The security situation in southern Israel over the past few days is taking its toll on tourism to the region, especially Eilat, the country's most popular resort during the summer vacation.
While there are few cancellations in Eilat at this stage, it cannot be said that it is business as usual. When it comes to new bookings the picture is different. Eilat Hotels Association general manager Shabtai Shay said that a definite fall off in the number of overnight hotel stays has been felt but he does not see this as due to the security situation but rather the general economic climate and the large number of Israelis traveling abroad.
He said, "There is definitely no loss of confidence in Eilat. We were pleasantly surprised that last weekend there were no cancellations above the regular level. We currently have 85-90% occupancy, which is typical for this week of August. The security incidents happened on Thursday yet people carried on arriving in Eilat on Friday and yesterday, when hotels expected their new arrivals. Everyone who was supposed to arrive - arrived."
However, Shay admitted that new bookings are a problem. He said, "They are not at a pace that we would like to see. We see an occupancy rate of 70%, which is far from typical for this period. But many people book at the last minute so the picture for the weekend is not yet clear. We will have a clearer picture by tomorrow."
Gulliver Tourism internal tourism director Lior Itach said that new bookings are being redirected to the north. He said, "We don't see cancellations in the south but we see many more booking in Tiberias and other destinations in the north."