Tourism to Israel soars to record levels

Tourism minister attributes the “surge” to “innovative activities in marketing and infrastructure.”

By World Israel News Staff

Tourism to Israel remained at record levels in February with 362,000 visitors entering the country, the Central Bureau of Statistics reported Tuesday.

The number included 342,000 tourists who stayed at least one night, 259,000 tourists who arrived by air, 44,000 tourists who arrived by land, and 19,000 visitors who did not stay at least one night.

A record 4.1 million tourists visited Israel in 2018, up 14% from 2017, which was itself a record, and the unprecedented rates continued to rise even further over the first months of the current year.

In January and February combined, 683,000 visitors came to Israel, up 16% from the first two months of 2018, with 628,000 of February tourists staying at least one night, up 13% from the first two months of 2018. Of that total, 79,000 tourists entered by land, up 26% from the first two months of last year; and, 55,000 came into Israel as day visitors, up 74% from the same period.

After the promising January figures were announced last month, Tourism Minister Yariv Levin said: “The encouraging figures for the start of the year are a direct continuation of the innovative activities we have carried out in marketing and infrastructure. The rise in the number of tourists over the years is proof of the quality of the Israeli tourism product,” said the minister, adding that “I hope and believe that 2019 will continue the unprecedented surge in tourism that we have created over the past few years.”