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The Changing Tourism Patterns Between Turkey and Israel: Reflecting a Troubled Relationship

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Contemporary Israeli–Turkish Relations in Comparative Perspective

Abstract

In the 1990s and early 2000s, Turkey was one of the most popular destinations for Israelis traveling abroad. This is perhaps not surprising given the value per money of the Turkish resorts in the Turkish Riviera, and the geographical proximity between the countries. As Israel has troubled relations with many Muslim countries, the fact that hundreds of thousands of Israelis vacationed in Turkey was quite notable. All this came to a halt in 2008–2009, as the number of Israeli-Jewish tourists to Turkey began to decline substantially. This article looks at the changing tourism patterns between Turkey and Israel from 2007 to 2017. Whereas there has been a substantial decrease in the number of Israeli-Jews traveling to Turkey, there has been an increase in the number of Israeli-Arabs traveling there. Other interesting trends have been the highly successful Istanbul–Tel Aviv route that Turkish Airlines operates and the rise in the number of tourists coming from Turkey to Israel. The article will analyze all of these trends and show also how they interact.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Serkan Polat, “Crisis and Tourism in Turkey-Israel Relations”, The Journal of International Social Research, Vol. 9, No. 43, April 2016, p. 894.

  2. 2.

    For a comprehensive literature review, see: Anna Farmaki, “The Tourism and Peace Nexus”, Tourism Management, Vol. 59, 2017, pp. 528–529, 532–533; Chun-Chu Chen, Ying Hsiao (Rebecca) Lai, James F. Petrick, and Yueh-Hsiu Lin, “Tourism Between Divided Nations: An Examination of Stereotyping on Destination Image”, Tourism Management, Vol. 55, 2016, pp. 25–27.

  3. 3.

    Michael B. Bishku, “How Has Turkey Viewed Israel”, Israel Affairs, Vol. 12, No. 1, January 2006, pp. 188–189.

  4. 4.

    Arad Nir, “What Israelis Want More Than All-Inclusive Turkish Holidays?”, Al Monitor, https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2015/10/israet-turkey-normalization-erdogan-poll-tourism-security-is.html.

  5. 5.

    “Turkey: Tourism Is Collapsing—But Rising from Israel”, Ynet, December 4, 2016, http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4887729,00.html [Hebrew].

  6. 6.

    Polat, “Crisis and Tourism in Turkey-Israel Relations”, p. 897; “Israeli Tourists Flock to Turkey as Relations Normalize, Number of Tourists Rise 80 Percent”, Daily Sabah, February 5, 2017, https://www.dailysabah.com/tourism/2017/02/05/israeli-tourists-flock-to-turkey-as-relations-normalize-number-of-tourists-rise-80-percent.

  7. 7.

    Irit Rosenblum, “Turkey Ended 2017 with 32.4 Million Visitors”, IAS Website, January 31, 2018, http://www.ias.co.il/%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%AA/%D7%98%D7%95%D7%A8%D7%A7%D7%99%D7%94-%D7%A1%D7%99%D7%99%D7%9E%D7%94-%D7%90%D7%AA-%D7%A9%D7%A0%D7%AA-2017-%D7%A2%D7%9D-324-%D7%9E%D7%99%D7%9C%D7%99%D7%95%D7%9F-%D7%9E%D7%91%D7%A7%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%9D [Hebrew].

  8. 8.

    Danny Sadeh, “We in Antalya Miss Israelis Very Much”, Ynet, February 2, 2009, http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-3665499,00.html [Hebrew].

  9. 9.

    Both quotes taken from: “Turkey’s Struggling Tourism Sector Hopes to Reap Diplomatic Fruits as Foreign Arrivals Plunge”, Hurriyet Daily News, June 28, 2016, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkeys-struggling-tourism-sector-hopes-to-reap-diplomatic-fruits-as-foreign-arrivals-plunge-100998.

  10. 10.

    Uzi Bachar, “Greece: A Destination of Heart and Soul”, IAS Site, March 1, 2016, http://bit.ly/2kgQjjF [Hebrew].

  11. 11.

    Danny Sadeh, “A 277% Increase in Tourism from Israel to Cyprus”, Ynet, January 23, 2017, http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4911016,00.html.

  12. 12.

    Irit Rosenblum, “Turks: We Came to Convince You Are Welcome”, The Marker, May 20, 2009 [Hebrew] [Emphasis added].

  13. 13.

    Danny Sadeh, “Let Make Peace: Workers Unions Will Go Back to Turkey Immediately After the Reconciliation Agreement”, Ynet, March 26, 2014, http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4503532,00.html; “Workers Unions Will Inaugurate the Summer Tourism Season”, Monitour, May 21, 2017, monitour.co.il/ועדי-העובדים-יחנכו-את-עונת-תיירות-הקיץ/ [Hebrew].

  14. 14.

    Izzy Lemberg, Kevin Flower, Yesim Comert, and Ivan Watson, “Turks, Israelis Complain of Excessive Security”, CNN Website, September 5, 2011, http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/09/05/turkey.israel/index.html.

  15. 15.

    Naomi Zeveloff, “Turkish Terror Helps Ties with Israel But Hurts Tourism”, Forward, March 25, 2016, https://forward.com/news/336928/turkish-terror-attack-helps-ties-with-israel-but-hurts-tourism/.

  16. 16.

    Daniel K. Eisenbud, “Turkey Remains Popular Tourist Destination for Israeli Arabs”, Jerusalem Post, January 1, 2017, http://www.jpost.com/Business-and-Innovation/Turkey-remains-popular-tourist-destination-for-Israeli-Arabs-477183.

  17. 17.

    See, for example, Joseph Fischer, “Antalya Misses the Israelis, $19 per Night All Inclusive”, Walla, May 26, 2015, https://travel.walla.co.il/item/2857364 [Hebrew].

  18. 18.

    Shir Ziv, “Turkey Is Not Waiting for Us”, Israel Hayom, March 29, 2013, www.israelhayom.co.il/article/80961 [Hebrew].

  19. 19.

    Idan Grinbaum and Yasmin Gill, “Senior Managers in the Tourism Industry Relaxed: Boycott on Turkey Is Just a Trend”, Calcalist, October 28, 2009, https://www.calcalist.co.il/local/articles/0,7340,L-3365694,00.html.

  20. 20.

    Daniel Batini, “The Boycott Is Not Affecting Them: Tourism Is Flourishing in Turkey”, Ynet, September 14, 2011, http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4122207,00.html [Hebrew].

  21. 21.

    Ehud Maksimov, “England and Football, Israel and Hitech: How Do Countries Brand Themselves”, Makor Rishon, March 14, 2018, https://www.makorrishon.co.il/news/28073/ [Hebrew].

  22. 22.

    Daniel Zimet, “Promoting Destination Turkey in Israel: Lessons Learned”, The Place Brand Observer, August 8, 2017, https://placebrandobserver.com/promoting-destination-turkey-israel/.

  23. 23.

    “Strong Prohibition to IDF Soldiers: Do Not Go to Turkey”, Walla, June 6, 2010, https://news.walla.co.il/item/1683461 [Hebrew].

  24. 24.

    http://www.nsc.gov.il/he/Travel-Warnings/Pages/Turkey.aspx, last accessed February 9, 2017.

  25. 25.

    Amir Alon, “Turkish Ambassador to Israel Trying to Coax Israelis Back to Antalya”, Ynet, May 25, 2017, https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4967500,00.html.

  26. 26.

    Burcu Sunar Cankurtaran and Gürel Çetın, “Ideology, Foreign Policy and Tourism: The Case of Turkey-Middle East Relations”, International Journal of Turcologia, Vol. 11, No. 21, 2016, p. 56.

  27. 27.

    Sebnem Arsu, “Turkey Charges Syrian in a Plot to Blow Up Israeli Cruise Ships”, New York Times, August 12, 2005, http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/12/world/europe/turkey-charges-syrian-in-a-plot-to-blow-up-israeli-cruise.html.

  28. 28.

    Akiva J. Lorenz, The Threat of Maritime Terrorism to Israel (Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Israeli Heritage and Communication Center, October 2007), 21, http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/Data/pdf/PDF_19294_2.pdf.

  29. 29.

    Arad Nir, “What Israelis Want More Than All-Inclusive Turkish Holidays?”

  30. 30.

    Zimet, “Promoting Destination Turkey in Israel”.

  31. 31.

    Ibid.

  32. 32.

    See http://www.myturkey.co.il/.

  33. 33.

    Danny Sadeh, “There Is No Reason to Vacation in a States That Spits in Your Face”, Ynet, July 26, 2017, http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4994352,00.html [Hebrew].

  34. 34.

    Eisenbud, “Turkey Remains Popular Tourist Destination for Israeli Arabs”.

  35. 35.

    Inas Kopti, “A Boycott on Turkey? The Arabs Are Actually Flocking”, Ynet, March 23, 2010, http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-3866465,00.html [Hebrew]; See also, Faruk Balli, Hatic Ozer Balli, and Kemal Cebeci, “Impacts of Exported Turkish Soap Operas and Visa-Free Entry on Inbound Tourism to Turkey”, Tourism Management, Vol. 37, 2013, pp. 186–192.

  36. 36.

    Janell Fetterolf and Jacob Poushter, “Key Middle East Publics See Russia, Turkey and U.S. All Playing Larger Roles in Region”, Pew Research Center Global Attitudes and Trends, December 11, 2017, http://www.pewglobal.org/2017/12/11/key-middle-east-publics-see-russia-turkey-and-u-s-all-playing-larger-roles-in-region/.

  37. 37.

    Soner Cagaptay, Oya Aktas, and Akin Yucel, “Tourism Patterns Show Turkey Shifting from Europe to the Middle East”, Washington Institute for Near East Policy Policy Watch, Vol. 2882, October 30, 2017.

  38. 38.

    Meltem Özgenç, “Jerusalem Added to List of Turkey’s Umrah Locations”, Hurriyet Daily News, February 25, 2015, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/jerusalem-added-to-list-of-turkeys-umrah-locations-78804.

  39. 39.

    “Turkish Minister Calls for End to Israel-Palestine Conflict in First Israel Visit Since 2010”, Daily Sabah, February 7, 2017, http://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2017/02/07/turkish-minister-calls-for-end-to-israel-palestine-conflict-in-first-israel-visit-since-2010; In 2014, the number of Turkish tourists was 23,000, see Nir Hasson, “Jerusalem Tourism Gets Lifeline from Unlikely Source: Muslim Visitors”, Haaretz, April 7, 2015, https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.650845.

  40. 40.

    Madison Rinder, “How Muslims Now View a Pilgrimage to Jerusalem”, Fikra Forum, February 16, 2018, http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/fikraforum/view/how-muslims-now-view-a-pilgrimage-to-jerusalem.

  41. 41.

    Sevil Erkuş, “Turkey, Israel to Hold Political Consultation Meeting Within Month”, Hurriyet Daily News, January 11, 2017, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-israel-to-hold-political-consultation-meeting-within-month.aspx?pageID=238&nID=108387&NewsCatID=510.

  42. 42.

    Ali Sawafta and Dan Williams, “Israelis and Palestinians Compete Over Muslim Tourists”, The Christian Science Monitor, August 31, 2017, https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2017/0831/Israelis-and-Palestinians-compete-over-Muslim-tourists.

  43. 43.

    Adnan Abu Amer, “Jordan, Turkey Compete to Woo Jerusalem”, Al Monitor, May 19, 2016, https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/05/turkey-jordan-palestine-jerusalem-competition-influence.html.

  44. 44.

    “Erdoğan Urges Muslims to Visit Al-Aqsa to Protect the Mosque’s Islamic Identity”, Daily Sabah, May 8, 2017.

  45. 45.

    “Turkish Airlines Offers Round Trips from Istanbul to Jerusalem Upon Public Demand”, Hurriyet Daily News, August 10, 2017, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-airlines-offers-discount-in-round-trips-from-istanbul-to-jerusalem-upon-public-demand.aspx?pageID=238&nID=116566&NewsCatID=345.

  46. 46.

    Nadav Shragai, “With the Back to Blood”, Israel Hayom, March 22, 2018, http://www.israelhayom.co.il/article/544063 [Hebrew].

  47. 47.

    “Israeli Police Detain Three Turkish Citizens”, TRT World, December 22, 2017, https://www.trtworld.com/turkey/israeli-police-detain-three-turkish-citizens-13537.

  48. 48.

    Zohar Blumenkrantz, “Israeli Airlines to Resume Flights to Turkey After More Than Five-Year Freeze”, Haaretz, December 18, 2013, https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/.premium-1.564222.

  49. 49.

    Raphael Ahren, “In the Battle for the Skies, Turkey Beats Israel 112:0”, Times of Israel, October 31, 2016, https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-battle-for-the-skies-turkey-beats-israel-1120/.

  50. 50.

    Zohar Blumenkrantz, “El Al to Netanyahu: Help Us Resume Flights to Turkey”, Haaretz, November 3, 2013, https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/1.555966.

  51. 51.

    Delphine Strauss, “Turks Ban Israeli Military Flights from Airspace”, Financial Times, June 28, 2010, https://www.ft.com/content/d3762b96-82cc-11df-b7ad-00144feabdc0.

  52. 52.

    “Turkish Airlines Becomes the Top Foreign Carrier in Tel Aviv Airport”, Hurriyet Daily News, April 19, 2013, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-airlines-becomes-the-top-foreign-carrier-in-tel-aviv-airport-45220.

  53. 53.

    Sapir Peretz Zilberman, “Turkish Airlines VP: Israel Is Our Busiest Route”, Globes, January 25, 2015, http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-turkish-airlines-vp-israel-is-our-busiest-route-1001003747.

  54. 54.

    Peretz Zilberman, “Turkish Airlines VP: Israel Is Our Busiest Route”.

  55. 55.

    “Turkey Eyes Record Number of Russian Tourists Next Year”, Daily Sabah, December 6, 2017, https://www.dailysabah.com/tourism/2017/12/07/turkey-eyes-record-number-of-russian-tourists-next-year.

  56. 56.

    Ali Ünal, “Israeli Ambassador: Turkey and Israel Can Enjoy Cooperation Not Only in Energy But Also Other Sectors”, Daily Sabah, September 10, 2017, https://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2017/09/11/israeli-ambassador-turkey-and-israel-can-enjoy-cooperation-not-only-in-energy-but-also-other-sectors.

  57. 57.

    Zohar Blumenkrantz, “Israeli Airlines Rescuing Tourists Stranded in Turkey”, Haaretz, July 24, 2014, https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.607145; Joseph Fischer, “Is It Really Worthwhile to Fly with Turkish Air Carriers”, Calcalist, July 27, 2014, https://www.calcalist.co.il/local/articles/0,7340,L-3637011,00.html [Hebrew].

  58. 58.

    Mois Gabay, “İsrailli Turist Türkiye’ye gelir mi?”, Şhalom, February 8, 2017, http://www.salom.com.tr/haber-101996-Israilli_turist_turkiyeye_gelir_mi_.html.

  59. 59.

    Jean Max Tavares and Matin Kozak, “Tourists’ Perceptions for the All-Inclusive System and Its Impacts on the Local Economy”, European Journal of Tourism , Hospitality and Recreation, Vol. 6, No. 2, 2015, pp. 7–13.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for National Security Studies, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Gallia Lindenstrauss

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  1. Gallia Lindenstrauss
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Correspondence to Gallia Lindenstrauss .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Political Science and International Relations, Marmara University, Anadoluhisarı, Istanbul, Turkey

    Ayşegül Sever

  2. London School of Economics LSE Ideas, London, UK

    Orna Almog

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Lindenstrauss, G. (2019). The Changing Tourism Patterns Between Turkey and Israel: Reflecting a Troubled Relationship. In: Sever, A., Almog, O. (eds) Contemporary Israeli–Turkish Relations in Comparative Perspective. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05786-2_9

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