Cyprus, Israel ink tourism promotion deal

An agreement to promote joint travel packages to foreign holidaymakers was sealed between Cyprus and Israel here on Friday.

The two geographically close countries want to highlight regional gastronomy, cruise excursions, golf and wellness holidays to German, Russian and American tourists.

A statement by Deputy Minister for Tourism Savvas Perdios said an agreement had been reached "regarding ways and actions that must be taken towards a successful promotion of joint packages, planned to begin next year."

The deal was signed by Perdios and Amir Halevi, director general of Israel's Tourism Ministry.

The joint packages will at first be promoted in Russia, Germany and the United States, but the scheme is expected to be further extended after 2020.

Gastronomy is a priority for the scheme and will appear as a single excursion package that is expected to attract visitors to both countries.

Earlier this year, Cypriot restaurateurs began tempting travelers with unique breakfasts made exclusively from locally produced food in an attempt to "spice up" the traditional tourism fare.

With millions of visitors already arriving in both Israel and Cyprus annually, the scheme is expected to give a further boost to tourism in the Mediterranean region.