Ben Gurion departures hall
Ben Gurion departures hallMoshe Shai/ Slash 90

Up 13.2% from July 2016, the number of travelers passing through Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport in July 2017 set a new record - 2,180,738 international travelers in one month.

Meanwhile, 2.3 million travelers are expected to pass through Ben Gurion in August, for a total of 4.5 million over the course of the summer. The busiest days are expected to see over 90,000 travelers each.

Just prior to the start of summer, Ben Gurion opened its refurbished Terminal 1, which serves 270 flights per week.

July's most popular destinations were Anatalya, Larnaca, and Paris, with the most connecting flights made at Istanbul and Moscow.

Terminal One, which now has some 270 flights, mostly of low-cost carriers, leaving on a weekly basis.

Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz (Likud) said, "Opening international travel is having a tremendous impact on the economy. We will continue to open Israel's airports to carriers and encourage even lower prices, as part of the consumer revolution benefiting Israelis."

Tourism in the first half of 2017 rose 26% from 2016, and 14 million travelers are expected by the end of the year, with the annual number reaching 20 million in coming years.

Israel's Ben Gurion Airport was ranked in July as one of the best in the world.