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The committee for tourism for the Moshav movement has reported a 45 percent fall in occupancy levels for rooms at moshavim in the north of the country.  Chairman Moshe Zarchi: "The major fall has been recorded among couples, who have given up on romantic weekend breaks and the strictly orthodox families."

The economic recession has also caused damage to the owners of countryside guest houses. Countryside tourism, which is one of the main sources of income for the moshavim, especially with the decline in the profitability in agriculture, has recorded a sharp fall this summer.

According to Moshe Zarchi, the chairman of the tourism committee for the Moshav movement, occupancy levels during the summer months are normally about 70 percent, reaching close to 100 percent throughout the entire month of August. “This year we are seeing a sharp fall in reservations, with vacancies in August, something we have not seen in the past,” he revealed.

Zarchi added that during the last year, members of the moshav movement had invested large sums in upgrading their guest houses, including installation of private Jacuzzis and other indulgences in each room.

Yogev Sarid, manager of economic and business development for the moshav movement, said that the moshavim are seeing a strengthening of nights from overseas tourists, this one of the most important goals for the coming years. “We believe that rural guesthouses can provide the tourist with an enriching experience during their stay in Israel.”  He stressed that many of the moshavim are located in areas close to sites of importance to Christian tourists, in the north of the country.

The secretary general of the moshav movement, Eitan Ben David, said that he hoped that the decline in occupancy levels was temporary and called on the public to holiday in the moshavim.