Israel’s tourism organizations are pressing the government for an immediate policy shift to bring foreign visitors back, while local airlines prepare for the summer and Ben Gurion Airport is set for more flights. In a statement issued Thursday, June 20, 2026, the Tourism Organizers Association said the current combination of limited air service and very high ticket prices has become a major barrier for ordinary tourists.
The group sharply criticized the Foreign Ministry, saying it has received hundreds of millions of shekels for public diplomacy but must now abandon what it called dispersed embassy activity and instead launch a focused, aggressive diplomatic push toward foreign governments, regulators, and international insurance companies. The goal, the association said, is to update and reduce the severe travel warnings currently discouraging travel to Israel.
The association also said the Transportation Ministry must immediately join the effort. It argued that the ministry should use broad and aviation-specific incentives and pressure tools to bring foreign airlines back to Israel. “The Transportation Ministry must enter the event with full force,” the group said.
Separately, additional flights at Ben Gurion Airport will become possible after an agreement to remove some American refueling aircraft from the airport, freeing parking stands for civilian planes. Meanwhile, Israeli carriers El Al, Arkia, Israir, and Air Haifa are preparing to expand operations, even as some foreign airlines have still not resumed service in Israel.
