Money Tips
Your trip is FREE and our program provides you with at least 2 meals a day. On the days you’re responsible for one of your meals, we will take you to the mall or an area with restaurants. The cost for a typical meal should be around $9 – $10 per day. You may occasionally want to buy bottled water (although the tap water is perfectly fine), snacks, drinks, etc.
Finally, in Israel, it is customary to tip both the tour guide and the bus driver at the end of the program. $100 in total is appropriate for a 10-day trip and $70 in total is appropriate for a 7-day trip. Tipping is not mandatory, however it is the standard in Israel to do so. Please note that it is neither customary nor appropriate to tip the North American support staff or the Israeli guards/medics on the trip.
All in all, we recommend that you bring $200-$250 on the trip. If you plan on bringing cash, a representative will come on the first day of your trip to exchange money. You can also exchange money during your free time on the trip.
#Protip: The best possible exchange rate will be available when the representative comes on the first day for the exchange. We suggest that you do not change their money at the airport and wait for the bus exchange at our first stop on your first day.
How to bring it…
The currency in Israel is New Israeli Shekels (NIS). The exchange rate is around 3.4 shekels to a dollar.
The best money solution in Israel is to bring a credit card and/or ATM card. In terms of credit cards, Visa and Mastercard are accepted everywhere in Israel. It’s a good idea to call your credit card company before you leave to let them know that you are travelling to Israel (otherwise they may think it’s fraud and suspend your account). In terms of ATM cards, most will work in Israel, but you should definitely call your bank ahead of time just to make sure the card will work in Israel (note: Any ATM card with a Visa or Mastercard logo will work for sure).
More tips here on Traveling in Israel.