Tel Aviv was awarded Smartest City in the World in 2014 and was ranked the #1 startup ecosystem outside of the United States in 2015. In addition, the city was recently ranked as one of the top tourist destinations by Lonely Planet.
Nowadays, Tel Aviv is investing in becoming a Smart Tourism City, combining its specialties in the field of tourism and technology.
IMTM 2016 (International Mediterranean Tourism Market), the 22nd annual international tourism exhibition, will be held in Tel Aviv on February 9-10, 2016.
The fair provides tourism professionals with an opportunity to meet colleagues, buyers, suppliers and exhibitors from Israel and overseas.IMTM features exhibitors representing just about every aspect of Israel’s tourism market - incoming tourism, domestic tourism and outgoing tourism, alongside a significant number of exhibitors from overseas. The fair is highlighted by professional workshops, seminars and press conferences.
IMTM 2016 will feature two major events in the field of Smart Tourism:
- Futurism.com: an Innovation conference, featuring panels with fascinating and prominent keynote speakers from around the world, relating to Smart Tourism. During the conference the winner of Tel Aviv Mayor's Smart Tourism Award will be announced.
- The Digital Travel Dome: an exhibition featuring technological breakthroughs and startups with the latest innovation in the field of tourism.
Here are some examples of Smart Tourism Apps, all made in Tel Aviv:
- Sidekix: helps you make the most of each walk by personalizing your route based on what you want to see or do along the way.
- Eatwith: a global community that lets you enjoy authentic and intimate dining at a local's home.
- LocalYoo: enables you to explore your destination from the local perspective: to discover all the little secrets that are known only to the ones living in the city.
- Jettaplus: an online marketplace that allows travelers to trade their non-refundable plane tickets and get paid by people who look for cheap flights.
- Roomer: connects travelers that have to cancel and who are stuck paying for an empty hotel room with the travelers looking for a last minute sweet deal.
- FairFly: enables travelers who’ve already purchased an airline ticket to rebook their ticket when a better priced option becomes available.
- Bossee: provides a fast way to build an itinerary around the schedule of business travelers in order to create a unique experience that they can hold on to while also accomplishing their business-needs.
- Booksonmap: connects between book quotes, and places on the map where they took place.
- Dotz: connects between those countless Dotz that make a city: parks, restaurants, galleries, shows, cool spots & amazing people.
- Kiki: A unique platform for the international gay community combining a designated social network with upscale tourism and exclusive nightlife packages.