At the beginning of 2025, it looked like summer programs in Israel would see a marked recovery after the bloody Hamas-led invasion of October 7, 2023, and subsequent war in Gaza had battered the local tourism industry. 

Israel trip organizers were previously expecting 60,000 participants in 2025, after only 35,000 came between the October 7 atrocities and the end of 2024, said Anna Langer, executive director of the Israel Educational Travel Alliance (IETA), which represents 140 such programs.

After the 12-Day war, however, only 30,000 are expected to come this year, including 25,000 scheduled to arrive during the summer -- but that's not due to lack of interest.
 

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