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Move Ov

1-lawaill

uring her six
years in the trav-
el business, Elaine
Henderson has noticed a
major change in the way
Israel is promoted.
Now, for the first time,
tourism offi6als are try-
ing to bill tlie Holy Land
as a vacatilon par-
adise equal"to — or
better than — such
touted hivens as
Honolulu,'I Paris,
Maui and London.
0
"It is looking
much more glam-
orous," says Ms.
Henderson, owner
of Mayfair Travel in
Southfield. "I used
to never notice ads
at all. The market-
ing techniques now
are much better,
and they make Israel
look more attractive for
anyone."
Ms. Henderson and
travel agents at Mayfair
have seen a continual
increase in inquiries
about travel to Israel in
the past few years. Some
attribute it to a relative-
ly peaceful time in
Israel. Ms. Henderson
ascribes it to good mar-
keting strategies.
A place once billed
mostly to Jewish tour
groups searching for reli-
gious history, Israel has
made a large-scale effort
to redefine its image in
the past two years.
In its most recent lit-

erature prepared by the
Israel Ministry of Tour-
ism, Israel is viewed as a
blissful,. year-round
vacation resort:
"For some, it's the sun-
drenched climate. For
others, it's the rich vari-
ety of sites and sights —

Newly billed activities
feature sports like rock
climbing in the moun-
tains, skydiving, fishing,
scuba diving in Eilat,
tennis, hiking, dirt-bike
riding and golf.
Israel tourism officials
say that in the past two
years, there has been
an increase in both
Jewish and Christian
travel to the Holy
Land. As 1.8 million
tourists last year vis-
ited the sites of the
world's religious cen-
ter, Israel began to
reap profits from its
No. 1 industry:
tourism.
- During this two-
year period, tourism
profits increased
from $2.2 billion to
$2.4 billion, according to
Tsion Ben-David, Mid-
west director for the
Israel Government
Tourist Office.
Mr. Ben-David esti-
mates that 65 percent of
recent travelers have
been Jews; 35 percent
are Christians and evan-
gelical tour groups.
Israel for the first time
also is trying to promote
travel to a Catholic audi-
ence. El Al officials
recently went to Rome to
meet with the Pope.
Hoping to boost sales
from the Christian pil-
grimage market, the
Ministry of Tourism
HAWAII page 32

Tr avel agents and touri S t
fficials are marketing
srael to attract a more
diverse audience.

0

.

KIMBERLY LIFTON STAFF WRITER

historical, archaeologi-
cal, religious or just
beautiful. For still oth-
ers, it's the fascinating
contrast between the
ancient and the modern."
Brochures depict sun
bathers on lounge chairs
near the sandy Mediter-
ranean coastline, horse-
back riders trotting
along the beach, tourists
dining under umbrellas
at outdoor bistros.
Efforts are under way
to more actively promote
the health spas on the
shores of the impossible-
to-sink-in Dead Sea,
water theme parks,
archaeological sites and
digs.

