When hearing names like Tel Aviv, Haifa, Jerusalem, many people imagine dangerous places in a semi-permanent state of war. This is not true, at all.

The history of Israel is very complex and has crossed many conflicts. In the last ten years the political situation has become more stable, especially after the Second Intifada (2000-2004). But there are still delicate zones, like in the north of the Country, at the borders with Lebanon and Syria and in the Palestinian territories, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

Western Wall - Jerusalem

 In such a difficult context, it is interesting to notice a huge development of the tourism in Israel in the last years, with a record of 3,5 millions tourists in 2013.  From the Tourism Minister data, the biggest number of them came from United States, Russia, France, Germany and UK. 53% were Christians, half of them Catholics, and the 23% Jewish. The city most visited is Jerusalem, and the Western Wall the most visited site.

 It seems that Israel could increase also non-religious tourism. The positive feedback from tourists regarding accommodation, transport and also the nightlife and the quality of the beaches, can attract more people who want to spend a holiday in a Mediterranean Country.

In the future, the low costs and the facility to get to Israel could contribute to the development of the sector. Apart from the flag carrier of Israel, EI AI, for example, also other companies have decided to create a route to this Country. One of them is the low-cost Wizzair, that links Tel Aviv with many cities of the Eastern Europe with few Euros.

I want to add one more consideration. The last year tourism contributed with around 11 billions dollars  to the national economy (around 4% of GDP). In order to maintain such a high level of income, the support to peace is fundamental. Hopefully, tourism could play an important role in the stabilization of the area.