French tourists not so fond of Israel? (archives)
Photo: Getty Images Bank
Although they arrive in Israel
in masses, French tourists are apparently not very fond the Jewish state. A Tourism Ministry survey ranks French tourists last in their level of satisfaction with the Holy Land visit.
The list of unsatisfied tourists is followed by the Swiss with a 3.6 score, the Mexican and the Hungarian tourists.
In the survey, conducted among 12,000 tourists, the French gave their Israel visit experience a score of 3.5 out of 5.
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Only 4% of Swiss tourists defined their visit to Israel as "excellent", compared to 21% of the Mexicans and 19% of the Hungarians.
The most satisfied tourists, who gave their Israel visit a 4.8 score, come from the Czech Republic. They are followed by tourists from Australia, Britain and Scandinavian countries with a 4.1 score.
The survey also revealed that 80% of the tourists visited Jerusalem. Two-thirds said they toured Tel Aviv, and 55% visited the Dead Sea. Tiberias and the Sea of Galilee hosted 45% of tourists, and Nazareth – 38%.
The most popular sites were the Western Wall (visited by 60% of tourists), Jerusalem's Jewish Quarter (55%), Via Dolorosa (48%) and the Mount of Olives (46%).