Bratislava Conquered: Travel Agents and Israeli Tourism Professionals at the Association Conference

What's the connection between community building and a panel and lecture? Between artificial intelligence and a singer and mentalist? Between Dafna Liel and the Israeli ambassador? Between a boxing match and open skies? Between an enjoyable tour and a gourmet meal? So besides the rhymes, the connection between all these was the conference of the Association of Travel Agencies and Tourism Consultants in Israel, "Connecting Tourism to Tomorrow", which took place in Bratislava, with a huge hosting and embrace from the Slovak Ministry of Tourism in general, and the tourism councils of the Bratislava and Trnava regions, in particular.

The presence of senior tourism industry figures from Israel in Bratislava - the beautiful capital of Slovakia - was very dominant, and it can almost be said that the city was conquered by Israeli tourism professionals, but it also conquered their hearts with its charm. And this indeed happened at the annual conference of the Association of Travel Agencies and Tourism Consultants in Israel, in Bratislava, which took place over 4 days (October 19-22, 2025), which combined the professional aspect alongside the fun. And it was a lot of fun.

The conference program was diverse and interesting, combining the professional side that included lectures and panels, with tours and entertainment, as well as excellent cuisine and wine tasting. It is understood that the conference included social and professional meetings between the participants themselves and the making of tourism business. Conference attendees flew on a direct and pampering flight with Arkia, and stayed at the Sheraton Hotel located in the center of Bratislava, about a twenty-minute drive from the airport. Fortunately for us, the sunny and cool weather also brightened our faces.

The conference was organized by the Association of Travel Agencies and Tourism Consultants, headed by: Kobi Karni - Chairman of the Association, Rina Kameni - CEO of the Association, Keren Bar - Head of Staff, and with the participation in the organization of Michal Carmi - Operations Manager at the Association, Katarina Royce - Accountant, Gila Mord - Bookkeeper, and Dedi Swissa - Advisor to the Association. Active partners were Vered Schwartz and Pini Kreiner - the joint CEOs of Overseas Travel, which operates direct flights and special packages to Bratislava and other destinations in Europe.

The conference was held in the presence of about 220 participants, including senior figures in the Israeli tourism industry, CEOs of airlines and travel agencies, travel agents and of course members of the Association's management, among whom Izi Madem stood out for his involvement in the organization of the conference - who also expertly managed the prestigious prize draws. Eitan Levon, the Israeli ambassador to Slovakia, also honored us with his presence, whose diplomacy came from the tourism industry and was involved in the conference.

And what added to the good atmosphere was the fact that the conference took place after the living hostages and some of the deceased were returned, the war in Gaza ended (hopefully), and we will pray that all the hostages and deceased will be returned quickly, because without them the joy is not complete.

Photo 502 = Senior tourism industry figures on a panel at the Association conference. Photo: Shosh Lahav

In the professional part, panels and lectures were held on various topics

Rina Kameni, CEO of the Association, welcomed the conference participants, and noted that it is not taken for granted to hold a conference in such a complex time, when the hostages are always in front of our eyes. According to her: "Tourism is the first to be harmed and I hope it will also be the first to recover and flourish", and again she confidently repeats the same declaration: "Travel agents are here to stay!"

* "Leading in tourism with the help of artificial intelligence: The dream team at the touch of a button": Lecture by Golan Thomas - CEO of Lemetayel Digital. Golan explains the uses of AI while providing examples that evoke a smile, and gives tips suitable for the tourism community, with his main recommendation: "Treat artificial intelligence as an important team member".

* "One on one" - Kobi Karni, Chairman of the Association, and Shlomi Zafrani - VP of Commerce at El Al. It was not clear at the beginning of the panel whether it was going to be a boxing match or couples therapy, but it quickly became clear that it was turning into (in popular terms) a showdown. Kobi opens with a provocative statement: "The more the airline (El Al) earns, the worse the service is." Shlomi replies: "I promise that El Al is the most committed partner to travel agencies." Kobi attacks, Shlomi tries to explain. To conclude, the idea was raised to hold meetings between El Al and agents in order to find ways to a satisfactory partnership for all parties.

* "Economic and tourism relations between Israel and Slovakia" - lecture by Alexander Ben Zvi, former Israeli ambassador to Slovakia. According to him: "When mentioning Bratislava, many Israelis do not know that it is the capital of Slovakia, and it is also a less known country to Israelis, but one of the friendliest to Israel in Europe, and in recent years the Israeli tourist has discovered its wonders beyond the field of spas and bathhouses, which is much more popular".

* "The Home Front - What will Israel of Tomorrow Look Like" - Lecture by Dafna Liel, the political commentator of News 12. She talks about her path in the media, curiosities from the Knesset, behind the scenes of politics in the Israeli Knesset, the impact of social networks on the radicalization and polarization of the people, and why she is still optimistic that there will be a change and it will be good here.

* CEO of Trnava - Imri Kalman, in a lecture on "Digital Communities". The lecture dealt with the power of a community, how to channel the powerful energy of the community for the benefit of the businesses of travel agencies, travel agents and those involved in the field, and how we can strengthen our power as an industry - through community marketing. According to him: "It is important to create a joint tourism community in the country, we are not competitors, we are partners." And note: "A community is a living creature, and therefore you must constantly check the pulse and check that the community is alive and functioning".

* Panel on "Future Trends and Destinations", with the participation of: Uri Sirkis - CEO of Israir, Oz Berlovitz - CEO of Arkia, Revital Ben Natan - CEO of Ofakim, Hani Sobol - CEO of Diesenhaus and Avishai Cohen - CEO of Amadeus. This esteemed group talks about the state of tourism today, how they cope and what is expected, about the connections between travel agents and airlines, about artificial intelligence and its impact on the tourism industry, and more. The curiosity was when they were asked what is the preferred travel destination for each of them: Uri chose Sochi in Russia. Oz is intrigued by India. Ravit hesitates between Dubai, Morocco and Indonesia. Hani is keen on Riyadh in Saudi Arabia. Avishai is passionate about South Africa. There is no doubt that this group has good taste...

And also gala evenings, culinary delights and entertainment: Three gala evenings, which included dinner and an entertainment program, took place: sponsored by the Slovak Ministry of Tourism, with greetings, presentation of certificates of appreciation and a program of folk singing and dancing; sponsored by El Al - in the presence of Dina Ben Tal Ganancia - CEO of El Al, and the singer Idan Raichel in the entertainment program, who swept the attendees away; sponsored by Arkia - in the presence of Oz Berlovitz - CEO of Arkia, and the mentalist Hezi Dean in the entertainment program, who amazed the audience. And also - good food and enjoyable tours.

Photo 273 = Participants of the Association conference on a tourist tour in Bratislava. Photo: Shosh Lahav

About the Association of Travel Agencies and Tourism Consultants in Israel

The association unites travel agencies and tourism consultants in Israel, and acts on their behalf as their official and authorized representative. The association aims to improve and deepen the culture of travel and tourism in Israel, to expand the knowledge and use of advanced and updated scientific means among its members, to take care of the welfare of those involved in the travel and tourism industry in Israel and to ensure the rights of the consumer public in everything related to tourism services. The association unites about 400 travel agencies and about 4,500 tourism consultants in Israel, and acts on their behalf as their official and authorized representative before the Knesset of Israel, government institutions in Israel and abroad, public, economic and legal organizations in Israel and around the world, foreign countries, embassies and consulates.

Links to articles about the conference:

https://www.ias.co.il?p=180892

https://www.ias.co.il?p=180972

https://www.ias.co.il?p=181006

* The writer was a guest of the Association of Travel Agencies and Tourism Consultants in Israel

Photo 119 = At the festive opening evening of the conference hosted by Slovak Tourism. Photo: Shosh Lahav