Israel Tourist and Travel Agents Association survey: Only 0.5% of Israelis booked overseas vacation services for Passover online.
Israelis by and large prefer arranging their vacations with a travel agent rather than online. An Tourist and Travel Agents Association survey conducted by the Smith Institute on Passover vacation trends found that only 0.5% of Israelis reserved overseas vacation services for Passover online, and 1.1% reserved domestic vacation services online.
Israel Tourist and Travel Agents Association managing director Yossi Fatael has an explanation for Israelis’ limited use of the Internet to reserve their vacations. “The especially low use [of the Internet] may be because vacations are family affairs. Prior planning and guarantees with a minimum of hassle are important for people reserving vacations, which can only be obtained from a travel agent. People consider an online product as a last-minute product.”
Fatael added that previous Tourist and Travel Agents Association surveys found that consumers use the Internet as their main source of information for making a decision about a vacation, even if they reserve it through a travel agent.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on March 22, 2006
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