Issta

Issta Lines Group (established 1956) is one of Israel's oldest and leading travel companies. Issta Lines markets flights, hotels, organized tours, car rental, ski holidays, cruises and a large selection of various travel products. Issta is also a wholesale provider and operates charter flights and package holidays to European and Mediterranean destinations. Issta Lines Group is constructed of a number of travel companies, the main company is Issta, Israel's largest travel brand that holds 49 branches in the country. Issta Lines Group also operates travel agencies in England, Paris and Amsterdam as well as sub-groups and daughter companies. Issta employs 1,100 workers and its 2006 revenue was 1.5 billion nis. (~$350,000,000).

History

Issta is an acronym which stands for Israeli Student Travel Association, a name which reveals its initial purpose: a student exchange organization which began operating at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in 1956. Issta's preliminary aim was providing discounts and benefits specifically crafted for Student Travel. Issta's first commercial step was marketing discounted seats for students in Zim Integrated Shipping Services passenger ships (formerly ZIM Israel Navigation Company). In 1958 Issta began operating as an independent company owned by the Technion Student Body. At the same year Issta leased airplanes for the first time and began marketing remarkably cheaper flights to Athens, Greece. Issta continued functioning as a charter operator and cruise retailer and during the 1960s turned Athens Airport into its hub.

Following the increase of incoming Student Travel and Volunteering in Israel during the 1960s, Issta began providing services for Incoming Tourism: Bus Tours around Israel, hostels, hotels and printed matter. Following a model outlined by the International Student Travel Confederation, Issta signed long-term contracts with various airlines and began marketing specially-priced seats for youth and students in regular flights.

During the 1970s Issta experienced the vicissitudes implied by political and economical upheavals. Yom Kippur War that took place in October 1973 led to a severe crisis in the Israeli travel industry. The war resulted in a complete discontinuation of outgoing tourism which one of its peaks is during the Jewish High Holidays. On the other hand tourists and volunteers stopped arriving in Israel. The 1973 oil crisis led to a steep increase in gas - and therefore in flight tickets - prices. As a result of the Turkish invasion of Cyprus that took place in the summer of 1974 all the air carriers besides El Al Israel Airlines suspended their flights to and from Israel for several weeks.

In the summer of 1978 Issta leased an aircraft from El Al for an entire season and operated student charter flights from Tel Aviv to European destinations. In the summer of 1979 Issta leased a 260-seat aircraft from Capitol Airlines and operated its first trans-Atlantic flight to New York. Later that summer Issta operated 2 weekly flights to New York in an aircraft leased from 'El Al Charter Services Ltd.' (later Sun d'Or International Airlines). Thanks to the Trans-Atlantic flights 1979 was the most profitable year in the history of Issta so far.

In 1985 Issta joined the Israeli Travel Agent Association. Highly profitable winter and summer seasons led the company to a broad expansion. Issta committed to additional flights, extended its branches and hired more employees. In 1987 Issta owned eight branches and employed 120 workers. Its annual revenue reached $9 million and for the first time it granted scholarships for students. In 1989 Issta began launching branches in Israel's suburban and peripheral towns. Computerization of the company began in the late 1980s, a process which was a stepping stone in Issta's radical growth in the following years. Issta Direct Call Centre began operating as an informational telephone line in the beginning of the 1990s and later transformed into a reservation and marketing centre.

In 1995 Issta's gross revenue reached $90 million. The company employed 300 workers in 20 branches. In May 1996 the company was issued in Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. In 1999 Nofesh Yashir call center, that specializes in last minute deals and holiday packages began operating. The Issta Internet travel website was launched in 2000, the year Issta became Israel's largest travel group. In 2006 600,000 travelers used Issta's services and Issta group's revenue reached 1.5 billion nis.

Issta Group

Besides Issta Lines Issta Group includes the following partners:

* American Express Travel: the Israeli branch of American Express Travel specializes in business tourism. It operates a call center, an internet-based reservation center, 6 offices and 16 corporate branches.

* Nofy: An internet and phone-based reservation center that specializes in packaged deals and last minute products.

* Last Call: An internet-based reservation centre for Isracard Credit Card company customers

* Wallatours: internet tourism collaboration with Walla!shops

* Mabat Platinum: an incoming tourism provider

From http://en.wikipedia.org/