Hassan Madah, ‎Director of Israel Tourism in India tells us why it is important to visit the Land of Creation

“The Israel Ministry of Tourism is interested in promoting anything that brings in more tourists to the country. From innovation, religion, medical to education and international relation, we are exploring all angles with travel agents to promote Israel as a destination,” said Madah who was recently in the capital.

“The city is very safe to travel especially for students, visitors, women and children. Also, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s historic visit to Israel has sparked a renewed interest among Indians and the country wants to leverage this to increase destination awareness. We have seen many inquiries coming in. The indication from the market is that it (visit of Modi) has really helped. We expect the growth to be significant in the next few months,” adds Madah, who highlights how the destination has become one sought after destination. “A land where religion was created, technological innovations like pen-drive, phone camera was invented and now a startup nation, Israel is aptly called ‘The Land of Creation’.”

Over 34,000 Indian tourists have travelled to Israel till July 2017, marking a growth of 36 per cent over the previous year. In June alone, Israel witnessed an exponential growth of 79 per cent in Indian arrivals compared to June 2016.

Targeting the Indian holiday planners through the specially designed advertising campaign for India, ‘Begin your journey to Israel now’ Madah believes to yield even better results in 2018.

“India is an emerging travel market for Israel and we are hopeful of it becoming one of our key markets in the future which is evident in the investments we are making here. We have increased our marketing spends in the region drastically in the last 2 years with an aim to reach out to our target audience in India,” says Madah.

Indian arrival figures to Israel have grown. In 2016 - 44,672; 2015 - 39,529; 2014 - 34,900. From January through March of this year, there is a growth of 49% in the tourist arrivals to Israel from India in the last two years.

Israel is a perfect getaway with pleasant weather year-round and offers something for everyone - be it adventure, history, culture, fashion, nightlife, water activities and beaches too.  Israel is a compact country, and most locations are easily accessible within a few hours by road. Apart from visiting the many iconic locations, Indian travellers could experience the various art and cultural festivities, including concerts, which are scheduled all over the country throughout the year. Madah highlights the facilities for business travellers. “Convention centres located all over the country are equipped with state of the art sound and A/V equipment, lighting systems, offer multilingual services and can be adapted for computer presentations. The vibrant, modern and cosmopolitan Tel Aviv is known for her beaches, shopping and nightlife and is also home to many trade shows year round.”

While the holy city of Jerusalem is not only a religious site where one can experience the contrast between old world historical charm and modern city living, but also hosts exhibitions and conferences. The operators will also venture down to the resort city of Eilat on the shores of the Red Sea, with a host of hotels from luxury chains and unique boutiques to Bedouin hospitality, the city offers activities like shopping, scuba diving and the Dolphin Reef all while offering unique sites for conventions and exhibitions.

 Jeeping, hiking or biking excursions in Timna National Park, the Red Canyon or Mitzpeh Ramon – the world’s largest natural crater can be enjoyable for MICE activities. For more information on MICE activities in Israel, please visit www.goisrael-conference-and-incentive.com

 So how is the hospitality industry shaping up in Israel. “Most global hotel brands like Hilton, IHG and Marriott, have established their properties in all major cities in Israel including Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Eilat and in the Dead Sea region. Israel also boasts some local hotel chains that can be found in most cities across the country including Isrotel, DAN Hotels, Fattal Hotels (Leonardo Hotels), and unique housing options like zimmers in the desert or at some wineries, kibbutz hotels and Bedouin hospitality,” adds Madah as Israel recorded 3 million tourist arrivals from all over the world and the largest percentage of tourists comes from the United States followed by France, Russia, UK and Germany. “In Asia, India is the second largest source market for Israel after China. Overall, India ranks in the top 15 source markets for Israel globally,” he says.

On the marketing front, Israel has created a television commercial customized for the Indian market under the slogan “Begin your Journey to Israel now”, showcasing the some of the sites and attractions of Israel. “We also have print and online advertisements running simultaneously with the TVC. The integrated media campaign continues to be aimed at building awareness about Israel and boosting travel. We conducted a three-city roadshow in Chandigarh, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad in February this year and will be conducting more roadshow in addition to independent training sessions in other Indian cities. We also have joint promotions with selected trade partners in India. In additional to this we will continue to conduct familiarisation trips for trade, MICE and media so they can have a first-hand experience of the destination,” adds Madah.

Although, Israel is a new destination for the Indian traveller, the board has been working on increasing destination awareness within the travel trade fraternity as well as direct to consumer to build curiosity and then encouragement to travel to the destination. “Connectivity is another challenge we were facing however this has been addressed with Air India which will commence service between New Delhi and Tel Aviv soon with new routes,” Madah concluded.