How many times have you heard of yet another pilgrimage to Israel? Ever since the dawn of Christianity, a modest but constant stream of dedicated believers have made their way to the Holy Land to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. After the Six Day War in 1967 Israel's tourism experienced unprecedented growth and achieved a staggering 2 million tourists a year. That’s when pilgrimages to Israel first became a marketable product – a business.
Many Christians have ventured here over the decades touring sites related to the life of Jesus or mentioned in the New Testament. Seeing the sites dating to this very specific 40 year era is in itself such a moving and fulfilling experience that tourists often felt no further need to expand the scope of their spiritual exploration. The tour operators, to their end, failed to provide innovation and thus pilgrimages were reduced to a sightseeing checklist devoid of any context or contemporary relevance.
Today's Christian tourist is no longer satisfied with the classic 'Walk in His footsteps ' pilgrimage. Many supplement the traditional sites with Old Testament sites and Jewish sites to get a better understanding of the backdrop to the birth of Christianity. Others take a wider view to Christian history, including its less convenient segments such as the Crusades. Most of all, Christians are interested these days in the political situation, the role and stance of Christianity on the issues of modern day Israel.
The Christian Tourism of today is a true exploration, offering a spiritual journey of discovery. A discovery of ancient roots ignored for millenniums, a discovery of the connection to the land, the people, and their fate – It is an exploration into ones identity and that, my friends, is the essence of all meaningful travel.
At Identity Travel we try to cater to this demand and we have created educational tours that offer self-discovery through history, culture and politics. Our agenda is to educate our customers and enrich their sense of place, time and identity. If our success is in any way a reflection of the extent of this new market, Israel's potential for growth as a tourist destination for the 'thinking Christian market' is infinite.
