About 50,000 Israelis have visited the United Arab Emirates since the Abraham Accords were signed in September, Israel’s Tourism Minister Orit Farkash-Hacohen said. Israel, she said at a news conference on Wednesday, believes it will welcome some 100,000 Emiratis annually, once the coronavirus pandemic is over.
Farkash-Hacohen, alongside the UAE, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai tourism ministers, took part in the first ever “Israel Tourism Forum in the UAE” attended by 400 Emirati and 150 Israeli tourism professionals.
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Farkash-Hacohen noted that the visa-free zone between the countries should become a reality by mid-January 2021. That month, she also said, should see the start of 25 weekly flights between Israel and the Emirates. After the pandemic, or when vaccines are widely available, religious, family and business travel will be the mainstays of incoming tourism from the Gulf states, she said.
The Emirates and Israel already are discussing cross-marketing packages for local tourists as well as packages for international sightseers to visit both the Gulf states and Israel in one tour. “I am a true believer that tourism, is the bridge – the anchor ingredient – for normalization between the two sides.” Farkash-Hacohen said.