The Israel Ministry of Tourism vowed to make progress on issues of awareness and connectivity as it welcomed the "record-breaking" number of Filipinos traveling to the Holy Land this year.

Jerusalem (Israel Ministry of Tourism)

Sammy Yahia, the director of the Israel Ministry of Tourism office in the Philippines, said this after the number of Filipino travelers broke its "all-time high" record, with 19,300 Filipino tourists traveling to Israel during the first half of 2023.

Data from the ministry showed that the figure was a "whopping growth" of 40 percent from the number of Filipino travelers in Israel during the same period in 2019.

In a statement, Yahia said the year 2023 has been outstanding so far for Israeli tourism, as he noted that the Philippines has always been an important market to them.

"2023 has been outstanding and by far the best year for Israel tourism in the Philippines," he said.

"It has been an important market for us, and we see huge potential in the Philippine market," he added.

With this, the tourism official vowed that the Israel Ministry of Tourism in the Philippines "will continue to make progress on the issues of awareness and connectivity."

Filipinos can enjoy visa-free travel to Israel for up to 59 days, while Israelis can enjoy visa-free travel to the Philippines for up to 59 days.

Israel has been attracting tourists as it is known as the Holy Land. For Christians, Israel is where they celebrate their faith by visiting the birthplace of Jesus Christ, walking where He preached, sitting, and just watching modern-day scenes roll out along the sites mentioned in the Holy Bible.

For the curious traveler, Israel is also the land of adventure with the flavor of a 2,000-year-old history of faith. Tourists can go deeper than just appreciating the Sea of Galilee, where Jesus walked on water and calmed the waves; row a boat along a 1,300-year-old underground water reservoir; or lie on their back and enjoy a unique “swim” in the Dead Sea.