Spotlight: Israel strives to bring more Chinese tourists

Israel is increasing its efforts to attract more tourists from China, seeing high potential of growing Chinese visitors.

Release time : 2019-01-28 11:22:08

source : Xinhua

hotels have made incredible changes to fit the Chinese travelers," said Zohar Marom, Head of Incoming Division at Amsalem Business Travel, the largest private-owned travel company in Israel.

Marom said that the Israeli tourism industry puts lots of efforts into making the Chinese guests feel home here, including "a corner of Chinese breakfast" in many hotels.

Some hotels have added Chinese TV channels and special-designed Chinese tea. Parts of tourist sites have started to offer brochures in Chinese and Chinese-speaking guides.

Relevant stores independently learn to speak Chinese with the new guests and translate their prices and the content of the products to the Chinese tourists, said Ayal Segal, a regional manager at Kayak.com, a global online travel giant company.

According to Israeli tourism authorities, the Chinese tourists prefer their first visit to the "must see" places, such as Jerusalem, the Dead Sea, and Tel Aviv. They also like to visit historical sites they have read about in the books.

Chinese people find many similarities between them and the Israeli people, especially in the open nature of communication and culture, the authorities said.

In addition, Chinese tourists display their fascination with Israeli innovation, technology, and education, as well as a curiosity about religion, spirituality, and Jewish wisdom.

A significant portion of the worldwide diamond industry is happening in Israel, and it creates an opportunity for Chinese customers to purchase discounted jewelry, Segal added.

Israel hit a record high of attracting more than 4 million tourists in 2018, which injected 22 billion new shekels (about 6 billion U.S. dollars) into the Israeli economy.