The number of visitors to the Israel has yet to return to pre-COVID levels, according to figures the Tourism Ministry.

In the first half of 2023, 1.97 million tourists entered Israel, spending 11.7 billion ILS (3.16 billion USD), the ministry said.

Those numbers are below the corresponding time period of 2019, which was a record year for Israeli tourism. It was also the last full year of international travel before coronavirus travel restrictions began in 2020.

During the first half of 2019, 2.26 million tourists entered Israel. By year’s end, Israel had 4.9 million visitors who spent 8.46 billion ILS (2.29 billion USD).

The ministry noted that tourism from Russia and Ukraine has dropped sharply, since Russia invaded Ukraine. Before the war, Russia was the second-largest source of visitors, behind only the U.S.

Based on the current figures, the ministry projects 3.9 million tourists will visit by the end of the year.

“Israel is attractive and offers a wealth of experiences,” said Tourism Minister Haim Katz. “I will work to remove barriers to arriving in the country, speeding up the pace of infrastructure construction and adding lodging rooms, in order to realize the tourist potential”.