Porn tourism and urban renewal: the case of Eilat

This article addresses the ambivalence of city officials and residents of Eilat, a resort city in southern Israel, towards porn tourism, focusing on the ways in which urban regeneration discourses and middle-class sensibilities shape the emplacement of porn tourism in the city. Considering the contribution of (mainly) domestic porn tourism to the city’s economy, I seek to explain the prohibition of lap-dancing clubs and the consequent relocation of porn tourism (in the form of stag parties) into privately-owned, Airbnb villas. Based on an analysis of policy documents, media reporting and interviews with various stakeholders, I propose that, counter-intuitively, the gradual entrance of porn tourism to residential areas potentially contributes to the scenic appeal of these neighbourhoods and that this fits with the broader urban renewal initiative of Eilat.