From October 2017 to April 2018, 40-50 flights from Europe landed at Uvda Airport near Eilat every week, of which 12 were weekly flights from Poland, 10 from Germany and 17 from Russia. In the previous winter season (2016-17), 77,495 passengers arrived at Uvda (56% increase on the 2015-16 season), on 21 weekly flights. The Tourism Ministry directive, offering 45 Euro per passenger to an airline or tour operator operating a direct flight into Uvda, was first implemented in the winter season 2015 – 2016, with 49,618 passengers (an increase of 167% on the winter season 2014-15).

The Ministry of Tourism markets Israel as a holiday destination with a comfortable climate most of the year, including during the winter. As part of the Ministry’s Eilat campaign in Europe, a short video was launched on social media in March to promote Eilat’s sunny winter weather, in sharp contrast to the harsh European winters.

In addition, the Ministry of Tourism’s “Sunny” campaign was very successful in the first wave of advertising, with more than 200 million unique viewers from across Europe. To date, the campaign has generated more than 13 million clicks to the various landing pages, where users remained, on average, for more than a minute. The campaign has so far driven more than 1.6 million unique users to pages selling vacation packages to Israel. In addition, the campaign has been exposed to more than 60 million potential tourists in more than 10 countries via various European television channels.

The Ministry of Tourism provides financial assistance to entrepreneurs and develops tourism infrastructures that will facilitate the hiking and biking experience in the desert, as well as the establishment of accommodation units of different levels and standards. All this in order to implement the Ministry’s program to bring hundreds of thousands of Europeans to the desert in the winter. The development of the south, the Negev and the Aravah is expected to extend the length of stay of tourists and contribute to the economy of the region.

Minister of Tourism Yariv Levin: “The Eilat flight directive proves itself again and again, with an increase in incoming tourism for the third consecutive year, placing Eilat back on the international map. The ministry’s efforts in marketing Israel’s south and desert as an attractive vacation destination with a comfortable climate most of the year, combined with grants for entrepreneurs and the development of tourism infrastructure, accommodation and hospitality units, is bringing us to new records in incoming tourism to Israel.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)