Minister of Tourism Haim Katz and the CEO of his office, Dani Shahar, presented the activities and goals of the Ministry of Tourism to members of the government.

The Ministry of Tourism marks a goal of seven million tourists in 2030. The expected income for the economy this year, from incoming tourism and domestic tourism, is estimated at 75 billion ILS. The number of jobs in the tourism industry will be 220,000.

Today, the supply of hotel rooms in Israel is about 58,000 rooms, and to achieve the goal of seven million tourists, an addition of about 12,000 guest rooms is required. In 2024, 3,941 rooms will be added. In order to speed up the pace of hotel construction, the Ministry of Tourism, led by Minister Haim Katz, will promote to reduce regulation in hotel construction procedures, among other things by shortening the planning process, examining the implementation of claims for accommodation facilities and mixing uses, alongside writing a national outline plan.

These actions join the steps taken by the ministry in the last year in favor of diversification and increasing the supply, and they are, among other things, lowering the height limit on the construction of hotels on the north coast in Eilat, and hence the addition of hundreds of rooms in the city, promoting the “seasonal pop-up” program – operating glamping and camping complexes at a price equal to every person in the peak season, and the establishment of a committee to remove barriers to shorten the duration of hotel establishment procedures.

Tourism Minister, Haim Katz, is working to remove barriers to entry and exit from the country. In cooperation with the Ministry of the Interior, starting at the end of the year, the E-visa system will come into operation and a pilot will begin for those entering from India, which will make it easier to submit applications and increase the number of tourists. Along with this, the office is working with the Population Authority and the security authorities, to promote a reform of the border control, which aims to change the investigation procedures at the gates of entry and exit from Israel, which are often done in an offensive manner, leave a bad impression on tourists and harm return tourism.

Minister of Tourism Haim Katz: “The Ministry of Tourism is becoming measurable. We will direct resources to markets with tremendous potential that we have not realized so far, with an emphasis on the Asian market. We are committed to appropriate treatment for tourists. I am working with the security authorities in order to bring about a change in the inspection procedure at entry and exit from the country.”