Amir Halevi
Director-General Israel Ministry of Tourism

He has been in his post as the director-general of the Israel Ministry of Tourism since May 2013. A 15th generation Jerusalemite, Halevi now lives in Tel Aviv with his wife and three children. He has led an organizational change in the ministry and strategic changes in its marketing activities. Halevi served as council member and chairperson of several committees on the Tel Aviv-Jaffa city council (1993-2003) and initiated the bicycle rental project in Tel Aviv-Jaffa. Halevi also founded ARTTIC Israel, a European provider of management services for international collaborative R&D projects. In his spare time, Halevi is a keen amateur athlete who enjoys running, swimming and cycling.

Israel's current tourism thrust is "Land of Creation." What is the reason or inspiration behind this?
Israel is one of the unique countries in the world. For its small size, it is a county brimming with history, great food, outdoor activities, restaurants and wonderful people. However, Israel is also a land full of innovation and creativity, a land full of artists, trendsetters, disco-dancers, athletes and humanitarians. This new innovative, creative Israel is exactly the image that the Israel Government Tourist Office wants to present to the world. In early March 2014, the IGTO unveiled a campaign that is seeking to rebrand Israel. The campaign intends to update Israel’s image, exemplifying the nation’s modernity and diversity after market research by Saatchi & Saatchi England found that the theme of the rebranding should focus on the creative energy of the country and its people. The highlight of the campaign is the rebranding of the Israel logo, which was colorfully designed with custom typeface. The typeface combines elements of Arabic, Hebrew and English writing, and it was specifically designed for this campaign. For another look at the Israeli rebranding in action, you can check out the Go Israel website. Engaging visitors with unique interactive video experience, the site is designed to connect people with everything related to traveling in Israel.

What are the key value propositions of Israel as a tourism destination?
Going to Israel is a journey of lifetime. Pilgrimage/holy land/religious travel is the largest tourism segment from the Philippines to Israel however, we have seen a rise in other segments including leisure visitors and families. Tel Aviv is not a huge city, but it is still a cosmopolitan non-stop city where you can relax at the beach, where the sand is very fine and light. While Israel is the birthplace of the world’s three religions, it does have its party cities, leading to some of the best nightlife in the region, with Tel Aviv taking the top spot, due to a plethora of nightclubs and bars.
Jerusalem is necessary for all Israel travelers – it is simply beautiful there! You can learn a lot there, it is really worth going there. Especially for pilgrimage tourism, it is a very important part of the journey. In Jerusalem, you can see a mixture of different cultures: there are, for example, Orthodox, Armenian and Muslim quarters. It is also one of the safest countries with an extremely low crime rate.

What key destinations in Israel are you currently giving top billing in your promotions and why?
For Filipino tourists we are keen on promoting the holy sites as it is the only Christian country in Asia. Visiting different sites in Jerusalem, the Galilee Region including the Yardenit (Baptismal site), Nazareth and Masada in the Dead Sea region, covering the holy land/pilgrimage trail. However, we are seeing trends about the market so we are now also starting to promote Tel Aviv-Jaffa includes a mix of pilgrimage and activities which allows for some leisure tourism as well.

During your tenure as director-general of the Israel Tourism Ministry, you have brought about significant improvements to the ministry as an organization and to the influx of tourism in Israel. Tourist entries even reached record levels in 2017 under your leadership. How did you bring about these changes?
We opened the IGTO office in Manila in 2017 and since then our numbers have grown an average of 38% (from 2016 through 2018) breaking tourism records to Israel from the Philippines. Connectivity to Tel Aviv is improving with airlines like Cathay Pacific servicing the sector via Hong Kong, Ethiopian Airlines via Adis Ababa and Turkish Airlines via Istanbul. We hope to see a further increase soon, once Philippine Airlines begins direct flights to Tel Aviv.

What are the primary challenges that you see in promoting and improving tourism in Israel?
For the Philippines, major factor would be the connectivity. If direct flights will start it will be a game changer for a two-way tourism. Increasing connectivity between Philippines and Israel is a priority for the Ministry. To support the increase in travel between the countries, we need to ensure an increase in the capacity while reducing the travel time connecting Israel and Philippines.

Philippine Airlines has expressed interest in starting direct flights from Manila to Tel Aviv which will increase the capacity and the connectivity between the countries as well as reduce travel time, which will influence outbound travel to Israel. Israel has given the airline the go ahead and they are now working on procedures and other formalities to before announcing the new route.

What key strategies, programs or key action steps are you and the Israel Tourism Ministry doing to further improve the promotion of tourism in Israel?
The Israel Government Tourism Office in Manila currently conducts trade events such as roadshows, workshops and seminars in three key cities in Philippines which is Manila, Cebu and Davao. We also participate in the biggest travel and trade shows in the country, PTAA Expo (Philippine Travel Agents Association Expo). Also, we send familiarization trips for both travel agents, media and influencers, including celebrities. Israel has also been featured in many travel shows and has been featured in cover stories in magazines. We are also focusing our efforts to generate demand on Israel not as only a pilgrimage but also must-see destination by putting emphasis on the leisure part. We are keen in promoting by doing activities such as PR activities and inviting celebrities to feature Israel as a destination. Aside from that, we are also inviting the film directors and producers to see the place and maybe to do a movie.

What particular aspects of Israel-Philippine ties do you see that can serve as golden opportunities for promoting better tourism exchange between the Philippines and Israel?
Starting of direct flights will be one and another is the Holy Land.

From your various travels around the world, what are the key learnings that you gained which you could apply in promoting tourism in Israel?
Combined tourism product. The IGTO has developed a strategy aimed at tailoring the tourism product to different target audiences, including the pilgrim tourism, branding the south of Israel and lifestyle.

What keeps you motivated in your work?
The contribution to the economy of the State of Israel and the high incomes, along with the record breaking of tourism entering Israel.

Which countries are still in your bucket list, and why would you want to visit them?
I'd like to go on a camping tour in Australia and also go to New Zealand.