Did you notice that the currency exchange increases the cost of the family vacation? (Photo: ShutterStock)
The price of the Passover holiday does not end with the flight, hotel and expenses.
The foreign exchange fees can make the vacation hundreds of shekels more expensive.
Israelis have already discovered that pre-booking the Passover holidays abroad can save them thousands of shekels, therefore, they pre-book the flights, hotels and attractions in the selected destinations ahead of time.
The
first step is usually the purchase of plane tickets, this is exactly the stage where the currency exchange costs begin to be reflected and make the vacation more expensive, even before you reach your destination and purchase foreign currency or charge your credit card.
In 2022, the banks' income from foreign exchange fees on credit cards reached about half a billion shekels. In that year, there were about 8.4 million departures of Israelis from the country. In a rough calculation, that means - for each trip, a private person will pay about 60 shekels just for the fees for converting the shekels to the dollar, Euro (or another foreign currency) and when referring to the family, the costs can reach 300 shekels and more, depending on the cost of the vacation of course, because from a test we did on a long or expensive vacation, the cost will also reach the amount higher than 1,000 shekels - let's remember again, just for the commission, yes?
The family vacation does not always end with a trip or a trip, shopping abroad also involves currency exchange fees (Photo: ShutterStock)
How much more expensive can the vacation be?
For the purpose of illustration: we have chosen 3 Passover vacations with El Al flights and 4-5 star hotels and these are the foreign exchange commission data according to the calculation of the highest foreign exchange commission in the market (3%).
A vacation package to Greece for a family of four - El Al Loch Hozur flights (Natav-Athens) and a five-star hotel between April 6-12 will cost approximately 13,982. The amount the family will have to pay in addition to the barrage fees can reach NIS
420.
Package A vacation to the Black Forest for a family of four - El Al Loch Hozur flights (Natav-Zurich) and a five-star hotel between April 7-13 will cost about 21,630.
The amount that the family will have to pay in addition to the foreign exchange fees can reach
650 shekels.
A vacation package to Thailand for a family of four - return flights to El Al Loch Hozur (Bangkok-Bangkok) and a five-star hotel between the dates of April 6-12 will cost approximately 46,100 .
The amount the family will have to pay in addition to the foreign exchange fees can reach
NIS 1,383.
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During the Passover holiday in Thailand, the costs of the foreign exchange conversion fee may reach over NIS 1,000 (Photo: ShutterStock)
There are ways to reduce the conversion fee
The public is not aware of the amount of the fees they pay and some are not even aware of their existence, since they are not charged separately but simply integrally with the purchase as a more expensive exchange rate.
Despite this, there are several ways to lower or avoid paying these fees, among other things through various consumer clubs or credit cards that promise customers lower fees.
The digital bank, ONE ZERO
for example, offers an "all-inclusive" route for a monthly payment of NIS 49 that includes all fees including foreign exchange, the subscription fees allow customers to use the credit card with a full exemption from the conversion fee. Eric Chikotai, VP of Banking and
Operations of ONE ZERO
: "In everything related to the bank, Israelis are used to paying attention to the current account fees, but they miss a very expensive fee that is hidden in the credit card."
And he explains: "After two difficult years of a global epidemic, the Israelis returned to flying and it is most convenient to pay for the flight, hotel and shopping with a card that is accepted in most countries in the world. For a Passover vacation in Italy that costs NIS 30,000, a family will pay about NIS 900 just in currency exchange fees, An amount that makes the final cost of the vacation more expensive, therefore, it is important to check with the bank what the commission will be, to bargain and check alternatives."
Which card will you choose to use abroad? (Photo: ShutterStock)
Which card will you choose to use abroad?
The Postal Bank
- At the Postal Bank there is no conversion fee for foreign exchange, only a margin between the representative and the purchase price (margins exist in every bank or exchange, but banks also charge a conversion fee). A prepaid card
of the Postal Bank can be a solution. There is a cost of The purchase of the dollars that are loaded onto the card, similar to the purchase of cash (foreign
exchange
purchase rate, which includes a margin from the representative rate), but there will be no conversion fee when used abroad
. The mobile between the dates 1-14.4.23 - the full details on the Israchart website.
Amit Sagi VP Data Digital and Marketing at Israchart,
Explains that: "In today's competitive world, when a consumer has several cards and clubs in his wallet and the companies are competing for the hearts of consumers which card they will choose to use abroad, our goal is to produce benefits that meet a real need at the relevant time.
Therefore, following a significant increase in the booking of flights and vacations abroad during this period, we chose to go with the benefit of 0 percent currency conversion fee, which benefits the customers and results in significant savings in their vacation expenses abroad."
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