Tourism Across Borders in Israel/Palestine - Research report in the scope of

Tourism statistics concerning visits to the West Bank are harder to come by: according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) and the Ministry of Tourism and Antiques (MOTA) (2017), 3.2 million tourists visited tourism sites in the West Bank in the first half of 2017, 1.86 million of them being domestic visitors. [...] Sustainable tourism, a term that was coined as a response to the perceived negative effects of mass tourism in the 1980s, is described by the UNWTO as “tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities.” (UNEP & UNWTO, 2005, p. [...] Breaking the Silence, which collects testimonies of IDF veterans, runs tours to Hebron with the following description: “The tour is led by soldiers who broke their silence on their military service in the occupied territories, and explores the harsh consequences of the policy of separation and the military presence in the city.” (Breaking the Silence Website, 2018) 4.1.2. [...] Tourism providers in the region have come up with a myriad of new and innovative ways to use tourism as a tool to bring the Israeli and Palestinian people closer, and to strive for social and political change despite the great obstacle and challenges that exist in a region of intractable conflict. [...] Recommendations The recommendations that arise from the conducted research are plentiful and some of the best practices and lessons learned from different tourism actors have been shared and incorporated in the discussion chapter for others in the tourism sector to capitalize on.