Shavuot is upon us, and the various tourism companies are "stuck" with hotel rooms, seats on planes and packages that have not yet been sold. In an examination we conducted with the various tourism companies, they tell of low demand compared to the relatively wide supply that exists, which leads to lower prices just before the holiday and compared to last year.
"The huge supply of flights for the holiday provides excellent opportunities to purchase packages and flights at great prices up to half the price compared to last year," said Nir Mazor, VP of Aviation Links. He said the airline offers flights to Greece and its islands for $199, to Marrakech, Morocco, for $450, including luggage. "The excess supply that allows for lower prices than ever is expected to continue throughout May and June, just before the July-August price increase and the High Holidays period."
Among the options offered by "Aviation Connections": an organized tour of Marrakech from May 28-23 (5 nights) for $ 990. A vacation package for $790 and a flight only for $450. Holiday in Limassol May 28-25 (3 nights) in a 4-star hotel, including breakfast and transfers, at USD 575 per person. Paphos holiday at Aliathon Aegan Hotel (4 stars) from May 28-25, including accommodation and transfers, at USD 680 per person.
The main square in Marrakech's old town, photo: Getty Images
Gulliver Group CEO Ziv Rosen adds: "The fact that the holiday 'falls' on the weekend makes it very easy to book holidays for the holiday. The warming weather and the approaching summer have officially brought about the start of the sunbathing season, and we see a lot of vacation bookings in family ensembles. In terms of price, there are price fluctuations compared to last year. It depends on demand, but in all destinations we are already starting to see last-minute price reductions in recent days. In addition, a variety of places and suppliers offer discounts and promotions during this period in order to make the holiday vacation more worthwhile – so, for example, with us exclusively, every order 25 on the Arkia products website will entitle the buyer to the full amount he paid as a gift."
In a comparison of prices made for us by Gulliver, this year, compared to the holiday period last year, you can see an 11% drop in the price of a flight to Vienna, a 9% drop in the price of a flight to Budapest and an 11% drop in flight prices to Larnaca. On the other hand, there are destinations where there is also a slight increase in flight prices, including Antalya, where mainly packages are sold and where prices have fallen compared to last year, and Rhodes.
Budapest (archive), photo: Getty Images
According to Shirley Cohen-Orkabi, Deputy CEO of Eshet Tours, the top destinations in Shavuot are sunbathing destinations with water parks or near the beach – Peloponnese, Burgas, Batumi, Antalya, Greek Islands, and city packages in Europe – Budapest, Berlin and Prague." The company also reports reasonable prices that can be found for the holiday, for example: 3 nights in Batumi on a weekend at the five-star Welmond hotel based on breakfast for $ 475 per person in a double ensemble. Among other things, the company also offers packages to Antalya for less than $600 per person for the entire holiday, from Thursday to Sunday, in a five-star hotel on an all-inclusive basis, including flights.
Amadeus reports a significant drop of up to 25% in vacation package prices compared to weeks 2022. Batumi, Rhodes, Crete and Athens lead the most sought-after destinations this Shavuot, according to the company.
The belly-back is waiting for you. Burgas (archive), photo: Getty Images
According to Avishai Cohen, CEO of Amadeus Israel: "The increase in interest rates and the fact that the cost of living is rising make it difficult for many Israelis to finance flights abroad. This reality causes travel agencies to offer vacation packages that are much cheaper, but not at the price levels to which we were accustomed before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic."
"However," Cohen clarifies that compared to vacationing in Israel, "vacationing abroad is still more worthwhile, at least in most cases. Despite the flight expenses, the total expenditure for a vacation abroad is still significantly lower compared to a vacation in Israel."
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