The Iron Sword War began on October 7, and since then very few Israelis have flown abroad. Today, 16,300 passengers will pass through Ben Gurion Airport, of whom 10,000 return to Israel and 6,300 take off abroad. As of now, it is unclear when the Israeli tourist will return to traveling the world, but at the same time, interesting data are being published regarding the impact of the war on flights all over the world.
According to the publication on the website Simpleflying, there has been a 13% drop in flight bookings for the entire Middle East region, which includes Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and of course Israel. The decline in data is compared to the same period in 2019, the year before COVID-13. No less interesting is that in the three weeks preceding the war, there was a 2019% increase compared to the same period in 26, which means that this is a gap of <>% between the pre-war period and the post-war period when it comes to booking air tickets to the Middle East region.
Far fewer Israelis will visit Sinai, Photo: GettyImages
Beyond the very significant impact on tourism in the Middle East region, there is also an impact on the American continent. Since the beginning of the war, there has been a 9% drop in flight bookings to European countries and a very significant 21% drop in flight ticket bookings to Europe compared to the same period in 2019. However, it is important to emphasize that there was an 18% drop in flight bookings to Europe even before the war.
All of Israel's neighboring countries are suffering from the war when it comes to incoming tourism. Turkey experienced an 8% decline from the pre-war period and a 17% decline compared to the same period in 2019. Egypt experienced a 35% decline from the pre-war period and Jordan experienced a 61% decline from the pre-war period. The test was conducted in the three weeks preceding October 7 and the three weeks that followed.
At the same time, there are targets in which the impact is less noticeable, and even if it is, it is expressed in only a few percent. Among these destinations is the United Arab Emirates, which is very familiar to the Israeli tourist and has become one of the most sought-after destinations among Israelis in recent years, since the Abraham Accords.
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