Protest against Tourism Minister Haim Katz at the IMTM 2024 tourism fair/photo: Ari Melnik
Today (Wednesday) the International Tourism Exhibition 2024 IMTM opened in Pavilion 2 at EXPO Tel Aviv, but it will be remembered as the saddest exhibition Israel has ever known in the tourism industry:
only 12 countries exhibited at the exhibition, and beyond that, Minister of Tourism Haim Katz received a chilly reception
when he spoke, when The incoming tourist protest, including tour guides, prevented him from speaking and waved signs in front of his face with the inscription: "Katz don't put an end to tourism."
About a hundred road guides and workers in inbound tourism demonstrated against Katz demanding to address the industry. Just yesterday Finance Minister Smotrich announced that businesses in war zones will also be compensated in the months of January-February and the inbound tourism industry requires a similar approach, since since the beginning of the war the number of tourists in Israel has been aiming for zero and tens of thousands Workers without income. Minister Katz spoke with the protesters and promised to act on the issue. We will wait and see.
The people of inbound tourism demonstrated against Katz demanding to address the industry, today at the tourism fair/Ziv Reinstein
"Katz don't put an end to tourism". The incoming tourist protest, Hayom/surfer photos, Ari Melnik
A weak answering voice
This is the 30th year in which the exhibition is held, which usually includes dozens of countries that send their representatives to promote tourism from Israel to the world, but this year, due to the war, there was a weak response from the countries of the world to participate in the fair. Among the delegations that participated in the exhibition this year: Cyprus, Azerbaijan, Romania, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Vietnam, France, El Salvador, Czech Republic, Greece and Ethiopia. According to the organizers, about 80 booths, most of them for local-Israeli tourism, were available to visitors at the two-day exhibition that will continue tomorrow, and, despite the war, about 5,000 visitors came to it.
This year due to the war, there was a weak response from the countries of the world. IMTM Exhibition/Boris Temnik
A facelift for Sun Dor
In the meantime, the Sun Door company from the El Al Group presented at the exhibition a strategy and rebranding of the company, which includes, among other things, the optimization of destinations and frequencies, while focusing on the market of flights close to Israel, this in light of the change in customer tastes in the current period. In addition, the company unveiled a rebranding that includes current advertising and communication language.
IMTM is the annual and long-standing event of the tourism industry in Israel and is organized by "Artra" Ltd. and Israel Travel News, in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism and is held under the auspices of the Israel Hotel Association, the Bureau of Inbound Tourism Organizers to Israel, the Tel Aviv-Jaffa Tourism Association, El Al Company , the Travel Channel and the Association of Travel Agents in Israel.
More on the same topic:
Fair
Ministry of Tourism
Haim Katz