Roman Catholic 'Jubilee Year' could help revive flagging Israeli tourism
The flagging Israeli tourism industry may pick up again in the coming year, as the Roman Catholic “Jubilee Year” is expected to draw large numbers of Christian pilgrims to the Holy Land.
The year 2025 has been declared a Jubilee Year by Pope Francis, with the celebrations commencing when the Pope opens the “Holy Door” at the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome on Dec. 24, 2024.
During the Jubilee Year, the Vatican especially encourages Catholics to take pilgrimages to various sites considered holy by the Roman Catholic Church, many of which are located in Israel.
Ynet News reported that Dani Shahar, the director-general of Israel’s Ministry of Tourism, “met with Vatican officials in Rome to promote the idea of obtaining forgiveness in the Holy Land.”
The report noted that “an international campaign was also planned” to promote Roman Catholic tourism to Israel, and that the Israeli tourism ministry “has started improving infrastructure at key holy sites, such as Yardenit (the Jordan River baptismal site), Capernaum, and the Old City of Nazareth.”
Since the Hamas invasion and terror attack on Oct. 7 of last year, followed by a subsequent multi-front war, Israel's tourism industry has significantly declined due to limited flight availability and safety concerns among potential tourists and pilgrims.
The Jerusalem Post reported that, as of the end of September, Israel had “suffered a net loss of NIS 18.7 billion from international tourism,” which amounts to nearly $5 billion.
“Based on 2024 trends, 2024 is expected to conclude with only approximately one million tourists entering Israel, less than a quarter of the number of tourists that entered Israel in 2019,” the Jerusalem Post further reported.
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
