Speaking to delegates at the start of Aito’s Overseas Conference in Jordan, managing director Dr Abed Al Razzaq Arabiyat said the Middle Eastern destination was hoping to grow its number of tourists coming to the country on trips sold through travel agents and operators.

He said he hoped Aito members would act as “ambassadors” for Jordan when they arrived back in the UK following the end of the conference on Monday.

Dr Arabiyat branded the British market “resilient” after reporting a 5% increase in UK visitor numbers during the first 10 months of 2016.

“We strongly believe that agents and operators are playing a major role in helping to promote Jordan,” he told delegates.

“We are convinced and committed to supporting the trade and regard this partnership as a major element in Jordan’s tourism formula.

“We are looking to redesign our messages to the trade and for you to pass on to your clients.”

Earlier in the morning while opening the day’s business sessions, chairman Derek Moore said Aito had chosen to host its conference in Jordan as a way of “tackling perceptions” that the trade may have surrounding the country.

He said the association wanted to especially focus on the assumption that “visiting everywhere in the Middle East is risky.”

He also warned delegates that relying on perceptions of destinations was “dangerous” and urged them to “dig down” to better understand what the country could offer operators and agents.