The site where John the Baptist is believed to have baptized Jesus could be getting a $100 million makeover as part of a plan to draw as many as a million Christian pilgrims annually to the country of Jordan.
King Abdullah and the Jordanian government are listening to proposals for the development of the “Pilgrimage Village of the Baptism Development Zone,” located on the east bank of the river, according to Reuters.
The plan for a tourist city on what is currently designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site could include souvenir shops, boutique hotels and botanical gardens, Reuters reported.
While the baptism site draws around 200,000 visitors every year, the proposed development — which would be located beyond the actual area believed to be where Jesus was baptized — could attract up to five times as many pilgrims ahead of the celebrated 2,000th anniversary of the biblical event.
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