Israel will open its doors to foreign tourists next month

After closing its borders to non-Israeli passport holders in March 2020, the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Health have drawn up a plan that will allow the country to cautiously reopen its doors to foreign tourists starting next month. Starting from May 23, foreign tourists will be permitted to enter Israel as part of organized tour groups and on the condition that they are vaccinated. Foreign tourists, such as Israelis returning to Israel, will be required to present a negative Covid-19 test from the past 72 hours. However, foreign tourists will also need to undergo a serology test at Ben Gurion Airport to ensure that they have sufficient antibodies in their blood. Your thumb prick test results will be presented within 15 minutes. At the same time, Israel is in talks to conclude reciprocal agreements with countries to recognize vaccination certificates, which could ultimately exempt citizens of those countries from vaccination tests. By focusing only on organized tourism groups, tourism marketing in Israel will focus on religious groups, especially from the United States, where the vaccination launch has been strong. This sector accounted for a large segment of inbound tourism before the Covid pandemic. If the influx of a limited number of tourist groups does not have any effect on the rate of infection in Israel, then inbound tourism will be expanded to include individuals as well as groups. Israeli Tourism Minister Orit Farkash HaCohen said: “It is time for Israel’s unique advantage as a safe and healthy country to start helping to rehabilitate the Israeli economy and tourism sector. Only opening the atmosphere for inbound international tourism will truly revive the tourism industry, including restaurants, hotels, sites and tour guides. “I will continue to press for a full return of inbound tourism to Israel, which will help the Israeli economy and provide the jobs that many Israelis currently need.” Currently, about 8,000 to 10,000 passengers pass through Ben Gurion Airport every day, about half of whom arrive and the other half leave. Passenger traffic is restricted due to the Ministry of Health’s social distancing requirements in various areas of the airport, although passengers were later crammed into planes. The Ministry of Health is considering easing the two-meter distance requirement so that airport traffic can be increased. Posted by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on April 13, 2021 © Copyright Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2021