Compared to the same period last year, the months of September-October saw an 11% increase.
By IDAN ZONSHINEPeople play paddle ball, known in Hebrew as "matkot", a popular Israeli sport, at a beach in Ashkelon, Israel May 7, 2019.(photo credit: AMIR COHEN/REUTERS)
According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, approximately 447,100 tourist entries were recorded in October 2019, (the month when most of Jewish holidays fell in 2019) 7.9% less than October 2018 and 4.9% more than October 2017.In the period of January – October 2019, 3.7 million tourist entries were recorded, compared to 3.4 million recorded in the same period last year, an increase of 10%.In September, there was an increase of 44% in tourist entries on September 2018 (when most of the Jewish holidays fell in 2018). Therefore, in order to take into account, the period of the Jewish holidays, the two-month period should be calculated together.In September-October 2019, 852,100 tourist entries were recorded, as opposed to 767,200 in the same period last year, an increase of 11%.Revenue from incoming tourism in October stood at $643 million (about NIS 2.3 billion) and, since the beginning of the year, at $5.371 billion (about NIS 19.3 billion).According to the Israeli Tourism Ministry, there has been a 10% increase in tourist entries to Israel since the start of the year compared to the same period last year.Tourism Minister Yariv Levin issued a statement in response to the report, saying "October continues the upward trend in incoming tourism with impressive increases and monthly records broken. Despite all the challenges we are facing, we are continuing to market Israel around the world in line with our innovative and market-focused strategy, and we are seeing the results."Levin continued, saying "We continue to develop new markets, while working to maintain traditional markets where Israel is already seen as an attractive tourism destination. Tourism makes a huge contribution both in terms of the economy and in terms of Israel’s image around the world, and I am proud of that.”Director General of the Ministry of Tourism, Amir Halevi: "Israel has become a legitimate and leading tourism destination and the statistics prove this time and time again. Successful campaigns and working with the most advanced digital marketing tools, even at this time, have allowed us to continue breaking records for the past two years in a row."Halevi also looked towards the future, saying "The next big challenge is to expand the accommodation options and improve the tourist experience so that we can welcome more and more tourists here.”
