Open Jaw :: On The Town ::

with Martha Chapman
19MAR09

Arie Sommer of the Israeli Ministry of Tourism

Oded Grofman, Consul and Director for Canada of the Ministry of Tourism

70,000 Canadians And One Pope Can’t Be Wrong

If you knew a destination with a repeat factor of 36 per cent, you’d probably be happy selling it to your clients, no?

And if the destination has culture, cuisine, sports, a lovely climate and tons of history, you can’t go wrong. Right?

But if the destination is Israel, there are frequent challenges. As Jerry Adler of the Israel Government Tourist Office in Toronto pointed out during a recent meeting, “We’re not just a destination of dust and camels.” Add Arie Sommer’s refreshingly candid comments about the awful economy and the attacks on Gaza earlier this year, and you have a mix for a very tough tourism marketing challenge indeed.

Sommer should know. He’s the Consul and Commissioner for North and South America at the Israel Ministry of Tourism. But he pointed out that tourism officials are countering this year’s conditions with a big advertising spend (to convince people that “life goes on”) and working closer with the trade using, for example, online educational programs. “For years we kind of neglected travel agents, but were working directly with Christian and Jewish communities. Agents are now learning that Israel exists not just as the Holy Land but as a ‘regular’, normal destination.”

And as we’re the number two source of tourists (after the U.S.), the Israelis are keen to spread the word, not just to those who travel there for religious reasons, but foodies, cultural travellers, sports enthusiasts – as Sommer put it, “We have it all.”

Including the prestige of a papal visit in May this year. Now there’s a boost for tourism!