Posted on April 10, 2008 by Fiona Hilliard

As competition hots up between airlines in Israel, demand for Israel car hire is soaring. 

Car rentals and increased holiday bookings have seen a steady rise over the past 6 months and growth is expected to continue under the government’s new ‘Open Skies’ policy.  The recent legal reform was introduced to encourage more flight carriers to begin operating in Israel and so far it has been a runaway success.  Since November 2007, national carrier EIAI, as well as budget airline Thomsonfly have begun flights from the UK.  Last month, BMI added Israel to its list of destination countries accessible from the UK.  The opening of a state of the art terminal at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport has been viewed as another important factor in Israel’s success story. 

Many travellers are opting for tailor made multi-centre holidays that allow them to visit cities such as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, before hitting coastal towns such as Eilat for a few days by the sea.  Taking advantage of Israel’s modern road systems, visitors can drive from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv within an hour or to the north within two hours. 

Commenting on the latest car hire trend, Ophir Cohen, marketing director of car hire Israel says:  “The first quarter of 2008 has seen not only record numbers of car rental bookings, but also the longest in advance.”