Abstract
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.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 459-473 |
| Number of pages | 15 |
| Journal | Porn Studies |
| Volume | 7 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2020 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:I would like to extend my gratitude to my two wonderful, thoughtful and dedicated research assistants, Rona Mashiach and Roy Zunder for their invaluable assistance. I also want to thank the editors of this journal for their generosity, and Gal Levy for his never-ending support.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Keywords
- Eilat
- Porn tourism
- sexual geography
- stag parties
- urban renewal