Before the updates below....
Here's a wish and a prayer (or 2 or 3) from the Holy Land!
Hamsa (against the evil eye) hangings from the market
Western Wall
Church of the Holy Sepulcher
Al Aqsa
Questions are coming in fast and furious about travels to Israel. While we are thankful that we chose not to have tours in 2021, the impact of the cancellations are affecting everyone in the travel business. Patience and kindness is our motto at the moment since offices are short-staffed and people are doing the best they can considering the circumstances.
Let's see if I can shed a little light on what we know right now. (Disclaimer: Details can change by the time you read this!)
Q: What's the situation in Israel now?
A: While they had the highest vaccination rate in the world, they are experiencing a significant uptick in cases. Most are not ending up in the hospital but the overall numbers have risen quite rapidly.
Q: Are tourists still allowed in?
A: Individual, non-Israel tourists must get approval to enter the country. As of today (August 11t), everyone, including Israelis, must quarantine; regardless if you have been vaccinated and have a clear PCR test.
Q: What about tour groups?
A: Israel accepted quite a few small, pilot tour groups over the past few months. All the groups followed pre-approved guidelines and restrictions and all went well. This "testing" was done in anticipation of tourism reopening on August 1st. Obviously, with the new strain things did not unfold as planned so we're in a "hurry-up-and-wait" mode.
Q: What does it look like for 2022?
A: We have no reason not to believe that things will level out and tourism will open back up. Optimism still prevails! Having said that, we remain flexible. If we have any doubt as to our ability to provide our travelers with a full and complete experience of Israel, we will delay as needed.
Q: What guidelines / requirements will you have for the groups?
A: I do not know what will be required in 2022 but as of today, all travelers to Israel are required to have a clear PCR test prior to traveling and another test upon arrival at the airport. Travelers must quarantine until their results come back (less than 24 hrs) and then another test is done day 4 (without any need to quarantine). If you are clear after the 2nd test, you are good to go. We have a while until our first travelers arrive so we'll have to wait and see what the requirement will be at that time.
Should you have any additional questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.
Stay healthy & well -
Wendy
May patience and kindness prevail. Very best to you.