After many reports on current activities during my 18 months on the job, I thought that it might be a good idea to take a step back and have a look at the Tourism Dept. itself - who are we and what are we doing.

The Dept. was established in 2001 as a result of the development of tourism to the region, which began in 1996. Since then the Dept. has worked to promote the region on two different levels:

• Development of tourism - encouragement of private initiatives as well as development of regional infrastructure and assistance in dealing with the many entities involved in tourism development.
• Marketing and advertising of tourism in the Arava in order to raise public awareness to regional possibilities, and assistance in promoting attractive options for families planning their vacations.
  

Guesthouses in various styles in the region

The Tourism Dept.'s Information and Reservations Center, which provides information to people interested in vacationing in the Arava, was established with the above aims in mind. These activities have been funded almost solely by the Jewish Agency's Partnership 2000 project over the years; without this significant assistance, tourism in the Arava would not have reached its current dimensions.

What does the Tourism Dept. do? The Dept. operates on a number of levels:

• Marketing and advertising through public relations / purchasing marketing content / advertising campaigns and placing ads in newspapers and Internet sites (during the past two years Internet advertising has become the most significant element)
  
• Holding tourist events to attract the public and to raise awareness to the region
  
• Promotion of regional interests through partnership in the Negev Tourism Forum, which is part of the Negev Development Authority
  
• Development of regional projects, such as the bicycle paths, signage for regional sites and paths, establishment and/or maintenance of observations points, rest stops, etc.
  
• Production of marketing materials, such as maps, informative brochures and hiking guide brochures
  
• Provision of updated and readily available information to all applicants
  
• Supervision and support for new and veteran entrepreneurs
  
• Training and workshops in various tourism fields
  
• Work with government ministries and all the other factors involved in the tourism field, such as the Israel Land Authority, the Nature and Parks Authority, and many others
  
• Operation of information stations for tourists at the Scorpion Ascent and the Yamin Plain

The Tourism Dept. is also assisted by other entities working to promote tourism, such as the JNF, the government's Tourism Co., the Ministry of Tourism, and the Negev Development Authority. The Development Authority has a tourism forum of which we are members, that does much to promote and support tourism in the Negev, through marketing, public relations, support for various events and regional training.
The region's tourism personnel themselves support the Tourism Dept. by paying membership fees to the Dept., which fund the activities of the Reservations Center, and which make them partners in the tourism activities of the region.

Today, twelve years after the first beginnings of tourism in the region, and seven years after the inception of the Dept., tourism forms a significant part of regional activity. It's enough to simply mention the new settlement of Tsukim, which was established with a clear orientation to tourism.
However, it is clear that regional and individual directions, methods and aims for the entire field need to be examined, and to that aim the Council formulating a master plan for tourism, which will provide direction for the future of the field in the region. 

http://www.arava.co.il/tourism/