Nearly a year after the outbreak of the war, Israel has suffered a net loss of NIS 18.7 billion from international tourism and a loss of NIS 756 million from domestic tourism, especially in northern Israel, the Tourism Ministry announced Sunday.
The ministry is responsible for managing evacuated Israeli residents on the northern border and on the border with Gaza, as well as tourism, it noted. In the past year, it has collected data on both subjects.
AAccording to the ministry’s report, approximately 853,000 tourists have entered Israel, primarily from the United States, France, the UK, Russia, and the Philippines. Two-thirds of the visitors have been Jewish (62%), and 29% have been Evangelical Christians or Catholics.
Nearly half (44%) came to visit friends and family, 28% were tourists, and 13% came for business, the ministry reported. Three-fourths of tourists had already visited Israel in the past.
Data on Israeli evacuees
Regarding the evacuees, 68,712 residents, mostly from the North, are reportedly still not living in their homes. Most of them, 53,113, are staying within the wider community, while 15,599 are staying at hotels.
The cost of maintaining the evacuees has been calculated to be NIS 5.466 billion, which has been transferred to the relevant hotels. An additional NIS 3.182 billion was paid directly as subsistence grants to evacuees who chose to live in their communities, the report continued.The Tourism Ministry’s efforts to manage the evacuation have eliminated agent commissions for hotel placements and, according to the ministry’s calculations, saved the state NIS 5.173 billion. It also reportedly replaced private travel agents who charge commissions.However, the approximately 100,000 evacuees since the beginning of the war have cost the state billions of shekels. To date, the evacuations have cost NIS 8.648 billion, including NIS 5.466 billion in hotel expenses.The ministry has booked approximately four million rooms and 13.5 million one-night stays.An additional NIS 3.2 billion was paid in accommodation grants. These provide a net monthly NIS 18,000 for a family of two adults and two children, and are currently the preferred solution for handling the evacuee crisis, with 53,113 families receiving these grants, according to the ministry.The ministry’s control center for these evacuees, established in partnership with the Israel Hotels Association, has handled over 20,000 inquiries and assisted with welfare and education issues.“Our individualized and sensitive treatment of evacuees helped strengthen the home front’s resilience during Israel’s prolonged campaign,” Tourism Minister Haim Katz remarked.
Encouraging tourism despite setbacks
“We worked to preserve the infrastructure needed for the tourism industry for the day after, and we continue our efforts to encourage tourism even during these challenging times,” Katz stated.The Israel-Hamas War interrupted the Israel tourism industry’s recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, which hit the industry hard in 2020, the ministry added. However, according to the report, based on the pace of tourism until October 2023, a new tourism record was anticipated. Still, in 2023, only three million tourists entered the country.Based on 2024 trends, 2024 is expected to conclude with only approximately one million tourists entering Israel, less than a quarter of the number of tourists that entered Israel in 2019.