(IsraelNN.com) Based on analysis of statistics from the first nine months of 2008, Tourism Ministry officials say Israel can expect to reach an eight-year record for tourism to the country. The number of visitors to Israel between January and
The high-traffic Jewish holiday period this October has not yet been tabulated.
September exceeded the number of tourists who visited Israel during the entire year of 2007, and the high-traffic Jewish holiday period this October has not yet been tabulated.

There were 2.3 million visitors to Israel by September and government officials said they hope to reach a total of 2.8 million tourist entries by the end of the year. If the goal is reached, tourism statistics for 2008 will be the highest since 2000, when 2.672 tourists visited Israel. Some in the Tourism Ministry expressed optimism that the 2008 forecast was even somewhat of an underestimation.

An intensive period of Jewish holidays, from Rosh Hashanah through Sukkot, was mostly excluded from the Ministry's statistics because it fell primarily in October, which has not yet concluded. Israel is generally inundated with Jewish and Christian tourists during the holiday period, which officials expect to be reflected in the October statistics.

Another indicator of the healthy tourist trade in 2008 is the figures released Monday by the Israel Hotel Association (IHA). According to the IHA, last month saw 763,000 tourist overnight stays, which is 49% more than were recorded in September 2007. Overall, there were 7.6 million tourist overnight stays in Israeli hotels between January and September, 25% more than during the same period last year.

Israelis also spent more time in hotels in September, with 1.1 million citizens registering for overnight stays throughout the country, representing 6% more than in September of last year. Interestingly, the holiday season in 2007 primarily encompassed the month of September.

IHA Director-General Shmuel Zurel noted, "It's important to remember that in September 2008 the world was already in the midst of the financial crisis, which fortunately did not express itself in the demands for Israel." The year 2009, he said, "is expected to be a challenging year economically."

During the past year, Tourism Ministry officials have pushed to increase tourism by supporting legislation allowing visitors from certain countries to avoid the visa application process. In addition, they have worked to add more flights, including direct flights to the Red Sea resort town of Eilat. During the rest of the winter months, there will be up to 18 weekly flights to Eilat from countries such as Germany, France, England, Russia and Finland.

The city of Aqaba, on the Jordanian side of the border on the Red Sea, has recently announced that an Abu Dhabi developer is slated to invest several billion dollars over the next nine years in developing the port and resort city.