The shekel's appreciation against the dollar, economic uncertainty in the US, and high fuel prices are causing US tourists to think twice about plans to vacation in Israel, says Continental Airlines senior country director for Israel Avi Friedman, who serves as the chairman of the Foreign Airlines Forum. He said that the result is growing concern of a decline in US tourist numbers during the fourth quarter of 2008 and in 2009, which will slash tourism revenue.
The US is the largest source of foreign tourists to Israel. 542,000 Americans visited Israel in 2007, 10% more than in 2006, and 332,000 visited in the first half of 2008.
Incoming Tourism Bureau director general Ami Etgar adds that US travel agencies are beginning to worry about a decline in reservations for Israel, especially for the fourth quarter. He said that even if there is no significant drop in the number of tourists, there is no doubt that the rate of increase will slow. He predicted the damage to the Israeli economy could be significant because US tourists are considered big spenders.
El Al chairman Haim Romani is also very worried. He said that during meetings this week with US travel agents, they complained about the expected drop in the number of tourists, and specifically those traveling to Israel. "These facts are greatly worrying us," he said.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on August 6, 2008
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