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Feb. 17, 2021
At the start of 2020, Israel’s 6,000 tour guides were looking forward to a record five million tourist arrivals. Hundreds of thousands would be led through archeological sites, given lectures on the Bible and Zionism, and directed to the best restaurants and bars. Guides who specialize in domestic tourism managed to survive the year by offering socially distant tours between lockdowns. But for the guides who work with incoming tourists the year has been a disaster. Many have concluded that tourism won’t be back anytime soon and are starting to look for other work.
“We have no idea how many tour guides are working today or how many have been lost to other professions,” said Yoni Shapira, chairman of Moreshet Derech, the Israel Incoming Tourist Guide Association. “We are losing high-quality people. I know that many of them have started to work in virtual tourism, but that’s not real tourism.”