How Dubai became one of Israel’s most popular foreign destinations

An airplane of budget airline Flydubai lands at Israel's Ben Gurion airport on November 26, 2020 on the first scheduled commercial service between the two cities, following the normalisation of ties between the UAE and Israel. Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Images Dubai – from where the diverted Israel-bound flight was returning – has become one of Israel’s busiest and most frequently served international destinations. This is thanks to the normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2020, through the brokered Abraham Accords, which allowed commercial aviation services between the two countries to resume. Since then, the aviation corridor between Ben Gurion Airport (TLV) and Dubai International Airport (DXB) has seen significant growth, with both Israel- and UAE-based airlines expanding operations to meet the demand for tourism and business travel. According to flight tracking website FlightRadar24, there are typically 70 flights running between Dubai (DXB) and Tel Aviv (TLV) per week. Flydubai is the main carrier operating the route, in addition to Emirates and Israeli airlines Israir and El Al. Data from Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport in December showed that 1.1 million Israeli passengers traveled to Dubai in 2025. Back to top button