Israel Set to Welcome the Unvaccinated
The Israeli government announced Feb. 20 that unvaccinated tourists of all ages will be allowed to enter the country as of March 1.
With most signs pointing to a waning of the fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Israeli government announced Feb. 20 that unvaccinated tourists of all ages will be allowed to enter the country as of March 1. That means even families with children aged five or younger will be able to travel to Israel for the first time in almost two years.
The lack of an approved vaccine for young children has meant that families have had to postpone plans to travel to Israel, notes Wendy Yaniv, founder of 5 Senses Tour. Still, she emphasizes, “Every requirement that is taken down is a big boost for tourism.”
In announcing the pandemic travel changes, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said, “We are seeing a consistent decline in morbidity data, so it is time to gradually open what we were the first in the world to close. At the same time, we will keep our finger on the pulse and in the case of a new variant, we will respond quickly once again.”
In fact, the steady decline in serious cases of COVID in Israel has leveled off. Still, the prime minister asserted that “the omicron wave has been broken.”
Also, as of March 1, the government announced that it will no longer require Green Pass certificates to be shown prior to entering public venues and gatherings for those vaccinated, recovered or recently testing negative for the virus.
Yaniv expects tourists to flock to Israel as a result of pent-up demand. She stopped taking groups to Israel in March 2020 when the pandemic first spread around the world. “I didn’t take any groups last year because I couldn’t give them the experience I wanted,” said the Sandy Springs resident. Now, her groups scheduled for this coming September and March 2023 are totally booked. “There’s still some space on my culinary tour in October,” she noted in mid-February.
Yaniv had hoped that the requirement for PCR COVID tests within hours of departure for Israel would be lifted for tourists, allowing for more flexibility in travel. Travelers would thus be able to search for cheaper flights going through Europe, or including several layovers, if they didn’t need the COVID test results 72 hours prior to departure. “This is huge for tourists,” she said.
According to Israeli news reports, there’s also a huge demand from Israelis who want to travel abroad. El Al Airlines said its calls have more than doubled in the past week or so, with prices for both airfare and hotels expected to rise as well.
By and large, Israelis have accepted the need for COVID vaccinations. The percentage of Israelis who have been vaccinated is higher than that of Americans.
In Israel, medical workers, the immunocompromised and those over 60 were even encouraged to get a second booster shot. That doesn’t mean all Israelis were enthusiastic, however. Just as U.S. residents were anxiously monitoring the protest against vaccination in Canada, Israel was experiencing its own brief vehicular convoy of anti-vaccine activists blocking a main highway.
Meanwhile, in the past year or two, while non-Israelis were essentially unable to travel to Israel, many Jewish would-be travelers suggested that they might apply for Israeli citizenship so that they could travel there during any future pandemics.
The Israeli Interior Ministry, however, reacted in early February by announcing that it would begin requiring all individuals applying to immigrate under the Law of Return to commit to moving to Israel “immediately” and “permanently.”
The proposal — while prompting protests by advocates of immigration — follows years of what has become known as “passport Aliyah,” when people apply for citizenship without any intention of actually residing in the country. Most of these applicants are thought to be Russians who prefer traveling the world with an Israeli passport.
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