Last update - 00:00 18/02/2008
Tourism breaks record in Jan.
The year 2008 may have started with blues in the capital market, but hotels are applauding. Incoming tourism broke all records, with 182,000 tourists visiting Israel in January, up 57% from the year before, when 116,000 arrived.
The previous record had been January 2000, when nearly 170,000 tourists came to Israel. Tourism industry sources estimate that for the year, about 1.9 million people will visit the country.
"Despite the assassination of [Hezbollah commander Imad] Mughniyah, the feeling is that it's business as usual and the traffic continues to flow," commented Shmuel Marom, chairman of the Israel Incoming Tour Operators Association. However, if fighting erupts on Israel's northern borders, it could dampen the momentum, he admits.
Of the total, 29,000 of the incoming visitors in January arrived by land, crossing from Egypt through Taba, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics. These were mostly "day visitors" from Eastern Europe.