GLOBES
by Sapir Peretz-Zilberman
November 20, 2014

Jerusalem Hotel Association director: Occupancy rates have plummeted by almost 50%

“We’re in the midst of a terrorist offensive focusing on Jerusalem,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday, following the attack on a synagogue in the Har Nof neighborhood in which four Jewish worshippers and a Druze policeman were murdered. Nine Israelis have been murdered in Jerusalem by being run over or stabbed during the past month. The prime minister’s remarks, combined with the extensive worldwide press coverage of the synagogue slaughter and warnings about traveling to Jerusalem, have put the city’s tourist industry, which is based primarily on tourists from overseas during this season, on edge.

“The escalating security situation in the city has dealt another blow to tourism, already hit hard by Operation Protective Edge,” said Alfred Akirov, owner of Alrov (Israel) Ltd.’s David Citadel and Mamilla Hotels in Jerusalem. He added that ever since Operation Protective Edge began in July, occupancy rates at the two hotels had had difficulty in recovering, and currently stand at 35-40%, compared with the usual 65-70% rates during this season.

On the other hand, the Jerusalem municipality, the Jerusalem Development Authority, and tourism sources in the city are sparing no effort to convince Israelis and foreign tourists to come now to the city and support its businesses. They are forcefully marketing the 10th annual Hamshusalayim festival of weekend cultural events in the city in December, and are offering weekend tours in December, discounts at restaurants and cultural institutions, and a 50% discount on a second night or a free evening meal at hotels in the city. Entry to about half of the city’s events is free of charge, or at a nominal NIS 5-15 cost. In order to soothe potential visitors, the organizers are stressing that almost all the events are in closed spaces – halls, theaters, museums, closed and guarded buildings – giving a strong feeling of security……

READ MORE