According to Israel’s Commissioner of Tourism to North America, the Jewish state is expecting 2023 to be a banner year for its Travel and Tourism sector, as “people are traveling in droves” after the reopening of the borders, that were sealed for over two years during the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Israeli tourism official described new statistics showing the first six months of 2023 at 12% higher than the same time in 2019 as “extremely encouraging” and noted that during the final full year before the pandemic “was our best” so far. Tourism is one of Israel’s major sources of income, with a record 4.55 million tourist arrivals in 2019.

Israel offers a plethora of historical and religious sites, beach resorts, natural sites, archaeological tourism, heritage tourism, adventure tourism, and ecotourism.

The Commissioner said Israel was currently “heavily investing in tourism,” seeking to expand the country’s number of hotel rooms and resorts. He also mentioned “new food, wine and spirits destinations add to the overall excitement along with our many outdoor adventure opportunities as well as arts and culture experiences”. He also pointed out that while many tourists first come for the holy and ancient sites, others return to experience less well-known sites.