FORMA DE ÎNVĂȚĂMÂNT: CU FRECVENȚĂFULL TIME EDUCATION [304154]

UNIVERSITATEA DIN ORADEA/[anonimizat]/

[anonimizat]:TOURISM MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING/

STUDY PROGRAMME: TOURISM MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING

FORMA DE ÎNVĂȚĂMÂNT: CU FRECVENȚĂ/FULL TIME EDUCATION

LUCRARE DE DISERTAȚIE/

DISSERTATION

COORDONATOR ȘTIINȚIFIC:

Lector univ. dr. MARIUS I. STUPARIU

ABSOLVENT: [anonimizat]

2018

UNIVERSITATEA DIN ORADEA/[anonimizat]/

[anonimizat]:TOURISM MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING/

STUDY PROGRAMME: TOURISM MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING

FORMA DE ÎNVĂȚĂMÂNT: CU FRECVENȚĂ/[anonimizat]: ABRAHAM HOSTEL JERUSALEM

COORDONATOR ȘTIINȚIFIC:

Lector univ. dr. MARIUS I. STUPARIU

ABSOLVENT: [anonimizat]

2018

INTRODUCTION

In the winter of 2016/17 through an Erasmus+ programme I did an internship in a hostel in Spain for 3 months. There I was a Reception Helper but I [anonimizat], beds, [anonimizat]. I [anonimizat], [anonimizat]. Therefore, that hostel atmosphere made me familiar with this type of accommodation in tourism where I acquainted and got the clue of the concept of volunteering in a hostel, and the oportunity that gives you to travel in a cheaper way and getting more involved in the local community culture.

Since back then I was dreaming to volunteer somewhere as a [anonimizat]. I did volunteer in Jerusalem for 6 [anonimizat]. I chose Israel as the location to volunteer firstly because it is certainly outstanding as a [anonimizat], a [anonimizat] a good experience for me since tourism is what I studied.

Hence, as I [anonimizat], [anonimizat] I’[anonimizat] I was travelling, I could certainly and I did get an general idea about hostels and the way they work and are managed comparing with the hotels that I was more familiar with as a type of accommodation while travelling.

[anonimizat] a hostel business someday, I did a brief research and wrote my dissertation as an overview of Abraham Hostel Jerusalem. [anonimizat], will give the general idea of it.

[anonimizat]; [anonimizat]/hotel; the third one and last chapter is the case of study in this paperwork, the Abraham Hostel Jerusalem, a very awarded hostel in Israel and worldwide.

Chapter 1

TOURISM IN ISRAEL

GENERAL FACTS ISRAEL

Israel is in the Middle East, situated at the meeting point of three continents – Europe, Africa, and Asia. It is about the same size as Wales, with a population of around 7.4 million. Israel is one of the better-off countries in the Middle East. This is due to its large number of high-tech industries and trade links with Europe and the United States. Israel is bordered by Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, and the Mediterranea Sea. Israel is a young country but the Jewish people have been linked to the area for thousands of years. Israel now is a place that Jews call home. Palestinians, however, believe the region is their home, too. Palestinians are the non-Jewish people who lived in the land that was Israel, before Israel was formed. This situation led to conflict. (Claire Throp, 2013)

Israel became a country on May 14, 1948. Before this date, the land was called Palestine. Much of the land was a bare desert in 1948. It has several types of land. A plain lies along the Mediterranean coast. Northern Israel has many mountains. Hills and valleys cover much of central Israel. The large Negev Desert lies in the south. Israel’s Dead Sea is the lowest place on earth, where the water contains eight times as much salt as most seawater. Fish and plants cannot live in the Dead Sea. (Kristin Thoennes Keller, 1999)

The most important river in Israel is the Jordan. It originates in the Golan Heights in the north, runs southward neard the borders of Lebanon and Syria, through the Sea of Galilee, and empaties into the Dead Sea. The Yarkon and the Kishon rivers are the only other waterways with permanent flows, others are dry throughout most of the year. The Yarkon runs into the Mediterranean Sea near Tel Aviv, and the Kishon does so near Haifa. Both the Jordan and the Yarkon are irrigation sources for the Nagev Desert. (Jill DuBois, 2004)

The climate of Israel has been characterized as Mediterranean, which means that it has two seasons: winter, which lasts from November through March, and summer, which lasts from April through October. Because of the Israel’s location between desert and the humid Mediterranean Sea, rainfall is not evenly distributed throughout the country. (Jill DuBois, 2004). Israel receives little rain. The lack of rain creates a water shortage throughout Israel. Israelis must irrigate much of their country. Pipes bring water to crops from far away. (Kristin Thoennes Keller, 1999).

OVERVIEW ON TOURISM IN ISRAEL

Tourism in Israel is one of Israel's major sources of income, with a record 3.6 million tourist arrivals in 2017, yielding a 25 percent growth since 2016 and contributed NIS 20 billion to the Israeli economy making it an all-time record. Israel offers a plethora of historical and religious sites, beach resorts, archaeological tourism, heritage tourism and ecotourism. Israel has the highest number of museums per capita in the world. In 2009, the two most visited sites were the Western Wall and the grave of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai; the most popular paid tourist attraction is Masada. The most visited city is Jerusalem and the most visited site was the Western Wall. The largest percentage of tourists come from the United States accounting for 19% of all tourists, followed by Russia, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, China, Italy, Poland, and Canada.

As the chart below (Fig. 1) shows, most of the tourists (64%) for the year 2017 has preferred the type of accomodation in hotels as there are usually where most of the people come as part of an organized tour from agencies.

Fig. 1. Tourists in Israel by type of accommodation for the year 2017

(data source: Ministry of Tourism, Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, www.cbs.gov.il/)

As for Romania, the chart below (Fig. 2) indicates how most of the Romanian tourists prefer to stay, as I expected over 80% of them were staying at hotels in their religious holidays I assume since I’ve seen many organized Romanian tours with religious purpose tourism in the Old City in my 6 weeks of staying in Jerusalem.

Fig. 2. Romanian tourists in Israel by type of accommodation for the year 2017

(data source: Ministry of Tourism, Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, www.cbs.gov.il/)

TOURISTIC PLACES IN ISRAEL

Most-visited cities in Israel are Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Safed, Akko, Haifa, Tiberias, Nazareth, Beersheba, Eilat and Ashkelon. Also, there are many landmarks outside cities that are very popular among tourists, like Masada, Caesarea, Sea of Galilee, Arbel, Beit She'arim. Some of the places I’ve been to, are described with few words below:

Tel Aviv-Jaffa

Tel Aviv, which means hill of spring was founded by a group of European immigrants living in the town of Jaffa, a neighboring seaport, almost a centry ago. Jaffa grew rapidly within a short time and is characteristic of the fast pace that still exists there today. Tel Aviv united with Jaffa to become one city more than 50 years ago. Because of the melding of two cities, the Tel Aviv-Jaffa area is also an interesting combination of old and new. Tel Aviv is the most cosmopolitan city of Israel. It has home to many foreign embassies and boats numerous theater groups and museums. There are beautiful white beaches that hug the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea. Jaffa, on the other hand, is one of the world’s oldest cities. (Jill DuBois, 2004)

Fig. 3. Tel Aviv, at beach

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

Bethlehem

Bethlehemis a Palestinian city located in the central West Bank, Palestine, about 10 km (6.2 miles) south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. The economy is primarily tourist-driven. Bethlehem is the burial place of the matriarch Rachel and birthplace of King David and of Jesus. Around 1.3 million tourists visited the city in 2008. Popular sites in the city and around include: The Church of the Nativity, a church built over the cave that tradition marks as the birthplace of Jesus of Nazareth; The Manger Square; Shepherd's Field in Beit Sahour; Solomon's Pools; and the Salesian Cremisan Monastery.

Fig. 4. The old city of Bethlehem

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

Haifa

Haifa has existed since the third century, but its main period of growth did not occur until the 20th century. The establishment of the Haifa-Damascus Railway led to development of Haifa’s harbor by the British in 1929. It remains Israel’s major Mediterranean port. Haifa is a splendid city whose beauty has been compared to that of San Francisco. It is also the world center for the Bahai’i faith. . (Jill DuBois, 2004)

Fig. 5. The Bahá'í Gardens in Haifa

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

In the picture above (Fig. 5) is the upper part of the Baha’i Gardens, it can be visited only separately by parts, the lower, the middle and the upper part. There are even regulary tourist buses to get on the upper part but I would recommend to walk as I did and enoyed of the views better since there were many lookout points along the way, and in the middle of the terrace, apart from Baha’i Garden there is a another sight worth to visit, a statues park (Fig. 6)

Fig. 6. Sculptures Garden in Haifa

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

Mt. Precipice, Nazareth

Mount Precipice is located just outside the southern edge of Nazareth at 2.0 km of the modern city center. It is believed by many to be the site of the Rejection of Jesus described in Luke 4:29-30 – The people of Nazareth, not accepting Jesus as Messiah tried to push him from the mountain, but "he passed through the midst of them and went away."

Fig. 7. Mt. Precipice, Nazareth

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

To get on the Mount Precipice there are two ways, one driving up there by car following a very accessible road or the other one that I chose to walk as a small less than 30 minutes hike from the city center of Nazareth. The view is worthwhile, it offers a panoramic-round view over the city and the vicinity (see the Fig. 7)

Sea of Galilee

The Sea of Galileeis a freshwater lake in Israel it is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth and the second-lowest lake in the world (after the Dead Sea, a saltwater lake). The lake is fed partly by underground springs although its main source is the Jordan River which flows through it from north to south.

Tourism around the Sea of Galilee is an important economic branch. Historical and religious sites in the region draw both local and foreign tourists. The Sea of Galilee is an attraction for Christian pilgrims who visit Israel to see the places where Jesus performed miracles according the New Testament, such as his walking on water, calming the storm and feeding the multitude.

Fig. 8. Sea of Galilee

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

Mt Avital-Bental

Mt. Bental is a distinctive experience. The neighboring area was a battleground during the Yom Kippur War and the bunkers are left there as a reminder. Up there there are records with the narration of the events and a sightseeing binoculars can be used to see the valley below and the abandoned Syrian town of Quneitra. There are UN observers stationed on Mt. Bental, as there are in the picture below, two Australians in charge by the time I took this picture:

Fig. 9. Mt Avital-Bental

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

OVERVIEW ON TOURISM IN JERUSALEM

Jerusalem is the most-visited city with 3.5 million tourist arrivals annually. One of the oldest cities in the world, it is the proclaimed capital and largest city of Israel, if the area and population of East Jerusalem are included. It is a holy city to the three major Abrahamic religions-Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and hosts a myriad of historical, archaeological, religious and sundry other attractions.

Most of the tourists coming to Jerusalem (79%) prefer to stay at a well-known type of accommodation as hotels and other similar structures (Fig. 10):

Fig. 10. Tourists by Type of Accomodation in Jerusalem 2017

(data source: Ministry of Tourism, Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, www.cbs.gov.il/)

Jerusalem is a holy city for the three monotheistic religions, a location where many of the important events chronicled in the Old and New Testaments took place. The city has been tied to ancient traditions in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. This holiness was what brought generations of piligrims and tourists to visit the city. Conversely, its holiness was also what made it a stage for political conflicts throughout the ages; in the past century, this has been especially evident in the frequent regime changes. (Kobi Cohen-Hattab, 2014)

Much has been written about Jerusalem as a sacred place and as a site of conflict, a place of regime turnover and tussles between world powers and armies; these vicissitudes have been reflected in various narratives and symbols throught the ages. (Kobi Cohen-Hattab, 2014)

The pilgrimage is one of humanity’s most ancient phenomena and spans all religions. It consists of a circular movement of people from one place to another in a short period of time, and includes psychological, religious, sociological, and tourist dimensions, with sacred spaces at the core of the journey (Reader and Walter 1993)

From pilgrimage to tourism; several concurrent economic, social, and technological processes resulted in a sharp rise in tourism during the second half of the twentieth century (Shachar 1995). Tourism was transformed from the exclusive luxury of the elite social classes it had been for centuries (Towner 1996) into a widespread phenomenon constituting part of the lifestyle of practically everyone in the developed world. With the advent of modern tourism the nature of visits to sites of religious significance changed dramatically. Where once visitors to a given site were pilgrims, coming out of the religious motivation, tourism brought with it an increase in visitors coming for the other reasons, such as culture and heritage. (Kobi Cohen-Hattab, 2014)

Jerusalem has been divided into two parts, the Jordanian and Israeli sectors. After 1967 the whole city came under Israel’s control. Today there is the Old City and the New City. (Kristin Thoennes Keller, 1999)

As a religious and political center for generations rather than a port or city of commerce, Jerusalem’s economic sector was heavily influenced by piligrimage and tourism as a major economic sector and a significant factor in the political struggle for hegemony. This was true during the days of the first Jewish Temple that was built 3,000 years ago, through the contested Roman rule in Jesus’s time, throughout the Crusades, and under the Ottoman Empire-and its status as a place of piligrimage still affects its development and character today. (Kobi Cohen-Hattab, 2014)

The increase in pilgrimages and tourism also led to the development of the souvenir and holy objects industry – crafts that Jerusalem’s residents had been engaged in for many generations and which served as an important source of income. “At the end of the Ottoman era, this was one of the few industries in the city, and its products were some of the city’s principal export merchandise. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, when the number of piligrims and tourists in Palestine and in Jerusalem in particular had grown, the scope of the gift industry in the city swelled (Ben-Arieh 1984; Finn 1877).” (Kobi Cohen-Hattab, 2014, p. 34)

In terms of geographic location, the land is on the crossroads of continents and is characterized by a rare variety of natural regions. The country’s distinctive climate – beaches coupled with the unique qualities of the Dead Sea, mountainous and lush regions next to arid and warm desert areas, sites of healing and hot mineral springs – all concentrated in one small piece of land attracted additional types of visitors: summer tourists searching for a more pleasant climate, medical tourists seeking Palestine’s healing qualities, and tourists focusing on the desert regions. (Kobi Cohen-Hattab, 2014)

Jerusalem presents a singular case among all sacred places, in that it attracts pilgrims from diverse religions, nations, and cultural traditions. The significance of Jerusalem to followers of these three religions, and their many denominations, has created spatial and organizational competition ongoing conflicts over rituals, sites, and itineraries. Whereas Rome, Mecca, and Varanasi are associated with only one religion, Jerusalem is a multireligious center of unique character, spiritual meaning, and universal appeal (Sacher and Shoval, 1999 in Madelaine Adelman, 2014)

Jerusalem is a complex city because of its cultural heterogeneity, its religious importance, its national-historical symbolism to both Israelis and and Palestinians. Although in many respects, the city is perceived and acts as a united city, it is divided into semiseparate, relatively unified and interdependent and partially separated, and each economic sector are separated for Israelis and Palestinians, whereas other branches, such as tourism and health, are and should be joint economic ventures. (Marshall J. Berger, 2002)

Talking about safety, I was in Jerusalem by the time when president of U.S Mr. Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel. I could feel some tension in the city, there were several days of protests, but I felt pretty safe and nothing was as the media has shown worldwide, those probably were images from the conflict areas of the East Jerusalem. Anyways, as a opinion about safety while travelling in Israel, most of the tourists has answered as Very Good, as it appears in the chart below (Fig. 11)

Fig. 11. Tourists opinion about safety 2017

(data source: Ministry of Tourism, Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, www.cbs.gov.il/)

SIGHTSEEINGS IN JERUSALEM

Most of the things that tourists come to see are concentrated in the pedestrianized Old City, Jerusalem’s walled heart. There could be find the Dome of the Rock, the Western Wall and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, as well as two of the most well-trodden tourist paths – the Via Dolorosa, tracing the footsteps of Christ to the crucifixion, and the Ramparts Walk, which takes you most of the way around the city on the wall itself. The Old City is traditionally divided into four quarters: the Muslim Quarter in the northeast; the Christian Quarter in the northwest, the Armenian Quarter in the southwest; and the Jewish Quarter in the southeast. In addition to these is the enormous walled complex of the Temple Mount, which takes up nearly a fifth of the Old City and hugs the eastern wall between the Muslim and Jewish quarters, overlooking the Kidron Valley opposite the Mount of Olives. (Daniel Jacobs, 1999)

Fig. 12. Western Wall or Kotel at night on a Shabbat day

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

Fig. 13. Overview on Jerusalem from the Mt. of Olives at sunset

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2018)

Chapter 2

OVERVIEW ON HOSTELLING

2.1. HOSTEL DEFINITION

The hostel is a type of lodging or a holiday accommodation among the other budget-oriented types as: bed and breakfast, guest house, airbnb, etc. Looking on a dictionary for the definition of the word hostel in English, the online Oxford Dictionary provides us with the following: An establishment which provides inexpensive food and lodging for a specific group of people, such as students, workers, or travellers.

According to a webpage which proclaims to be the world's largest community of hostel professionals, the hostel will be defined as a: budget-oriented, shared-room ("dormitory") accommodation that accepts individual travelers (typically backpackers) or groups for short-term stays, and that provides common areas and communal facilities. To be considered a hostel, the property must provide short-term, shared (dormitory-style) accommodation for individual travelers, though many hostels also provide private rooms. The word "dormitory" refers to a room where travelers independently book individual beds in a shared room as opposed to booking entire rooms like in a hotel or guesthouse.

Nevertheless, on the online Wikipedia Encyclopedia, where usually the definitions are a mix of all of them found on the internet, it says: Hostels provide budget-oriented, sociable accommodation where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed, in a dormitory and share a bathroom, lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex, and private rooms may also be available.

Hostels are often cheaper for both the operator and occupants; many hostels have long-term residents whom they employ as desk agents or housekeeping staff in exchange for experience or discounted accommodation.

Fig. 14. Hostel dormitory room in Taiwan

(source: wikipedia.org)

In a few countries, such as the UK, Ireland, India and Australia, the term hostel sometimes also refers to institutions providing longer-term housing. In India, Pakistan and South Africa, hostel also refers to boarding schools or student dormitories in resident colleges and universities. In other parts of the world, the word hostel mostly refers to properties offering shared accommodation to travellers or backpackers.

Within the "traveler" category, another distinction can be drawn between hostels that are members of Hostelling International (HI), a UK-based, non-profit organisation encouraging outdoor activities and cultural exchange for the young (formerly the IYHA), and independently operated hostels. Backpackers' Hostels began in Australia and New Zealand and differ from hostels by being open during the day time, often abbreviated to just "Backpackers."

2.2. HISTORY

In the beginning of the last century, in Altena Castle in Germany, Richard Schirrmann created the first permanent Jugendherberge or "Youth Hostel." These first youth hostels were an exponent of the vision of the German Youth Movement to let poor city teenagers breathe fresh air outdoors. The youths were supposed to manage the hostel themselves as much as possible, doing chores to keep the costs down and build character, and be physically active outdoors.

2.3. DIFFERENCES HOSTELS – HOTELS

With an increasing number of “boutique hostel” options, hostels are beating out hotels for smart budget travelers who demand more than bare-bones accommodation. Nowadays the hostels offers free breakfast, complimentary snacks and drinks, free Wi-Fi, and add-ons once only expected in pricier hotels.

Table 1. Differences hostels – hotels

2.4. COMMUNAL ACCOMMODATION

There is less privacy in a hostel than in a hotel. Sharing sleeping accommodation in a dormitory is very different from staying in a private room in a hotel or bed and breakfast, and might not be comfortable for those requiring more privacy. Hostels encourage more social interaction between guests due to the shared sleeping areas and communal areas such as lounges, kitchens and internet cafes.

Care should be taken with personal belongings, as guests may share a common living space, so it is advisable to secure guests' belongings. Most hostels offer some sort of system for safely storing valuables, and an increasing number of hostels offer private lockers; there are other things to consider as well when choosing a safe hostel, such as whether they have a guest curfew, uphold fire codes, 24-hour security, and CCTV.

Noise can make sleeping difficult on occasions, whether from snoring, talking, someone either returning late or leaving early, or the proximity of so many people. To mitigate this, some wear earplugs and/or sleeping masks.

2.5. FACILITIES AND HOSTEL TYPES

In order to make comparisons in service quality, some rating systems were introduced. The star rating system is the most popular of all with ratings from one to five stars, with more star rating indicating better quality of services and facilities. Also the star rating system is based on the guests’reviews and rating as some online hostel booking platforms provide: hostelworld.com, booking.com etc.

In attempts to attract more visitors, many hostels nowadays provide additional services not previously available, such as airport shuttle transfers, internet cafés, swimming pools and spas, tour booking and carfree hire. Some hostels may include a hot meal in the price.

The traditional hostel format involved dormitory style accommodation. Some newer hostels also include en-suite accommodation with single, double or quad occupancy rooms, though to be considered a hostel they must also provide dormitory accommodation. In recent years, the numbers of independent and backpackers' hostels have increased greatly to cater for the greater numbers of overland, multi-destination travellers (such as gap-year travellers and rail-trippers).

The quality of such places has also improved dramatically. While most hostels still insist on a curfew, daytime lockouts, very few require occupants to do chores apart from washing and drying up after food preparation.

Worldwide in terms of hostel type can be distinguished: hostelling international (HI), independent hostels, boutique hostels, mobile hostels.

» Hostelling International (HI):

Richard Schirrmann's idea of hostels rapidly spread overseas and eventually resulted in Hostelling International, an organisation composed of more than 90 different youth hostel associations representing over 4,500 youth hostels in over 80 countries.

Some HI Youth Hostels cater more to school-aged children (sometimes through school trips) and parents with their children, whereas others are more for travellers intent on learning new cultures. However, while the exploration of different cultures and places is emphasised in many hostels, particularly in cities or popular tourist destinations, there are still many hostels providing accommodation for outdoor pursuits such as hillwalking, climbing and bicycle touring; these are often small friendly hostels retaining much of the original vision and often provide valuable access to more remote regions.

In the past several years, Hostelling International have increasingly added hotels and package resorts to their networks in addition to hostels.

Despite their name, in most countries membership is not limited to youth.

Fig. 15. Youth hostel in Japan

(source: wikipedia.org)

» Independent hostels:

Independent hostels are not necessarily affiliated with one of the national bodies of Hostelling International, Youth Hostel Association or any other hostel network. Often, the word independent is used to refer to non-HI hostels even when the hostels do belong to another hostelling organization such as SIH and Backpackers Canada.

The term "youth" is less often used with these properties. Unlike a hotel chain where everything is standardised, these hostels can be very diverse, typically not requiring a membership card. There are chains of independent hostels throughout the world such as the Jazz Hostels on the East Coast and Banana Bungalow Hostels on the West Coast of the United States, or the Generator Hostels and Equity Point Hostels of Europe, or Zostel of India. Each offers their own niche of services to travellers and backpackers. For example, one independent hostel might feature a lot of in house gatherings, another might feature daily and nightly tours or events in the surrounding city, and another might have a quieter place to relax in serenity, or be located on the beach. This is an independent hostel's personality and travellers will frequent the hostels that offer the personality that they find desirable. There is frequently a distinction being a "party hostel" or not.

As the hostel industry evolves, independent hostels and HI hostels are becoming more similar, with the word "backpackers" also now applying to many Hostelling International hostels.

Fig. 16. High-tech hostel lockers with electronic key locks.

(source: wikipedia.org)

» Boutique hostels:

The general backpacking community is no longer exclusively typified by student travellers and extreme shoe string budgets. In response to demand, as well as increasing competition between the rapidly growing number of hostels, the overall quality of hostels has improved across the industry. In addition to the increase in quality among all styles of hostel, new styles of hostels have developed that have a focus on a more trendy, design interior.

The phrase "boutique hostel" an often-arbitrary marketing term typically used to describe intimate, luxurious or quirky hostel environments. The term has started to lose meaning because the facilities of many "boutique hostels" are often no different from hostels that are not referred to with that label. Also, marketers and online booking websites sometimes include boutique hotels in lists of "boutique hostels," further diluting any specific meaning of the phrase.

A related term, "flashpackers", often refers to hostels that target themselves as catering to a slightly older, tech-savvy clientele, but in practice, many of the new class of higher-quality hostels across the industry offer these tech-oriented facilities, and even the flashpacker websites that appeared in 2006–08 during the peak of the "flashpacker" hype are neglected or offline as of 2012 as the term has rapidly lost popularity.

Fig. 17. Dormitory from a hostel in Budapest, Hungary

(source: wikipedia.org)

» Mobile hostels:

Though very uncommon, a mobile hostel is a hostel with no fixed location. It can exist in the form of a campsite, a temporary building, bus, van, or a short term agreement in a permanent building. Mobile hostels have sprouted up at large festivals where there exists a shortage of budget accommodation. As with regular hostels, mobile hostels generally provide dormitory accommodation for backpackers or travelers on a shoe string budget. The first ever (and only) commercial example of a mobile hostel is Hostival. It has sprouted up at Oktoberfest, Carnival, San Fermin, Las Fallas and the 2010 World Cup.

Fig. 18. The ship Passat is a floating hostel and museum

(source: wikipedia.org)

Chapter 3

ABRAHAM HOSTEL JERUSALEM

The Abraham Hostel is a 3 chain-hostel, the other two are in Tel Aviv and Nazareth.

The hostel is member of ILH, an Israel Hostels Network of over 30 quality-assured independent hostels in Israel and also member of Hostelling International (HI), a worldwide network of Not-for-Profit Youth Hostel Associations.

3.1. HISTORY

The founders:

It was three young Israeli backpackers, and two old nomads, who dreamed of a hostel that would function as a one-stop all-inclusive hub for travelers in hopes of making Israel a destination for independent backpackers like themselves, stimulating the local economy and revealing the reality and value of this region to the world.

The Hostel Story:

Maoz Inon, founder of the Fauzi Azar Inn in Nazareth and co founder of the Jesus Trail met Gal Mor, fellow globetrotter and travel entrepreneur through their mutual efforts to promote Israel as a leading destination for backpackers and independent travelers. The two dreamed of a hostel that would function as a one-stop all-encompassing hub for independent travelers, providing everything from an affordable bed and trustworthy tour and travel information to language classes, bike rentals and fun local events. They knew there was great potential for a place such as this to bring travelers together, stimulate the local economy and revolutionize the world’s view of Israel and the Middle East by revealing the local reality and all that this region has to offer to one backpacker at a time.

In order to realize their dream the young entrepreneurs asked Nitzan Kimchi and Dror Tishler to join them, initially as investors and later on – contributing from their experience, knowledge and expertise in the fields of financial and human resources management, strategic thinking, branding, designing and more.

Nitzan and Dror are experienced backpackers who travelled extensively worldwide as well as in Israel. As businessmen, they were the founders and managers of Kata-Bags (Kata is a world wide leading company in protective lightweight carrying solutions and travel gear mainly for video and photographic equipment under the brands Kata and National Geographic).

In 2006, while backpacking around Israel, Yaron Burgin met Maoz Inon at his hostel, Fauzi Azar Inn, in Nazareth. They discovered their shared love for travel and their desire to improve Israel’s status as a desirable destination for independent backpackers. From this, they created ILH, a network of Israeli hostels with European standards of cleanliness, true backpackers’ vibes and affordable rates. Shortly after Abraham Hostel Jerusalem was launched Yaron joined as the fifth partner to complete and compliment the partnership.

In September 2010, with their vision fully developed and clear, their combined efforts paid off when Gal managed to secure 67 HaNevi’im, a previously student-occupied residential building and the hostel’s current location. By early October renovations began, and by November 18 Abraham Hostel Jerusalem was open for business, taking reservations and hosting curious and well-satisfied travelers. They had six dorms, several private rooms, a makeshift lobby containing the Indie Travelers’ Center, and a bit of a mess as renovations continued; however, impressively, Abraham Hostel Jerusalem was already ranked number one on many hostel booking engines among Israeli hostels. Over the next six months the face and spirit of the hostel grew and evolved to include many more dorms and private rooms, a beautiful, large common room with a full guest kitchen, a bar, plasma TV room, internet gallery, laundry facilities and more. Today, Abraham Hostel Jerusalem offers nightly events for guests ranging from Live Music Night to Shabbat Dinner and lectures from Travelers’ Language Lectures in Hebrew and Arabic to Travel Tips for Israel, the West Bank and the Region. There are tours leaving every day from the lobby in association with Abraham Tours going to the Dead Sea, Galilee, the West Bank, Mahane Yehuda Market, among many other locations. More and more each day, Abraham Hostel Jerusalem is meeting all the needs of the travelers coming to see and experience the Middle East Region.

Fig. 19. Abraham Hostel

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

3.2. THE HOTEL NAME – ABRAHAM –

As their vision developed, the crucial decision of the hostel’s name was becoming increasingly urgent. Many ideas were tossed around, but the idea of Abraham kept resurfacing in conversation. Historically, a man known for hospitality with his tent flap always open to offer food, drink and rest. Abraham is known as the father of monotheism and was the first known person to travel throughout the Middle East. These qualities made him a fitting representation of what the founders of Abraham Hostel were hoping to bring the world.

3.3. LOCATION

The Abraham Hostel Jerusalem is located at 67 HaNeviim Street, the Street of the Prophets in the heart of Jerusalem, between the great Machane Yehuda market (5 minute walk) and the Old City (20 minute walk). The hostel is within walking distance of the Central Bus Station (15 minute walk), and the tram stops right outside.

Fig. 20. Walking distances from hostel

(source: https://abrahamhostels.com/jerusalem/)

3.4. TYPES OF ROOMS

The hostel consist of 80-rooms lodging with 260 beds which are categorized in two main classification, the dorm rooms and the private rooms as following:

Dorm Rooms:

10 Bed Mixed Dorm: 10 bed dorms feature bunk beds and en suite facilities. These dorms are mixed – men and women, and offer great value accommodation. Price from 85 ILS avg./night

8 Bed Mixed Dorm: 8 bed dorms feature bunk beds and en suite facilities. These dorms are mixed – men and women, and offer great value accommodation. Price from 85 ILS avg./night

6 Bed Mixed Dorm: 6 bed dorms feature bunk beds and en suite facilities. These dorms are mixed – men and women, and offer great value accommodation. Price from 93 ILS avg./night

6 Bed Female Dorm: Female dormitory style, 6 bunk beds with en suite shower and toilet. Also equipped a private make-up corner with hairdryer. Price from 98 ILS avg./night.

4 Bed Mixed Dorm: 8 bed dorms feature bunk beds and en suite facilities. These dorms are mixed – men and women, and offer great value accommodation. Price from 100 ILS avg./night.

4 Bed Male Dorm: Male dormitory style, 4 bunk beds with en suite shower and toilet. Price from 100 ILS avg./night.

Private Rooms:

Standard Single Private: a private room with 1 single bed, sleeps one person. Perfect for the solo traveler who wants some more privacy (around 15 sq m in size) have one set of twin bed and ensuite bathroom.

Standard Twin Private: Perfect for a travelling pair who want some more privacy, the Economy 2 Bed room (around 17 sq m in size) have two single beds and ensuite bathroom.

Superior Twin Private: Great upgraded room with all amenities, TV and a kettle

Standard 3 Bed Private: Perfect for a travelling trio or a family who want some more privacy, our Triple Rooms (around 20 sq m in size) have three beds and ensuite bathroom

3.5. HOSTEL RANKING

Hostelworld, the largest online hostel-booking platform, in their annual HOSCAR awards has classified the hostels by its size as: small, medium, large and extra-large. There is top classement in hostels by continent and country and then also many categories such as: most popular hostel, best value for money, best facilities, best atmosphere, best location, best staff or other awards as best new hostel, best hostel chain and best hostel for groups. This is such a good thing when being an online platform, with a software integrated where hostels based only by real guests reviews can comes out with so many diversified categories.

So far, Abraham Hostel Jerusalem has won 4 awards as the 1st place amongs the Israel's hostels that received the highest ratings in 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2016. Also, in two different years, 2013 and 2015 the hostel is placed on the 8th place as for the best worldwide large hostel category (151-349 beds). And remarkably, on the 5th Worldwide Extra Large Hostel (minimum 350 beds) in 2014.

On hostelworld, on January 2018, the Abraham Hostel has the rating at 8.9 of 10, ranked 1st hostel in Jerusalem with over 2000 reviews (Fig. 21)

Fig. 21 Overview rating of Abraham Hostel Jerusalem on the international booking site Hostelworld.com (source: hostelworld.com)

Hostelword guarantees a pragmatic guidelines on which the rating is based on. All the reviews are expressed on Hostelworld.com only by users who have booked and stayed at hostels booked through this website. Also they affirm, that is forbidden any reviews written by owners or managers or any reviews where incentives or threats are used by managers or owners to influence customers.

Some of the awards won by Abraham Hostel by years through HostelWorld:

» 2016: 1st Country Winners Israel

» 2015: 8th Worldwide Large Hostel and 1st Country Winners Israel

» 2014: 5th Worldwide Extra Large Hostel and 1st Country Winners Israel

» 2013: 8th Worldwide Large Hostel

» 2012: 1st Country Winners Israel

Another online platform, TripAdvisor, a very known hospitality marketing resource on the internet, has given to the Abraham Hostel Jerusalem a Certificate of Excellence through 4 consecutive years.

Fig. 22. Certificates of excellence for Abraham Hostel

(source: Trip Adviser)

The popular Booking website, the online travel metasearch engine for lodging reservations, also evaluate the Abraham Hostel Jerusalem very-well. From those 425 properties shown in Jerusalem on this platform, the Abraham Hostels has the rating 8.5 of 10 with around 2000 reviews which is very good considering there are hotels, apartments and many luxurious type of accommodation among those properties listed on Booking.

3.6. FACILITIES AND SERVICES

There are numerous facilities and among all as every hostel, there are some free of charge: Free Breakfast, Linen Included, Free City Maps, Towels Included, Free WiFi, Free Internet Access, Free City Tour.

Table 2, General Facilities

Table 3, Other services

As for Food & Drinks facilities, the hostel offer: a bar, tea&coffee making facilities, a guest kitchen, weekly paid meals available (Shabbat Dinner, Indian Cuisine etc), vending machines.

When it comes to Entertainment, besides the events that occurs almost every night and the weekly concerts, there are pretty various equipaments for what a hostel can offer, such as: TV room with dvd’s, pool table, foosball table, piano, guitar, drums, board games, etc

Abraham bus

A truely useful transport service that Abraham Hostel offers is the shuttle between their hostel locations in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Nazareth. An easy alternative to navigating public transportation, the shuttle runs daily and drops the guests off at the door of the hostel, so it’s a great option for anyone staying at one of the Abraham hostels or in the city center since this service is also available to book for the non-guests of the Abraham Hostel network.

Fig. 23. Abraham Bus, a webpage banner

(source: https://abrahamhostels.com/jerusalem/)

3.7. BAR & EVENTS

Abraham Hostel Bar:

The Abraham Hostel Bar is open every evening from 6pm to midnight and has become Jerusalem’s most international bar where locals and travelers from around the world come together.

Stocking a wide range of local and international alcohols including local Jerusalem beers and special cocktails. The food menu includes locally inspired snacks and meals. Daily Happy Hour is from 6pm to 8pm, whilst the daily events are a great way to meet fellow travelers and local Jerusalemites.

The menu includes Israeli traditions including Goldstar and Maccabi, boutique local brews including Shapira and Taybe, and the famous Israeli spirit, Arak!

As well as local food options such as hummus, and bourekas, the bar serve pizzas, hot dogs, and other simple and tasty food.

Abraham hostel daily events:

Sunday – Live music night with Open Jam

Headlined by a talented local band, Abraham Hostel guests from around the world have the chance to show off their talents performing alongside the band, or on their own. Every week is a new experience, with the diverse guests bringing music inspired by a spectrum of cultures together in a unique and special evening.

Sundays and Thursdays – Hummus workshop

A relaxed evening of cooking, chatting with other guests, learning about local cuisine and how to prepare the famous Middle Eastern dish, hummus. The cost of joining to the workshop is 50 Nis.

Tuesday – Game night

Every Tuesday evening the guests can gather with locals in the hostel for playing modern board games.

Wednesday & Saturday – Pub crawl

Jerusalem Pub Crawl is the only tour of the nightlife in this wonderful city, which takes you Jerusalem’s lively and varied bars, pubs and clubs. It costs 60 Nis.

Tuesday – Language exchange

Monday & Wednesday – yoga, takes place on the roof-top or in the yoga room

Thursdays – Pub Quiz – a great way to meet other travelers as you team up to test your knowledge.

Fridays – Shabbat dinner

Travelers from all over the world unite, shop at the market together, cook together, and enjoy a relaxing meal together in the spirit of Shabbat. The Shabbat Dinner is a highlight of many trips to Jerusalem! The event is open to Abraham Hostel guests only and costs 50 NIS.

Special Dates – Throughout the year, the Abraham Hostel Jeruslaem hosts special events – from concerts by some of Israel’s hottest musicians to big parties for local or international holidays, there’s always something going on!

I took part of many special events, two very notable were the hostel anniversary (Fig. 24), and African culture night (Fig. 24)

Fig. 24. The 7th Abraham Hostel’s Anniversary in Jerusalem

(source: Adriana Dobrin, 2017)

Fig. 25. African Culture Night event at Abraham Hostel Jerusalem

(source: Adriana Dobrin, 2017)

3.8. ABRAHAM TOURS

The Abraham Hostel besides accommodation, has to offer tours, they are really into it and have a separated departement provided special for that. Right by the reception desk, there is the Abraham Tours Desk where guests and non-guests are able to get informed and book any tours. It provides accurate and up to date travel information as well as quality tours designed for the needs and interests of independent travelers. There are variety of tours around the whole region leaving every day, including Israel, the West Bank, Jordan and Egypt. The hostel also arrange private tours and transportation on request.

There are lots of tours with the depart from all of these three hostel locations, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Nazareth. There are many tours in common for each location, but then also there are some tours that occurs only with the depart from one of the location due to the proximity of the sightseeings. For eg. Tel Aviv may offer a Kibbutz Tour while Jerusalem a Desert Jeep Tour and Nazareth could offer a Kayaking in the Sea of Galilee Tour or a Horseback Riding Tour on the Jesus Trail. Hence, all of these three locations worth to have a stay of few days in each and enjoy the tours that only a specific location provides.

The tours that the Abraham Hostel in Jerusalem offer are over 20 in number, some of them are made as a package of two, three or more sights that include and some are simply a one location tour. The tours can be categorized by theme (culture tours, nature & adventure tours, history or culinary) or as they are below, by its location/region:

Tours in Jerusalem:

Holy City Tour

City of David Tour

Mount of Olives Tour

Meet the Ultra-Orthodox Jews Tour

Jerusalem Sunrise Biking Tour

Jerusalem Market Tasting Tour

Tours in West Bank:

Best of the West Bank Tour

Nablus and Jenin Tour

Hebron Dual Narrative Tour

Bethlehem Tour

Desert tours:

Judean Desert Jeep Tour

Masada Sunrise, Ein Gedi, and Dead Sea Tour

Masada, Ein Gedi, and Dead Sea Tour

Dead Sea Chill Out Tour

The tours that are farther by Jerusalem, are usually built on more days, up to a package of 10 days:

Northern tours:

Northern Israel Two Day Private Tour

Coastal & Northern Israel 5 Day Package

Northern Israel Package (4D/3N)

Jordan:

Petra Tour (2D/1N)

Petra & Wadi Rum Tour (3D/2N)

Northern Israel & Jordan 5 Day Loop

Israel, Petra & Wadi Rum 8 Day Discovery Package

Best of Israel & Jordan 10 Day Package

Some of the tours that I have joined and can tell there were all great and I’d like to do them again anytime: Ultra-ortodox tour in Jerusalem, Mount of Olives tour, Holy City tour, Bethlehem tour, Dead Sea Chill Out, Masada Sunrise, Ein Gedi, and Dead Sea Tour.

Below there are two of them with detailed explanation:

Masada Sunrise, Ein Gedi, and Dead Sea Tour

This is one of the tours that takes you early in the morning to arrive on the Masada Fortress by the perfect timing to see the sunrise across the Dead Sea and Jordanian Mountains. Masada is an ancient fortification in the Southern District of Israel situated on top of an isolated rock plateau, akin to a mesa.

After the climb to the Masada Fortress, the next stop it will be Ein Gedi Nature Reserve, which is an oasis in the desert, and the third stop in the itinerary is the Dead Sea.

Fig. 26. The waterfall at Ein Gedi – oasis & nature reserve

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

Fig. 27. A cloudy sunrise from the top of Masada Fortress

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

Fig. 28. On the path to the top of Masada Fortress, with the Dead Sea at the horizon

(source: Cristian Boloca, 2017)

The tour is described in the flyers with the following information as presented in the table below:

Tabel 4: Masada Sunrise, Ein Gedi, and Dead Sea Tour

(data source: https://abrahamtours.com/tours/masada-sunrise-tour/)

Dead Sea Chill Out Tour

This tour is an non-guided tour that gives you the time to chill out on the beach and to float in the famous salty water of the Dead Sea or to immerse yourself in the mineral-rich mud which is sold around the world as beauty products. The tour, besides transportation, it offers the beach entry, towels and in the end a break time with mint tea, dates and walnuts just before to pack up and head back to Jerusalem.

Fig. 29. The universal Sea Level, a stop point on the way to the Dead Sea (-430 m)

(source: Cristian Boloca)

Fig. 30. Floating on the Dead Sea

(source: Cristian Boloca)

The tour is described in the flyers with the following information as presented in the table below:

Tabel 5: Dead Sea Chill Out Tour

(data source: https://abrahamtours.com/tours/dead-sea-chill-out-tour/)

3.9. PROMOTION AND ADVERTISING

Abraham Hostel is one of the best examples on promoting itself, with a very consistent and constant advertising from simple banners on their webpage to a very explicit video on YouTube that shows how to get to Abraham Hostel Jerusalem from the airport and back, with three options: shuttle, taxi and bus.

They also have a very intuitive website, one for the hostel (https://abrahamhostels.com/) and a different one for the tours that they has to offer (https://abrahamtours.com/); also an instagram and facebook page that are constantly updated with info and new pictures/videos on events & tours taken by their photographer, usually a person doing an intership in photography with Abraham Hostel.

As a sell strategy, they merged together in special offers the accommodation with some tours that Abraham Tours Desk has to offer, for eg. 2 nights in Jerusalem + Masada Tour.

Abrham Hostel has even a small shop by the reception where the guest can purchase t-shirts or mugs with the hostel name printed on, this is another simply way of promoting the hostel.

Moreover, Abraham Hostel has an mobile app which is a great tool for everyone planning to travel around Israel. Whether going on a tour or just want get some information about the places around Israel, the app even offer info about places to stay and eat around the country.

Fig. 31. Abraham Hostel Jerusalem webpage banners

(source: https://abrahamhostels.com/jerusalem/)

3.10. VOLUNTEERING IN THE HOSTEL

Abraham Hostel, as many other hostels offer the posibility to volunteer. The volunteers at the hostel quickly become an integral part of the staff, acting as a bridge between the guests and staff, and contributing to the social atmosphere of the hostel. Volunteering at Abraham Hostel is an opportunity to interact with people from very different backgrounds, as Jerusalem draws tourists to it for many different reasons, ranging from religious or political interest to plain old holiday making. Among other things, volunteers help serve breakfast, plan and run evening social events, assist at the bar and escort guests to the starting point of the Old City tour.

The volunteers live in a 6-bed mixed-sex dorm room, occupied solely by hostel volunteers. The room includes a shower and toilet, full length mirror, WiFi, air conditioning, and a small fridge. Volunteers are also welcome to use the hostel facilities such as the communal kitchen, TV lounge, bar, and rooftop terrace. The daily breakfast provided is free for the volunteers as well as all the Abraham Tours and free accommodation at other partenership hostels of Abraham Hostel in Israel.

CONCLUSION

In the end, I would first like to conclude saying that Israel, as a country for travelling in, it’s not as dangerous as most of us including me thought it is before going there and spending six weeks. Moreover, as an updated information about safety in this country and how the media sometimes tends to spread the information inaccurate on controversial topics and could have an huge impact on tourism; I can tell from my own experience, being in Jerusalem by the time when Mr. Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as the Israel’s capital and could say there were some protests, very secured though, and nothing as the media tried to show us. During those tensioned days in the international news, I indeed observed how the hostel’s guests amount has significantly decreased.

Israel is indeed, a small but outstanding country, the only democracy in the Middle East and it is not only visited by pilgrims or by tourists in religious purpose, it has so many more sightseeings as any other Mediterranean country, from seaside cities with beautiful old ports (Jaffa, Acre, Haifa, etc) or cosmopolitan and best beach cities as Tel Aviv to so many national parks (67) and nature reserves (190) that offers amazing desert or mountain landscapes over which were created different hiking trails with even long ones as Israel National Trail – a hiking path that crosses the entire country of Israel with a a length of approximately 940 km. Hence, Israel could be a country visited by as many tourists group interests as the country’s diversity itself, from people with religion, history or archeology interests to simply tourists that are willing to feel the Middle East vibe with its people, culture, cuisine, language and so on or backpackers, nature lovers willing to do a hike on Masada Fortress or float on the Dead Sea.

As it was presented in the paperwork, hostelling is a fast-growing type of accommodation. It is very popular among youth travellers, especially for backpackers and definitely cheaper comparing with many other types of touristic-lodges. It is a more sociable environment and most of them are places in the city-center, the old cities or anyways in the touristic areas where every sightseeing is just a walking-distance.

The Abraham Hostel Jerusalem is a very remarkable exemple; different in terms of services offered in this kind of lodge but very successful hostel.

Not as any other hostel, this one brings the diversity in services that almost reach or even goes beyond many hotels or non budget-oriented type of accommodation.

The three-chain hostel business, Abraham Hostel, awarded many times in Israel and abroad, has succeeded to show to the hostelling industry how the variety of services, the quality and the whole staff professionalism can rise and still the hostel stay on the same budget-oriented branch.

REFERENCES

» KOBI Cohen-Hattab, NOAM Shoval, 2014, Tourism, Religion and Pilgrimage in Jerusalem, edit. Routledge

» ADELMAN Madelaine, ELMAN Fendius Miriam, 2014, Jerusalem: Conflict and Cooperation in a Contested City, Syracuse University Press

» MARSHALL J. Berger, AHIMEIR Ora, 2002, Jerusalem: A City and Its Future, Syracuse University Press

» THROP Claire 2013, Israel, Edit. Raintree

» KELLER Kristin Thoennes, THOENNES Kristin, 1999, Israel, Edit. Capstone

» DUBOIS Jill, ROSH Mair, 2004, Israel, Edit. Marshall Cavendish

» JACOBS Daniel, 1999, Jerusalem: The Mini Rough Guide, Edit. Rough Guides

Websites:

https://abrahamhostels.com/

https://www.hostelworld.com/

https://www.tripadvisor.com/

https://www.booking.com

https://hostelmanagement.com

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com

https://cbs.gov.il/

https://globes.co.il/en/

https://archive.org/web/

https://www.haaretz.com/

https://www.ynetnews.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org

https://euromonitor.com/