Tours canceled, hotels empty: Israeli and Palestinian tourism runs out of steam as conflict intensifies

Earlier this month the main square and the the streets around the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem were crowded of tourists.

They are now empty after a devastating attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas in Israel on October 7 .

“Business has been paralyzed since the start of the war,” said Essa Abu Dawoud, a tour guide in the Palestinian town. “The roads are closed, no one is coming.”

Across Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories of Gaza and the West Bank, hotels emptied and at least six companies suspended travel to major destinations such as Jerusalem and Tel Aviv as the conflict intensified. Two tour operators have suspended trips until next year.

Cruise ships avoid Israel’s once-bustling shores and major airlines stopped flying to and from Israel as governments rush to repatriate their citizens.

EasyJet announces that it has canceled all its packages to Tel Aviv which was due to depart before October 22, while Virgin Atlantic Holidays allowed tourists to rebook for later dates or get a refund if they traveled before October 18.

The attack by Hamas – designated a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union and other governments – on Israeli communities on October 7 killed at least 1,300 people. Most were civilians, including children.

Israel has intensified its attacks on a Hamas stronghold in Gaza in retaliation.

InterContinental Hotels said two of its hotels, Six Senses Shaharut and Hotel Indigo Tel Aviv-Diamond District, were temporarily closed. There have been some cancellations and some customers have postponed their reservations to the end of the year.

With most of its hotels empty, one of Israel’s main chains, Isrotel, was ‘on the verge’ of closing temporarily some, a spokesperson said.

The exodus of foreign visitors is a blow to Israel’s lucrative tourism industry, one of the country’s largest, as it recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic. The sector represents 2.8% of GDP and around 3.5% of total employment.

The next few months will be the busiest of the year for Christian pilgrimages arriving from the United States, Great Britain and other parts of Europe.

“We depend on tourism to live. We had the Covid crisis and we were still recovering and slowly waiting for the tourists to return,” said Khader Hussein, 30, a souvenir seller in Bethlehem, the traditional birthplace of Jesus.

“Now the tourism sector is dead.”

Attracted by the historic sites of Jerusalem and Bethlehem, as well as the white sand beaches of Tel Aviv, Some three million tourists flocked to Israel in the first nine months of this year according to the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics.

This is close to pre-pandemic levels and It included approximately 800,000 Americans.

A day after the attack, Israel’s Tourism Ministry says tours should be avoided and that tourists should stay in their hotels or on cruise ships.

He reported Wednesday that tourists could travel across the country if necessary. More than 90,000 tourists were in Israel and thousands visited national sites last week he added.

However, on the same day, the government of The United States has raised its travel warning for Israel and the West Bank to Level 3. or “reconsider travel,” its second highest level.

Great Britain advises against all travel, except the essentials, to Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Elias al-Arja, head of the Arab Hotels Association, said that Most West Bank hotels spent last week helping tourists flee after the start of the violence.

Around the 90% of West Bank hotels are empty Yes, he said.

Dan Hotels and Isrotel said they were providing rooms to people fleeing the Gaza border. They also give offers 50% off rooms to locals.

With no solution in sight to the conflict, It is unclear when foreign visitors might return.

Tour group Authentic Israel asked tourists who had reservations for their canceled trips to donate $150 each to support your staff during the crisis.

The Australian tour operator Intrepid Travel has canceled its trips to Israel and the Palestinian territories until the end of the year .

Odysseys Unlimited suspends trips to Israel until March 31 . The American company announced that it would continue its sailings to Egypt and Jordan, but gave its customers the option of moving at a later date or to another destination.

Some postpone until next year he indicated.