Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) and the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (MOTA)
World Tourism Day 27/09/2018
World Tourism Day, which is annually celebrated on September 27th around the world, is a unique opportunity to raise awareness on tourism’s actual and potential contribution to sustainable development.
The “Tourism and Digital Transformation” is the theme of World Tourism Day this year, where people and service providers communicate, exchange information and execute transactions in ways that have never been imagined before. The combination of digital platforms, user-generated content and feedback, social media integration, global positioning services, and the use of big data and artificial intelligence, has transformed the way people experience, consume and share information.
This is the result of successive advances in telecommunications, computers, databases, networks, Internet, mobile and wireless technology, global positioning systems and smart phones.
More than 3.1 Million Visits to Tourist Sites in the West Bank during the first half of 2018
During the first half of 2018, around 3.13 million visits were made to tourist and leisure sites in the West Bank. These included 1.48 million visits by inbound visitors and 1.65 million visits by domestic visitors. The number of inbound visits increased by 5.8% compared to the first half of 2017.
Most inbound visits were to Bethlehem Governorate comprising 35% of the visits, followed by Jericho and Al-Aghwar Governorate at 30%, and Nablus and Jenin Governorates at 13% and 11% respectively.
Most of the Inbound Visits by Palestinian Residents of the 1948 Occupied Palestine
Palestinians residing in areas occupied in 1948 accounted for the largest proportion of inbound visitors with 47% with 694 thousand visits, followed by arrivals from the USA by 7% with 110 thousand visits, Russian Federation by 7% With 106 thousand visits, Poland by 4% With 52 thousand visits and then Romania by 3% with 44 thousand visits, while 32% were from other nationalities with 473 thousand visits
It should be noted that inbound and domestic visitors data do not include Jerusalem Governorate and Gaza Strip.
More than One Billion USD is the Total Consumption of Inbound Tourism during 2016
The final findings of the Tourism Satellite Accounts for 2016 in Palestine indicate that the total consumption on inbound tourism showed a decrease by 5.8% in 2016 compared to 2014, the consumption on inbound tourism totaled to USD 1,019.3 million in the year 2016, including both overnight stay visitors and same day visitors compared to USD 1,082.3 million in the year 2014.
While the consumption on domestic tourism totaled USD 129 million, and the consumption on outbound tourism by Palestinians abroad was USD 388 million during 2016.
A continuous Rise in the Number of West Bank Hotel Guests: 300 Thousand Guests Spent 894 Thousand Nights during the first half of 2018
The number of hotel guests in the West Bank reached 301,422 in the first half of 2018, they spent 893,890 nights. When comparing with the first half of 2016 and the first half of 2017, the number of guests increased by 55.6% and 16.0% respectively. The table shows the number of hotel guests in the West Bank during the first half of the years (2016-2018).
| Number of Guests by Nationality during First Half (2016 – 2018) | ||||
| Nationality | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
| Palestine | 21,991 | 20,961 | 17,119 | |
| Palestinian 1948 | 26,382 | 33,875 | 30,549 | |
| Asia | 37,211 | 54,427 | 61,114 | |
| USA & Canada | 17,998 | 24,247 | 24,463 | |
| European Union | 56,557 | 96,274 | 139,033 | |
| Other EU Count. | 16,369 | 14,204 | 14,062 | |
| Other Countries | 17,237 | 15,847 | 15,082 | |
| Total | 193,745 | 259,835 | 301,422 | |
The total number of guests was distributed by region as follows: 68.7% of total guests in South of West Bank hotels; 18.1% in Jerusalem; 5.4% in the Middle of West Bank (Ramallah & Al-Bireh, Jericho & Al-Aghwar) ; and 7.8% in the North of West Bank.
In June 2018, there were 130 hotels in the West Bank comprising 7,390 available rooms with 16,217 beds.
There are 11,943 Establishments Operating in the Tourism Sector in Palestine during 2017, which employ 8.3% of the Total Number of Employees in the Palestinian Establishments.
According to the results of the Palestinian Population, Housing and Establishments Census 2017, the number of establishments operating in the tourism sector reached 11,943 establishments during 2017, with 36,861 employees, constituting 8.3% of the total number of employees in the Palestinian establishments.
The total number of employees in the tourism activities is distributed as follows: 62.9% working in food and beverage service activities, 13.4% works in amusement and recreation activities, 9.0% working in accommodation activities, 6.3% manufacture and sale of handicrafts and souvenirs, 3.3% travel agency, tour operator, reservation service and related activities, and 5.1% of the employees are distributed on the rest of tourism activities.
