The question that should occupy Jordan's tourism sector is no longer just: How do we attract more tourists? Perhaps the more important question has become: How do we understand the tourist before they arrive, and know what they are looking for, and what can make them stay longer, spend more, and discover new places in Jordan? Here emerges an idea that may seem futuristic at first glance, but deserves to become a viable national project: that every foreign tourist has a 'digital twin' before arriving in the Kingdom.
The digital twin of a tourist is not a virtual copy of a human, but an intelligent model based on data and artificial intelligence to understand the visitor's preferences and interests and build a suitable tourist experience for them. Instead of the tourist receiving a general list of places to visit, an intelligent system, with their consent, can recognize their interests: do they prefer history and archaeology? Nature and adventure? Local food? Religious tourism? Medical tourism? Crafts and popular markets? Then it builds a personalized tourist program that changes according to their length of stay, budget, means of transportation, and interests.
Jordan has the assets that make this idea exceptionally valuable. The tourist who comes to the Kingdom does not visit just one site; they have Petra, Wadi Rum, the Dead Sea, Jerash, Madaba, Ajloun, Aqaba, the Baptism Site, and other sites and experiences. The official website of the Jordan Tourism Board already displays a wide range of destinations and experiences.
Here, artificial intelligence can take Jordanian tourism promotion from the 'offer options' stage to the 'predict choice' stage. For example, if we have a tourist interested in history and local food with five days, the system might suggest a program starting in Amman, then Jerash, Madaba, and Petra, with a local food experience and a visit to a craft project or a rural experience in one of the governorates. A tourist interested in adventure and nature might be suggested a different program that includes Wadi Rum, Aqaba, Ajloun, and natural trails and local experiences. Thus, artificial intelligence becomes not just a tool to answer the tourist's questions, but a tool to create a more suitable and beneficial journey for the Jordanian economy.
This idea does not come out of nowhere. The Jordanian tourism sector achieved important indicators in 2025; the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced that the number of international visitors reached about seven million visitors, and tourism income reached about 5.5 billion dinars, while tourism income contributed about 13.2% of the gross domestic product. The Ministry also indicated the preparation of a sectoral tourism strategy project for the years 2026-2029, which includes 31 strategic projects. These numbers mean that the sector's size justifies the transition to more advanced tools in managing tourist demand and directing investment.
It is noteworthy that Jordan has already taken a step in this direction; the Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship launched an official project titled 'AI-GIS Geo Analytics for Tourism Demand and Investment Optimization in Jordan', aiming to employ artificial intelligence and geographic analysis in understanding tourism demand and improving investment.
The 'digital tourist' may seem like a futuristic idea today, but the world is already moving towards using digital twins in tourist destinations to simulate visitor movement, improve destination management and sustainability, and recent scientific literature indicates that these applications are still an emerging field with great potential in tourism management.
Therefore, perhaps it is time for us to ask ourselves a different question: What if we do not wait for the tourist to arrive in Jordan before we start serving them? What if Jordan starts getting to know their needs before they board the plane? And what if every tourist has a 'digital twin' that helps them discover the Jordan that suits them, and helps Jordan in turn distribute tourism, investment, and income more intelligently and fairly?
Then artificial intelligence will not just be a new technology in the tourism sector, but can become a means of redefining the relationship between the tourist and the destination, and between technology and the local economy. Perhaps the real challenge facing Jordan in the coming phase is not just having the tourist come to the Kingdom, but making every tourist who comes to it discover more, stay longer, spend more, and leave carrying with them an unforgettable Jordanian experience.
