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If you are Jewish and you have never visited Israel before, but is planning on an upcoming trip, here's some travel tips from someone who just made her first visit to Israel in the summer.

The first foremost concern on a traveller's mind is money.  How much money and in what currency or form (credit card, checks, cash) to carry in one's wallet? 

Cash, credit card or traveller's checks?

My trip to Israel this past summer was pretty much done in a hurry.  I didn't have much time researching on financial issues, but I found out from a Nefesh B'Nefesh mailing list that it's not advisable to carry traveller's checks.

Get a good credit card that does not charge foreign transaction fees.  I recommend Capital One.  There is a variety of card options from Capital One, from miles rewards to cash back rewards.  After spending about a month in Israel, the credit card statement clearly did not include any foreign transaction fees.  In addition, each transaction made in Israeli shekels is conveniently converted to US dollars based on the currency exchange rate for the date it was posted.  

You will need cash for local transportation like buses and taxis.  You will need sufficient cash to pay the local Israeli cab in NIS (New Israeli Shekel).  Sometimes, the taxi driver will also accept foreign currency, like the US dollar.

Most local establishments including supermarkets and the corner grocery store (makolet) accept credit cards.

Money Changing

The place to find the most current exchange rate is from Bank of Israel . It is not recommended to exchange money at an Israeli bank as it charges high commission fees.  Try one of the local money changes that do not charge commission -- they are easily found at malls, bus stations, airports, etc.   

If you have friends in Israel, try asking them to conduct a "Sha'ar Yetzig" for you, a transaction that involves a no commission money exchange from a foreign currency to the Israeli shekel, based upon the on going rate from the Bank of Israel above.

Israeli Currency

If you have the time before flying to Israel, you should learn about the Israeli currency .  Shekels are printed on paper as well as coins.  Shekel coins appear in the following denomination - 1/2 NIS, 2 NIS, 5 NIS, and 10 NIS.  Agurah is 1/10th of a shekel and is available as follows - 1 agurah, 5 agurot and 10 agurot.  The 10 NIS coin and the 10 Agurot coin can often be confusing for the first time traveller to Israel.

In my recent trip to Israel, I carried cash and credit enough for food, travel and shopping.

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