By Rami Ayyub

TEL AVIV (Reuters – Travellers looking to visit Jerusalem or Tel Aviv should review the terms and conditions before they book, according to local hoteliers.

The new rules https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-readmit-covid-vaccinated-foreign-tourists-next-month-2021-10-21, due to go into effect on Nov. 1 ahead of the Christmas season, permit individual tourists who have received COVID-19 vaccine boosters to enter but not if more than six months have lapsed since their last dose, with some exceptions.

This has dampened the excitement of hoteliers who hoped for improvement 20 months ago when Israel barred all foreigners from Israel to stop the spread coronavirus.

What percentage of tourists around the globe have gotten boosters, or are they still in good health six months later after receiving their second dose? Yael Dani, Israel Hotel Association CEO said.

It doesn’t matter if one or both of the children in a household are immunized, they are not able to travel to Israel.

Israel offers third doses to anyone over 12 of the Pfizer BioNTech jab. Other countries, including the United States https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/americans-wonder-which-covid-19-booster-is-best-2021-10-22, have begun administering vaccine boosters https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps/index.html but in many cases only to the elderly or people with underlying medical conditions.

Many would-be travelers whose last medication was received before May 1, cannot travel to Israel.

Owners of hotels in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, Nazareth, as well as Bethlehem, the occupied West Bank, claim they have not seen a substantial increase in their bookings.

Tourists who want to visit West Bank are also subject to Israel’s entry regulations. Israel is responsible for all crossings. Visitors who arrive in Israel can travel to Bethlehem or other Palestinian cities.

Joey Canavati (manager of Bethlehem’s Alexander Hotel) said, “It’s a good step to begin but I don’t expect big numbers until next year.” “We just want to stop bleeding. We need to save our money.”

In 2020, tourism fell by over 80 percent after reaching a record 4.55 million visitors in 2019. This contributed $7.2 billion for Israel’s economy. It also boosted Bethlehem’s tourism sector.

There are some exceptions to the rules.

All travellers (including children) who received COVID-19 vaccines within six months of their diagnosis will be admitted. Anybody who was able to recover earlier than six months ago will be permitted entry if at least one dose of the vaccine has been approved by World Health Organization.

Israel allows small groups of vaccine-vaccinated tourists to enter the country in recent months. This exemption allows such groups to be allowed into Israel for a maximum of six months, as long as they are vaccinated every 72 hours and undergo PCR/antigen testing within the first two weeks.

Danieli wants the government to follow similar guidelines for individual tourists.

We just want tourists to come back. These rules are not available to everyone.