ISRAEL LAUNCHES NEW AID PROGRAM FOR THE TOURISM INDUSTRY

HOME

Weekly Travel News

ISRAEL LAUNCHES NEW AID PROGRAM FOR THE TOURISM INDUSTRY Andrea Hausold - Dec 20, 2021 2 Listen to this article 00:01:53

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett last week announced a new aid program for the tourism industry heavily impacted by the new bans on foreigners entering the country, following the spread of the Omicron variant in Europe.

The program, supported by Finance Minister, Tourism Minister and Economy and Industry Minister, will soon be submitted for government approval.

The project includes a 150 million shekel (€42.7 million) package for hotels, most of which have experienced revenue declines of 40% or more, a 60 million shekel (€17 million) fund to reimburse some operating costs and salaries, and funding for a retraining program for tourism workers to train them in high-tech and industrial skills.

"I thank the Prime Minister, the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Economy, government ministers and professionals for their hard work and sincere understanding regarding the plight of workers and employees in the tourism industry," said Yoel Razbozov.

For his part, Naftali Bennett said that the government must "help the employees of the tourism industry in difficult times.

"The goal is to protect the health of Israeli citizens from the Omicron variant while keeping the economy open (...) We have formulated an important aid package for the tourism industry and we continue to formulate solutions for all those who need them," he added.

The renewed outbreak of the coronavirus and the Omikron variant led to a change in the entry requirements for Israel, including an entry ban for tourists.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a significant decline in the number of tourists to Israel over the past two years. While about 4.5 million tourists visited the Holy Land in 2019, there were only 370,000 visitors in 2021 as of November, according to Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman.

Related articles tourism ISRAEL ANNOUNCED OPENING BORDERS FOR FOREIGN TOURISTS Video security ISRAEL WELCOMES FOREIGN TOURISTS AGAIN Video Artplus Hotel: Contemporary Israeli Art Exposed Comments

Israel's tourism sector in agony Dec 28, 2021 at 04:33 pm

People can't take it anymore
About 300 tourism professionals in Israel demonstrated in Tel Aviv on Monday against the measures taken by the government, which closed the borders in the face of the threat of the Omicron variant.
They demanded compensation for the restrictions and chanted slogans against the executive, which "turns a blind eye" to their dismay that is growing day by day.

Martin (United Kingdom)

Israel allows vaccinated tourists to re-enter the country from January 9 Jan 04, 2022 at 06:20 am

Omikron also spreads strongly within Israel – entry restriction falls
In view of the rapid spread of the Omikron variant of the coronavirus, Israel had again imposed entry restrictions on foreigners at the end of November. However, according to experts, these are no longer helpful, because Omikron is now also spreading strongly within Israel.
Tourists vaccinated against the coronavirus will be allowed to re-enter Israel from January 9.
The permit is only valid for arrivals from countries that are not classified as high-risk areas. Upon arrival in Israel, tourists must quarantine for 24 hours or until receiving a negative PCR test.

Martin (United Kingdom)

Add Comment xxxCancel reply Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Anguilla Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia & Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Chile China Colombia Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Djibouti Dominican Republic East Timor Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia EU Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Polynesia Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Global Greece Greenland Grenada Guaedloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guyana Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kosovo Kurdistan Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macau Macedonia Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Maledives Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nepal Netherlands Netherlands Antilles New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island North Korea Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Other Other Other Other Other Other Other Pakistan Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Reunion Romania Russia Rwanda Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Vincent & the Grenadines Samoa (American Samoa) Samoa (Western Samoa) San Marino Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Somalia South Africa South Korea Spain Sri Lanka St Martin Sudan Suriname Svalbard and Jan Mayen Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tanzania Thailand Tibet Togo Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Uganda Ukraine UNESCO United Arab Emirates United Kingdom UNWTO Uruguay USA Uzbekistan Vanuatu Vatican Venezuela Vietnam Virgin Islands (British) Virgin Islands (U.S.) Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe

DON'T MISS culture GAMES ARE NOT THE ONLY ATTRACTIONS FOR CASINO-GOERS statistic ST. PETERSBURG WELCOMED 6 MILLION TOURISTS IN 2021 destination THAILAND’S FAMOUS MAYA BAY RE-OPEN TO FOREIGN VISITORS Video hospitality FRANCE: TAX ON RENTALS FOR AIRBNB REACHED 93 MILLION EUROS LATEST REVIEWS Tourism Review Online Magazine 1 / 2021 Tourism Review Online Magazine 1 / 2020 Tourism Review Online Magazine 1 / 2019