News & Events February 2025
Israel’s Tourism Minister Opens the Israeli booth at the FITUR Exhibition
The Israeli pavilion at the FITUR 2025 tourism fair, one of the most important in the world and taking place in Madrid until Sunday, is hosting 25 companies from the sector that are trying to take advantage of the ceasefire in Lebanon and Gaza, as well as the Christian Jubilee of 2025, to bring foreign tourists back to the streets of Israel after fifteen months of war.
The pavilion was inaugurated in the presence of two representatives of the Ministry of Tourism, Mijael Itzhakov, head of the cabinet of Minister Haim Katz, and Yosef Penjos, director of Seminars, Training Workshops and Exhibitions. In a brief ceremony where he cut a ribbon to enter the pavilion, the spokesperson for the Embassy of Israel in Spain, Tal Itzhakov, stressed that Israel remains “a great unknown” even though “few countries are talked about more in the media, especially since October 7”. And he said that Israel is “a country where faith, history and nature intertwine, creating a unique experience for those who visit it,” “the birthplace of Judaism and Christianity, the cradle of cities and places linked to the awakening of civilization in the Middle East”.
The Israeli exhibition has sparked the interest of an industry, that of religious pilgrimage, which in 2025 commemorates a new Christian Jubilee, and aspires to move millions of people along the main religious routes of the world. Experts believe that 17% of global tourism (about 1.400 billion people a year) responds to this motivation, and the Holy Land should not be left out. Not now that the ceasefires in Lebanon and Gaza seem to put an end to the war.
Foreign Airlines Flocking Back to Israel Following Ceasefire
In just three weeks, 14 leading airlines have announced the resumption of their Israel operations with the addition of hundreds of weekly flights at Ben Gurion airport. The announcements of renewal of services began with low-cost carriers Wizz Air and Ryanair, and subsequently easyJet, which announced the addition of flights to Europe. Next in line was the Lufthansa Group, which has made it easier to fly between Israel and major European cities such as Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Munich and Vienna, after access to them was limited.
Other major European airlines such as British Airways and Air France quickly followed, and even Delta Airlines, which, due to being an American long-haul company, we expected to return last – all announced that they would return. Air India, which was the last of the Asian airlines to join the latest wave of cancellations, also announced that it would resume operations in March.
The return to Israel of all these airlines opens a window of opportunity to purchase tickets at more attractive prices. The reason is that companies that return to the market tend to market the first seats on each flight at low prices, in accordance with the pricing algorithms used in the aviation industry, with the more seats on the plane are sold, the higher the fare. This is why airlines that have gained trust during the war are pricing their tickets higher, because the supply of seats remaining on flights is lower since Israelis have been preferring them over carriers that were quicker to cancel; flights to Israel when the security situation escalated.
Low-cost airlines are also returning with attractive fares, and you can find direct flight return tickets to various destinations in Europe at particularly affordable prices, some for less than 200 USD.
Airlines Are Continuing to Come Back and Endorse Israel
Airlines are returning to flying to Israel: Low-cost airline EasyJet announced on Friday that it will return to flying to the country from June 1, 2025.
A day earlier, the Lufthansa Group, which includes Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings, announced that it would gradually resume its flights to and from Tel Aviv from February 1, 2025.
As a reminder, the Irish low-cost giant Ryanair also recently announced that it will resume operating a full flight schedule to and from Israel this summer, after not landing at Ben Gurion Airport since February 2024.
Many airlines are still not flying to Israel, and the tourism industry expects them to announce their return to Ben Gurion Airport, including major companies such as Air France, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines. Also included are Air Canada, Air India, Virgin Atlantic, KLM, Air Baltic, and Iberia Express.
Israir to Launch Three New Destinations in Spring and Summer 2025
Starting June 10, 2025, Israir will fly once a week on Tuesdays to Basel, Switzerland. This destination serves as a base for Black Forest trips.
To Debrecen, Hungary – the company will fly twice a week on Mondays and Thursdays. Starting April 24, 2025.
Vilnius, Lithuania – the company will fly on this route twice a week on Sundays and Thursdays starting April 24, 2025.
Hila Hermolin-Ronen, Executive Vice President Marketing & Sales at Israir: “As part of listening to the needs of our customers, we are constantly working to expand the mix of destinations. We chose 3 destinations that combine different worlds, in addition to the company’s 30 destinations. Basel is in Switzerland on the border of Germany and France and is a destination from which you can go on a family trip to the Black Forest”.
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