Lebanon and Jordan want to transform a major religious commemoration into a project of tourist, cultural and spiritual cooperation that can span several years. The starting point is the two-thousandth anniversary of Christ’s baptism in the Jordan, around which Amman is preparing a programme of activities under the theme « Jordan, the dawn of Christianity ». Jordanian Minister of Tourism Imad Hijazin presented the project to President Joseph Aoun during his visit to Baabda on October 1, 2026. Jordan wants to involve Lebanon directly and develop joint activities which can continue until 2030.
The initiative goes beyond a religious ceremony. Discussions focused on tourism, culture, media, spiritual activities and air transportation. The idea is to link two complementary Christian heritages: the site of baptism in the Jordan and the Lebanese network of shrines, monasteries, pilgrimage places and religious figures. Joseph Aoun welcomed the principle and proposed coordination with the Lebanese Ministry of Tourism and other relevant institutions. If this cooperation takes an operational form, it could create a common tourist offer for pilgrims and international visitors.
Two thousand years of baptism as a starting point
The Jordanian project is based on an exceptional symbolic date. The authorities are preparing celebrations marking two thousand years since Christ’s baptism in the Jordan. The programme should not be limited to a single event. The planned activities will continue until 2030, turning the anniversary into a tourist and cultural cycle rather than a one-time event.
Imad Hijazin explained to Joseph Aoun that Jordan wished to establish a partnership with Lebanon on that occasion. The argument advanced is religious as well as tourist. Lebanon is presented as a « land of holiness », due to the presence of many places associated with Christian history and religious figures who have acquired an international audience. Jordan, for its part, brings the site of baptism and its role in the founding narratives of Christianity.
Bringing the two destinations together would therefore provide a wider experience for visitors. A pilgrim from far away to the Jordan could extend his trip to Lebanon. Conversely, a person attracted to Lebanese shrines and monasteries could integrate Jordan into their journey. The cooperation would thus seek to increase the length of stay rather than compete with both countries for the same visitors.
However, the available sources do not mention any tourist packages already marketed or a final common calendar. This is a cooperative project presented to the Lebanese President and welcomed. Practical arrangements still need to be defined.
Lebanon wants to capitalize on its religious heritage
Joseph Aoun considered Lebanese participation to be natural because of the country’s cultural, tourist and religious presence. This position opens up the possibility of making greater use of religious heritage as a component of a national tourism strategy.
Lebanon has a set of Christian places spread over several regions. Their value is not limited to buildings or landscapes. They are associated with traditions, religious communities and figures of holiness that already attract visitors. The creation of an international circuit could give these sites additional visibility to audiences who would not necessarily choose Lebanon as their main destination.
The challenge is to transform this heritage wealth into a structured tourist product without reducing religious places to mere attractions. The visitor who makes a pilgrimage does not necessarily have the same expectations as a classical tourist. The organization must therefore integrate spiritual, historical and cultural dimensions.
The project can also promote a better geographical distribution of visitors. Religious tourism is not only concentrated in the capital. It can lead to monasteries, shrines and villages located in different regions. Tourist expenses can thus benefit accommodation, restaurants, shops and local services located around the places visited.
Jordan seeks genuine association with Lebanon
The Jordanian proposal is not limited to inviting a Lebanese delegation to the celebrations. Imad Hijazin mentioned cooperation in several areas: tourism, religion, culture, media and air transport. This diversity shows that the project aims to build a relationship between the two destinations rather than mere protocol participation.
Air transport is particularly important. A common circuit is really attractive only if the transition from one country to another remains simple and compatible with the length of stay. The quality of the links between Beirut and Amman can therefore become an essential element of the project. Appropriate schedules, coordination between tourism professionals and joint marketing would facilitate the creation of combined stays.
The media dimension also plays a role. To attract foreign visitors, both countries must be able to present the tour as a coherent experience. The countryside could highlight religious places, but also cultural heritages, landscapes and other attractions on the routes.
At this stage, no common budget or detailed promotional arrangements are announced in the elements available. The potential exists, but it still needs to be turned into a programme.
Tourism less dependent on traditional seasons
Religious tourism has an interesting feature for the Lebanese and Jordanian economies: it may be less dependent on traditional summer periods. Pilgrimages and spiritual journeys can be organized at different times of the year, especially around religious holidays or major commemorations.
For Lebanon, this possibility is important. The tourism sector is often heavily dependent on summer, expatriates and holiday periods. A more structured international religious activity could help to further distribute arrivals during the year.
The duration of the Jordanian programme, until 2030, also offers the possibility of gradually building such attendance. It is not about attracting an exceptional number of visitors for a few weeks and then returning to the previous level. Celebrations can serve as a starting point for an offer to remain available after the anniversary.
To succeed, however, this strategy will have to go beyond communication alone. Visitors must be able to easily book tours, have suitable guides, access sites and find consistent information. The tourist experience also depends on the state of the roads, signs, accommodation and services around the shrines.
Religious communities become indispensable partners
The nature of the project requires cooperation which cannot remain exclusively governmental. The places concerned are often managed by religious communities, orders, dioceses or local institutions. Their participation is essential for organizing visits and preserving the spiritual vocation of the sites.
Discussions should therefore involve the Ministry of Tourism with religious and cultural actors. Joseph Aoun himself proposed coordination with the relevant Lebanese authorities to ensure that the country ‘ s participation was organized in an integrated manner.
This cooperation can also help to further document routes. Credible religious tourism cannot be based on approximate statements intended solely for promotion. International visitors expect strong historical, heritage and spiritual information. Religious institutions can contribute to this quality.
The project can thus become a work of heritage valuation as much as a tourist operation. Less well-known sites may be integrated into routes, provided that their access and capacity are adapted.
An already close political relationship between Beirut and Amman
The tourism dimension is part of a broader bilateral relationship. Joseph Aoun took advantage of the meeting to salute the role of King Abdullah II in supporting Lebanon in Arab, regional and international forums. He also recalled Jordanian assistance to the Lebanese army, as well as contributions in the social and humanitarian fields.
The tourism proposal therefore benefits from a favourable political environment. It does not happen between two countries seeking to completely rebuild their relationship. It is part of existing exchanges and a demonstrated willingness to strengthen cooperation.
This proximity can facilitate administrative coordination. But it does not automatically guarantee the economic success of the project. The ministries will still have to transform the good political relationship into mechanisms for tourism operators, airlines and religious institutions to work together.
The risk would be that the project would remain at the level of official declarations and ceremonies. The period up to 2030 offers sufficient time to avoid this pitfall, provided that concrete steps are quickly defined.
Air transport can determine the viability of the circuit
Specific reference to air cooperation is revealing. For pilgrims from Europe, America, Africa or Asia, a combined Lebanon-Jordan stay must be easy to organize. If travel between the two countries is costly or poorly coordinated, some visitors will prefer to limit their journey to a single destination.
The creation of combined routes could allow different formulae. A visitor could arrive in one country and leave from the other, provided that international connections and trade rules permit. Organized groups could also circulate between Beirut and Amman through programmes designed in advance.
However, the sources do not mention any decisions concerning new airlines or an increase in frequencies. Cooperation in this area remains a point raised during the meeting. It will have to be discussed with the relevant stakeholders.
The issue of land transport could also arise over time, even if not developed in the available elements. Regional geography makes this issue much more complex because of the passage through Syria. It should therefore not be included in the project until such a decision is announced.
An opportunity to reposition the tourism image of Lebanon
Lebanon is often presented through a few dominant images: Beirut, gastronomy, nightlife, mountain resorts or archaeological sites. Religious tourism can add another dimension to this international identity.
This diversification can be useful in a time when the security situation strongly influences visitor decisions. Specialised tourism is sometimes based on stronger motivations than a traditional leisure stay. A pilgrim wishing to visit a specific place can maintain his project when conditions permit, even if the destination is not at the top of world tourism trends.
This obviously does not mean that religious tourism would be independent of security. Any major deterioration would also affect pilgrimages. But the existence of a spiritual and cultural motivation can create a specific demand, different from that of leisure tourism.
The programme with Jordan can help Lebanon better identify this clientele and adapt its offer. It can also be used to attract groups organized by parishes, associations and specialized operators.
Benefits could benefit regions more than large chains
Religious tourism also has a local economic dimension. Shrines and monasteries are often located outside major shopping centres. Visitors can therefore spend directly on small accommodation facilities, restaurants, shops and transport services in the regions concerned.
This feature can make the project interesting for territorial development. The benefits would not necessarily be concentrated in the major hotels in Beirut. A multi-day itinerary can drive visitors to different locations and create a request for services near sites.
To achieve this effect, however, the routes must be organised in such a way as to allow time in the regions rather than to function as simple quick excursions from the capital. The length of stay then becomes a more important indicator than the only number of arrivals.
An additional visitor who stays for several days and travels between several regions generates more activity than a very short passage concentrated on a single site.
2030 deadline gives the project time to become sustainable
The timetable is one of the main strengths of the initiative. Jordanian celebrations are scheduled to extend until 2030. Lebanon therefore has several years to build its participation, improve its circuits and gradually measure results.
A first phase could be devoted to site identification and institutional coordination. Another could be the promotion, training and creation of circuits. Supply could then evolve according to international demand. The sources do not yet present this division as an official plan, but the time available makes such a progression possible.
The essential thing will be not to consider 2030 as the end of the project. If the investments made are used only for commemoration, their impact will remain limited. If the anniversary allows permanent circuits to be created, cooperation can continue after the celebrations.
The real economic challenge lies precisely here. The two-thousandth anniversary provides an exceptional opportunity for international communication. But the value of the project will depend on what will remain when the event is over.
From the religious symbol to a true common tourism policy
The meeting on 1 October therefore laid the foundations for potentially more ambitious cooperation than Lebanese participation in Jordanian ceremonies. Amman proposes to associate Lebanon with an international program built around Christ’s baptism. Beirut responds by highlighting its own religious heritage and accepting the principle of coordination between the institutions concerned.
The project has several advantages: geographical proximity, complementary assets, good political relations and multi-annual calendar. However, it remains at the stage where intent needs to be transformed into concrete mechanisms. No detailed common circuit, budget or costed objective is presented in the available elements.
It is this transformation that will determine the real scope of the initiative. If both countries coordinate their ministries, religious actors, tourism professionals and air links, the two-thousandth anniversary can serve as a starting point for a sustainable tourism product. The Jordan would then become not the final destination of a pilgrimage, but one of the stages of a regional journey whose shrines and spiritual figures in Lebanon would be the other major pole.
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