ISRAEL— Israel will now allow small groups of tourists starting September 19 but from selected countries under a pilot program to kickstart the country’s tourism industry, government said on Sunday.
According to the tourism ministry, tour groups between five and 30 people under Israel’s green, yellow, and orange lists will be allowed to visit the country provided that all of the members in the group are fully vaccinated.
Last May, amid the drop in the COVID-19 infections, Israel had allowed small groups to visit from U.S and Europe in hopes to raise tourism as the country tourism industry was heavily impacted by the pandemic.
The move had halted due to the threat of the Delta variant that led to a surge of COVID-19 infections in Israel despite being the world’s leading country in terms of vaccination rollout.
The tourism ministry said the number of groups will not be limited but groups from Israel’s red list—Bulgaria, Brazil, Mexico, and Turkey—will not be allowed to visit the country.
Tourists must show proof that they have been fully vaccinated within the last six months or a booster shot to qualify and must present a negative RT-PCR result taken 72 hours prior to their arrival and will undergo a serological test at the Ben Gurion airport.
(PHOTO CREDIT: TouristIsrael.com)