Petra celebrates 15 years as one of New Seven Wonders

The Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority (PDTRA) on Wednesday celebrated the July 7, 2007 vote, when the City of Petra became one of the New Seven Wonders.

During the celebration, the Monastery was illuminated for the first time, while the Treasury and Main Trail will be illuminated on Thursday.

Suleiman Farajat, chief commissioner of the PDTRA, stated that recognizing Petra as one of the Seven New Wonders is a global promotion of the city, noting that the number of visitors to the rose-red city has increased significantly in 2022.

He added: “The Authority has undertaken a series of investment projects in the region over the past few years in an effort to increase Petra’s competitiveness as a global tourist destination, and is currently working to improve its infrastructure and offer incentives to investors.”
Among the improvements, he said, the horse-drawn wagons were replaced with eco-friendly electric cars after a back-road transport route was established.

The New 7 Wonders of the World was a campaign started in 2000 to choose Wonders of the World from a selection of 200 existing monuments.