American Tourism Society’s (ATS) Conference, hosted by the Israel Ministry of Tourism, took place in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, May 22-26, 2006 and brought together in Israel, for the first time, the leaders of four major travel industry organizations.

Kathryn Sudeikis, CTC, President & CEO, American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA); Robert Whitley, CTC, President, United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA); Vincent Wolfington, Chairman, World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC); and Louis J. D’Amore, President and Founder, International Institute for Peace Through Tourism (IIPT). H.E. Itzhak Herzog, Israel’s new Minister for Tourism greeted ATS delegates at the Gala Dinner hosted by American Express Company at the Dan Tel Aviv Hotel.

Michael Stolowitzky, ATS President and CEO, said “this conference, our first ever in Israel, brought together in one room, to meet and do business, the leaders of the American Tourism Industry, leading tour operators from the US and their counterparts from Israel, and members of the Jordanian and Palestinian Hotel Associations. H.E. Senator Akel Biltaji, Special Advisor to King Abdullah II of Jordan and ATS Vice Chair, Med/Red Sea Council, opened the Conference in Tel Aviv, symbolizing what ATS is really about – Bringing the World Together.”

“This was my first ATS conference,” said ASTA’s Kathryn Sudeikis, “and what impressed me the most was that this meeting in Israel provided a forum for what turned out to be more than just good will, but a truly substantive exchange. It was a real meeting of the minds about how to grow tourism to the region.”

The opening sessions took place at the Dan Tel Aviv Hotel, the ATS Conference headquarters. On the second day, delegates were taken to Jerusalem for meetings and lunch hosted by the Dan Hotels at their own historic King David Hotel. El Al Israel Airlines was the official ATS Conference Airline.

Rafi Baeri, Vice President Marketing and Sales, Dan Hotels, hosted the welcome cocktail at the Dan Tel Aviv Hotel. Eli Gonen, President and CEO, Sheraton Israel Hotels, hosted the opening night dinner at the Sheraton Moriah Tel Aviv Hotel. The Israel Ministry of Tourism hosted a full day of site seeing in Jerusalem for the ATS Delegates.

Tourism4Peace

One of the highlights of the conference was a panel presentation Tourism4Peace, which included a concept for a groundbreaking tour program and which for the first time featured together senior hospitality executives of Egypt, Jordan, The Palestinian Authority and Israel. T

he Tourism4Peace initiative is facilitated by the Peres Center for Peace. Their presentation included a prototype tour brochure, “Pillar of Civilization,” which illustrates their vision for regional tourism promotion.

The four-country tour program offers cultural experiences, religious pilgrimages to the Holy Land and a wide variety of tourist sites and resorts (deserts, cities, markets, health tourism, adventure, etc). The Panel moderated by Janos Damon, Executive Director, Israel Hotel Managers Association, included Abdul Hakeem Al-Hindi, Managing Director, Jordan Hotel Association and JHTEC, Rafi Baeri, Chairman Marketing Directors Forum of the Israel Hotel Managers Association and Raed Saadeh, President, Arab (Palestinian) Hotel Association and owner, Jerusalem Hotel, Jerusalem.

ATS Executive Vice President Don Reynolds said “the success of the ATS Conference in Israel, our second in the Med/Red Sea Region after Jordan in March 2005, demonstrates the growing interest in the American travel industry in promoting tourism to this region. The enormous tourism potential for the region as a whole is also reflected in the recent increases in ATS country and private sector membership from the Med/Red Sea Area.”

Arie Sommer, Israel’s Tourism Commissioner for North and South America, said, “the ATS conference was an excellent opportunity for Israel to host some of the major leaders in the American tourism industry. Most of the tour operator participants expressed keen interest and confidence in Israel as a tourism destination and this visit seemed to reinforce and strengthen their collaboration with their Israeli counterparts. For many ATS delegates this was their first visit to Israel and I was very pleased to see their enthusiasm for the people and attractions of the country.”