Christian Tourism to the Holy Land: Pilgrimage During Security Crisis

The historic phenomenon of pilgrimage is experiencing a resurgence around the world. A journey resulting from religious causes, it not only provides a spiritual experience, but also one of new environments, cultures and peoples, and is often undertaken as a guided tour. Yet pilgrimage as a mode of tourism has been little investigated. This book adds considerably to our knowledge by focusing on one specific pilgrimage voyage - that to the Holy Land during times of security crisis there. In doing so, it examines this tourism journey in relation to constraints and high levels of risk experienced by the pilgrims. It explores both the behavioural aspects of undertaking pilgrimage to such an insecure situation and the impacts of such crisis on the host tourism infrastructure and industry. It therefore not only provides insights into pilgrimage as tourism - and into this particular country’s experience - but also offers an integrative approach to tourism crisis management.

Dr Yoel Mansfeld, Dr Noga Collins-Kreiner, Professor Nurit Kliot and Mrs Keren Sagi are all faculty members of the Department of Geography, University of Haifa, Israel. Dr Yoel Mansfeld is also the Head of the Center for Tourism, Pilgrimage & Recreation Research at the University of Haifa, Israel.