Incoming tourism continues to grow – An all-time record in the number of incoming tourists was recorded during the month of March, with 313,000 tourist visiting Israel.
The Tourism Ministry on Tuesday reported that according to the Central Bureau of Statistics, the number of visitors has increased by 56% compared with March of 2009, by 17% compared with March 2008 and by 9% compared with March 200.
Seven hundred and forty seven thousand tourists visited the Holy Land since the beginning of the year (January-March) – a 54% increase from the same period last year, and 15% more than 2008.
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From the beginning of the year, the Central Bureau of Statistics reported that 338,000 departures were recorded in March alone, out of which 285,000 were by air, 48,000 by land and 5,000 by sea.
Tourism Minister Stas Misezhnikov said that the growth in incoming tourism – for the fourth month in a row – calls for a significant increase in the ministry's budget, so that the upward trend can continue.
"Despite the financial crisis and military operation in Gaza in 2009, Israel's tourism ministry managed to recover quickly," said Misezhnikov. "This is due to the Tourism Ministry and the industry's focused and swift marketing campaigns, and the implementation of the triennial work plan formalized in November," he added.
"The tourism industry is one of the few industries to produce work places and revenues in an efficient and quick manner. Investing in it will create thousands of new workplaces, mostly in the periphery, and additional revenues of hundreds of millions of shekels.
"Without a budgetary increase it will be hard to keep up with the goal of receiving a million more tourists by 2012, and the industry will lose money and jobs.
" It is important to remember that every 100,000 additional tourists create 4,000 new jobs and NIS 450 million (about $122 million) in revenues," said Misezhnikov.
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