jerusalem (jps) | Less than a year after the terror attack at the Taba Hilton in the Sinai, many Israelis are still expected to travel to the resort area for Passover, according to Israeli tourism officials.
The Israel Airports Authority said that it expects some 15,000 Israelis to travel to Sinai this Passover. Though this is 50 percent fewer than last year, the numbers remain high despite stern government travel advisories.
“While the numbers are still well below last year’s Passover figures, there has been a marked increase in requests to go to Sinai over the past few months,” said Mark Feldman, CEO of Zion Tours. “The traditional traveler to the Sinai is generally not influenced by government warnings, adopting rather the carefree attitude famously associated with the destination.”
He added that given the government warning and the reality of the situation, most tour operators urge people to think twice about going.
Despite assurances from Sinai hotel officials that security has been increased, a consensus among travelers to the region said that there have been no additional precautions taken following the October attack, which killed at least 35 people and wounded 120 more.
Besides at the Taba Hilton itself, said Feldman, his clients have reported no visible extra security past the border crossing.
Israeli Army official Danny Arditi strongly advised Israelis not to visit Sinai during Passover. He said, however, his office has lowered travel warnings against traveling in Thailand and Turkey.
He said the warnings against visiting Istanbul were removed a month ago and there were only a few areas in Bangkok that Israelis should avoid.
“We are talking about the most dangerous destination for Israeli tourists. A bar in central Tel Aviv is safer than a visit [in Sinai],” Arditi said.
Speaking on Army Radio, Arditi said that the warnings were no longer specific to Sinai but related to all of Egypt.
With that said, Arditi added the threat of terror attacks on Israelis in Egypt has been reduced from “very high” to just “high.”