British low-cost airline easyJet says it has cancelled all packages to Tel Aviv due to depart before October 22, while tour operator Virgin Atlantic Holidays has let holidaymakers rebook for later dates or get a refund if they are travelling before October 18.

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The assault by Hamas – designated a terrorist organisation by the United States, European Union and other governments – on Israeli communities on October 7 killed at least 1,300 people. Most were civilians, including children.

InterContinental Hotels said two of its hotels, Six Senses Shaharut and Hotel Indigo Tel Aviv – Diamond District, were temporarily shut. It has seen some cancellations and some customers moving bookings to later in the year.

With most of its hotels empty, one of Israel’s top chains, Isrotel, was “on the verge” of temporarily closing some, a spokesperson said.

The coming months would have been the busiest of the year for Christian pilgrimages arriving from the United States, Britain and elsewhere in Europe.

Drawn by historical sites in Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and Tel Aviv’s white sandy beaches, some three million tourists flocked to Israel in the first nine months of this year, according to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics.

That is close to pre-pandemic levels, and included about 800,000 Americans.

A day after the attack, Israel’s ministry of tourism said tours should be avoided and tourists should stay in their hotels or on cruise ships.

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It said that tourists could move around the country if needed. More than 90,000 tourists were in Israel, and thousands had visited national sites during the past week, it said.

On the same day, though, the US government raised its travel warning for Israel and the West Bank to Level 3, or “reconsider travel”, its second-highest level.

Britain advises against all but essential travel to Israel and Palestinian territories.

Elias al-Arja, the head of the Arab Hotel Association, said most hotels in the West Bank had spent last week helping tourists flee after the violence began.

Around 90 per cent of hotels in the West Bank are empty, he said.

Meanwhile, half of Israeli hotel rooms are being used to house families evacuated from communities near the Gaza Strip, the head of the Israel Hotel Association, Yael Danieli, said.

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Israel has 56,000 hotel rooms and 28,000 are being provided to evacuees, with the state footing the bill. Danieli told a parliamentary panel debating compensation for residents impacted by the war that an additional 27,000 from border towns near Lebanon were expected.

These citizens need meals and other welfare support from the state, Danieli added.

The Dan Hotel chain said its hotels in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Herzliya were being used for evacuees, while rival Isrotel said its hotels in the Red Sea resort of Eilat were housing displaced families. Dan is also offering 50 per cent discounts off rooms for locals.

With no resolution to the conflict in sight, it is unclear when foreign visitors might return.

Tour group Authentic Israel has asked tourists who were booked on their cancelled trips to donate US$150 each to support its staff during the crisis.

Australian tour operator Intrepid Travel has called off tours to Israel and Palestinian territories until the end of the year.

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Odysseys Unlimited has suspended its Israel trips until March 31. The US company said it would continue tours in neighbouring Egypt and Jordan but it has given guests the option of moving to a later date or another destination.

Some are rescheduling to next year, it said.