THE state of Israel has received a record 3 million tourist arrivals this year, with more than 17,000 Filipinos who have already visited the Middle East country in October 2017.
Citing statistics released by the Israel Ministry of Tourism (Imot), this marked a 62-percent increase from January to October, vis-à-vis the same period last year,
Speaking about the growth, Imot-Philippines Director Hassan Madah said, “This has been the best year of incoming tourist arrivals for Israel [as the] Philippines continues to be an important contributor for us. Our efforts toward promoting [our country] is yielding positive results, and we are witnessing successful outcomes of our increased investments in the Philippine market.”
He added, “Tourism is an important contributor to the Israeli economy and, since the beginning of the year, tourism has brought in $4.1 billion into the economy. In 2016 14,600 Filipinos visited Israel, and we have surpassed that number by October this year. We hope to have 20,000 Filipino arrivals to Israel by end of 2017.”
Philippine passport holders can enjoy visa-free access to Israel up to 90 days.
Israel Tourism Minister Yariv Levin recently welcomed Ioana Isac as the 3-millionth tourist, who was accompanied by her partner Mihai Georgescu from Romania with a festive reception ceremony at the airport. Levin and Tourism Ministry Director General Amir Halevi then accompanied the excited couple to their limousine as they set off for a dream holiday experience prepared by the Tourism Ministry of Israel.
The trip started off with a surprise from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who met and took the couple through a private tour of the Old City of Jerusalem starting with the Tower of David museum to the ancient fort, which traces its foundations back to the Second Temple Period in the first century BC.
As Israel nears its all-time incoming-visitors feat and 2017 expected to become Israel’s record year for such, Levin stated, “This is a special day and a historic milestone as we break the 3 million-tourist [mark]. We are set to end the year with an amazing achievement, the likes of which have never been reached since the establishment of the state. The huge investment that we are making in marketing Israel around the world and our collaborations with airlines and tour operators are bearing fruit.”
The Israel Ministry of Tourism has worked with several airlines to increase their flights to the country and is pushing toward increasing internal marketing activities.