Cruise stopping in Israel

[Flojo18]

When off the ship, will I need Shekels to purchase souvenirs in Israel? 

[slidergirl]

There is no guarantee that every place will take a foreign currency.  Even if someone does take your US$, you'll get change back in NIS.   Maybe it's me, but when I travel, I will have a small amount of money in the local currencies, then use my CC when possible.  

[dogs4fun]

26 minutes ago, Flojo18 said:

When off the ship, will I need Shekels to purchase souvenirs in Israel? 

Most of the shops that we visited accepted credit cards. We did hit the ATM for our ILS as many of the smaller shops (coffee shops, kiosks, etc.) would accept only ILS. Israel is amazing - we spent 3 weeks on our last visit and are itching to return.

[Flojo18]

Thank you so much! I'm really excited to see Israel... have never been

[pris993]

We have traveled a lot to and in Israel, have family there.  Some will take dollars, but will give you change back shekels.  If you use a taxi which we do often, most drivers know where you can change money if need be, often merchants know where the nearest change office is too.     Enjoy your visit.

[Flojo18]

1 hour ago, pris993 said:

We have traveled a lot to and in Israel, have family there.  Some will take dollars, but will give you change back shekels.  If you use a taxi which we do often, most drivers know where you can change money if need be, often merchants know where the nearest change office is too.     Enjoy your visit.

Thanks so much!

[SimplyMarvie]

We're living in Israel now. Honestly, I'd get Shekels from the nearest ATM when you get off the boat. While people will take dollars, the exchange rate they'll give you isn't great and not everyone is going to take them to begin with -- if you're in the Old City in Jerusalem, yes. In Haifa or Akko or Ashkelon, not so much. Credit cards are widely, widely accepted here and we rarely have problems using our US Cards... but when we do, it's nice to have the shekels to save the day. 

 

Also, if you're thinking about using taxis, download the GETT app (Israeli Uber, but with licensed taxis) before you arrive. Its so much easier and will avoid getting shaken down by unscrupulous drivers (particularly a problem in Jerusalem).

[Flojo18]

50 minutes ago, SimplyMarvie said:

We're living in Israel now. Honestly, I'd get Shekels from the nearest ATM when you get off the boat. While people will take dollars, the exchange rate they'll give you isn't great and not everyone is going to take them to begin with -- if you're in the Old City in Jerusalem, yes. In Haifa or Akko or Ashkelon, not so much. Credit cards are widely, widely accepted here and we rarely have problems using our US Cards... but when we do, it's nice to have the shekels to save the day. 

 

Also, if you're thinking about using taxis, download the GETT app (Israeli Uber, but with licensed taxis) before you arrive. Its so much easier and will avoid getting shaken down by unscrupulous drivers (particularly a problem in Jerusalem).

Thank you very much!