These days, the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem is empty in more ways than one.

"Tourism is essentially not a functioning industry anymore," says Israeli tour guide Uri Goldflam, standing outside the Upper Room — the traditional site of Jesus' Last Supper. Once bustling with visitors, the sacred space is now silent.

"It used to be the sixth-largest export industry in Israel," Goldflam told CBN News. "Today, it doesn't exist as an industry. There aren't enough tourists to fill calendars."

It's been a brutal one-two punch for Israel's tourism sector — first the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020, and then, just months after recovery began in 2023, the Hamas terrorist attack of October 7.

At the City of David, tour guide Yehuda Deutsch gestures toward the empty pathways. "Where are all the people?" he asks. "It could hold two or three hundred people, multiple groups with guides. Now, if you look over the railing, you see nothing. There's no one there."

The same is true at the Garden of Gethsemane and across Jerusalem's Old City. According to the Israel Ministry of Tourism, visits have plummeted nearly 70 percent since the war in Gaza began — a loss of about 3.5 million visitors compared to the record year of 2019. The downturn represents an estimated $3.4 billion hit to the economy, with hotel occupancy rates at historic lows in many areas.

In the Old City, artist Udi Merioz paints on an empty street. "You see the street is empty right now? It's been like this for the last three years," he says. "Most of the time, it's me and a stray cat that comes to stay with me."

While Merioz keeps painting, many tourism businesses have shuttered or reduced operations. Deutsch considers himself fortunate to still be employed.

"It hurts," he admits. "A lot of people had to change professions. Many left tour guiding, went into other fields, or faced serious financial difficulties."

Goldflam, meanwhile, reinvented himself to stay afloat. In addition to producing online videos and tour apps, he now travels to the United States, speaking to churches, civic groups, synagogues, and even state legislatures about Israel's history and the ongoing war.

"I speak to audiences who support Israel — people who understand there's good and evil, right and wrong," he says. "Israel is on the right side of that equation."

Goldflam says misconceptions about geography add to the problem. "Most people don't know where the Gaza Strip is," he notes. "Jerusalem is about a 90-minute drive away. What you see on the news is in a very specific area — it's irrelevant to most of the country."

Despite the crisis, both guides see glimmers of hope. "All these sites that are usually crowded are now empty," Goldflam says. "If you come, you'll enjoy every popular site without lines or crowds. It's quite wonderful."

Still, a full recovery for Israel's tourism industry will take time — long after the fighting stops.

Merioz, ever the optimist, compares the moment to a storm at sea. "We are like fishermen on the Sea of Galilee," he says. "It's a stormy day, so you can't fish. But you can fix your nets and prepare. The storm will be over — and storms make us better."