There is really no getting around it. Planning a tour to Israel is very frustrating right now. After finally seeing the national open to foreign visitors at the beginning of the month, even if under the strict guidelines, there was a bit of hope for planning for the future. However this past week, news of the new variant from South Africa, known as Omicron is once again changing things.

On November 28, 2021 the Israeli government suspended all incoming foreign travel for a period of two weeks in order to reduce the transmission of the new variant while more is learned about its severity and transmissibility. We hope this will be a temporary pause, but as so much has been unpredictable, we can’t say that it won’t be longer. We can only pray it won’t and wait.

This is of course quite the set back and cause of frustration for all those in the travel industry, Immanuel Tours and of course, our wonderful clients and friends trying to plan a tour.

We understand how awful this is for planning and marketing a tour. There are many questions, and we will try to answer as many as we can.

Should I even plan a tour?

There has been much in the way of concern regarding the trouble and possible expense of planning a tour that in this current environment can be required to be rescheduled or cancelled at no fault of the participation and organizers.

We do still encourage you to schedule and plan tours. This is also at the risk of our own company as we invest many hours and workers compensation into the planning, so we fully understand the concern of the loss of effort and resources if it doesn’t work out.

The advantage to continuing to plan and schedule a tour is that you will have much better rates and availability of hotels and guides if you book out for the future and keep the reservation while uncertainty is still going.

Please remember that Immanuel Tours does not require any payment to hold a reservation until 120 days before your tour so you can book with confidence. We will also work with you promoting your tour. You will be supported and informed throughout the process.

How can I get people to join with so much uncertainty?

We understand the difficulty that encouraging participation may endure. It’s not as straightforward as usual to get people excited to visit Israel, which is usually not a problem!

If you are unsure of what the requirements prior to the current pause included, please visit our coronavirus travel information page, which gives all the information you need and will be updated with any changes that may come. CLICK HERE.

While we still encourage you to ask for a deposit to secure a place on your tour, we encourage you to make it clear that deposits will be refunded in the case of change or cancellation due to coronavirus regulations and restrictions. Make it clear that this will not cover individual choice to not participate in a non-changed tour but that if dates change or the tour is cancelled, then we encourage you to refund all deposits. This will help to make people feel more confident in their choice to participate.

What if my tour is cancelled?

Immanuel Tours has not kept any money for any tours cancelled due to the pandemic and borders being open or closed. This policy will continue. There are also insurance policies you can secure to protect your investment. Talk to your tour operator about options.

If you are interested in postponing, your tour operator will rebook all of your reservations at the same hotels and with the same guides whenever possible, though it cannot be guaranteed, neither can the quotation from the previous dates. We will be upfront about the changes so you can make your decision.

The important thing to remember is that we will not keep any of your money for a tour that can not happen. You can count on Immanuel Tours for the same utmost service as we have been known for for decades. It is still in the best interest of all involved to book and keep your booking as long as possible for the best rates and availability.

We know and appreciate that this is a trying time and with so many uncertainties it is especially difficult to plan. If there is anyway we can assist you, please contact us. We would love to help!