it is still facing major challenges. These issues and challenges can be eliminated through effective strategies and approaches in the sustainable management of the archaeological and heritage sites in the country. Sustainable tourism is crucial for the protection and preservation of the resources as it secures integration between the present and future generations, high quality services, favourable tourism conditions as well as participation of various stakeholders of the tourism industry. On the other hand, heritage resources are non-renewable and as such once lost they cannot be recovered thus a need for a sustainable tourism strategy into the sector. The study aimed at investigating the various sustainable management issues facing archaeological sites in Jordan by carrying out a case study on archaeological sites in Amman. The research as such aimed at analysing the current situation of sustainable tourism in the sites in Amman, current challenges facing management in Amman, sustainable tourism plans in place at the archaeological sites in Amman, a SWOT analysis of the archaeological sites in Amman as well as make recommendations for the future of sustainable tourism and archaeological heritage management in Amman. The study utilised a survey to investigate the perceptions of tourists visiting the archaeological sites in Amman on their experience at the sites and interviews to investigate the perceptions and experiences of the employees working at the study sites. The study revealed that social tension, inadequate maintenance of archaeological sites, vandalism and destruction of the sites by tourists and locals, and inadequate training of the staff on management practices of archaeological sites to be the major challenges facing the archaeological sites in Amman. The study further revealed that inadequate participation of the locals in tourism development and management in Amman, weak management, inadequate funds and lack of a national conservation and management policy for archaeological sites in Jordan are the leading root causes of the problems. The study recommends creation of equality in the distribution of resources by the locals, creation of awareness on cultural practices and beliefs of the locals, development of storage and preservation strategies, adequate legislation and laws with regards to tourism, a maintenance management plan for the sites as well as development of a nationwide policy on management of archaeological sites in the country.