Flying to Israel

Most airlines will not have a minyan. Many rabbanim will tell you not to daven with plane minyanim for a number of reasons. Ask a Shayla before making this a reason to choose the airline.

Welcome home.

Chashuv! Bumped by a Mod!

Other airlines are very similar in terms of Kosher meals etc. (you need to reserve them in advance.
Otherwise on other airlines such as United and Delta, you often will have extra leg room and nicer staff.
One note, Delta has been known to be very “square” about everything.

I’m not sure I understand the question. You don’t fly El Al, when it’s been 20 years since you last did? Where’d that policy come from? Kosher meals are like on any other flight, why would it be different?

“Fly Play to Iceland then Wizz to Krakow then Ryanair to Tel Aviv”

Why on earth would you fly with two stops? The OP says the trip is for a week; why would you waste all that time travelling?

Mentch1: I think the aruch hashilchon has a heter on your issue

Royal Jordanian is very good. It is completely safe. Jordan is the most stable country in the middle east. It is very professional and comfortable. The stopover in Amman airport is a real pleasure. The flight to Ben Gurion is 20 minutes, and you get to view the entire Eretz Yisrael in full observation

cheap flights

I hear that Turkish Airlines is quite popular.

I am planning on going in july with 2 teenage sons. Looking for cheap flights, Any ideas?
Also want to stay in Meah Shearim area for cheap. Any ideas?

@ujm Turkish airlines is very good, but Istanbul airport is a complete wreck. It is the worst airport I’ve been to, and it’s extremely chaotic. There’s absolutely no order. And Turkey is not a good country to spend time in jail. They can arrest anyone on a whim

Ditto for United. I flew over last week with my grandson who was running in the Jerusalem marathon and came back on Sunday. Seats in the Premium economy were comfortable but still affordable. (You need to take a second mortgage for first class and upgrades never seem to be available) United staff were courteous but firm on enforcing the carryon rules (especially with regard to the usual nutcases trying to squeeze a steamer trunk in the overhead bins). Food was actually good for airline food. Most importantly, flights left nearly on time.

Amirican
I don’t know about cheap but it depends on your needs
Personally I prefer apartments (and I eat out)
Try
reservekosher.com the kitchen is kosher. They have a great apartment above kikar shabbos but I think only 1 bedroom (there are others to choose from)
I’ve stayed at isrentals on Monbaz street. It’s an apartment building with 1 and 2 bedroom apartments (and parking) it’s right off haneviim and a 7 minute walk to meah shaarim. (You can book on Expedia)
I’ve also stayed at other buildings in that area booked through Airbnb

Joseph,

How do you usually travel to Israel?

Ujm
You are looking at this the wrong way
There are many tzaddikim willing to part with their hard earned money so they can do mitzvos
It is much easier to learn and concentrate on tefilla sitting in the isolated pods of business class
Not to mention no issue of sitting next to a woman
I envy their olam haba for making this financial sacrifice

Reb Dorah:

That’s the second “rare agreement” you’ve had with me in two days.

I’m starting to detect a trend. I always knew that with enough effort on my part even you’d start coming around.

Winning one heart at a time…

@ujm

I generally fly first class and have done so for more than 60 years.
I don’t do it for the wines and foods I cannot consume. I have done so for the comfort and quiet and ability to get work done.
In the 80s I flew about a half million miles per year with bi-weekly trips to Europe. I would leave my office here at 5pm, make a 8 pm TWA flight to London or Paris. I would work most of the night preparing for meetings that began at 9am soon after my arrival. I also made a half dozen flights each year to EY, South Africa and Brazil plus an annual flight to Australia.
By the 90s I was flying to China each month. My clients paid these costs but it was important to arrive fresh and ready for business.
That said, I do not like the modern pods that isolate First Class (and business class) travelers from each other. The pods defeat the ability for two of us to work together on a long flight. I really miss the days of an upstairs lounge in early B747s where we could spread papers out on a table and sit facing each other and plan strategies.
Nowadays, if three or more of us from the CTL law firm are flying together on business, we are likely to fly private. It is not much more expensive than first (for our clients) and they are not paying for us yk have to arrive at the airport hours early and pay X hundreds of dollars per hour for non-productive time. It also allows us to fly into smaller airports that may be closer to our destination and that also saves time and money.

If I am working on a 14 hour flight I do not want to be disturbed by children or bumped by people trying to get through the aisle to reach a lavatory or food service carts. Lastly, I need to protect the privacy of my work.

BTW, when I went to Budapest this month for my dental work, I flew premium economy (using miles). I was not doing any work and didn’t need the privacy and space. I flew home in a private jet that belongs to a client. His wife and children had been dropped off in Vienna and it was returning to Teterboro empty.

Joseph,

The immodesty issues are probably much worse on an ocean liner than an airplane. Do you embark and disembark with blinders on, and stay in your cabin the entire time? Do you travel with a minyan and a Sefer Torah or do you forgo those for several weeks?

Coffee
Affordable is always defined by how much money you’ve got in the bank. For many people going back-and-forth business every time is affordable.
Anyway, in terms of my post, you will always find renting an apartment more affordable than two hotel rooms
Depending upon the area you want the typical price for an apartment is usually below even one hotel room
Not to mention, you will have a lot more room and depending on the building parking
But like everything else prices have gone up
Before Covid you can probably rent a car in Israel for $25 a day and now it’s more like 75+
But at least the price of gas still stable at about eight dollars a gallon

Dear Common,

I tried to buy the CR bridge, but I couldn’t get the deal done. Who would sell me the Brooklyn Bridge?

This time of year and probably through the summer, the “cheapest” RT El Al flights from JFK/Newark to Tel Aviv will run about $800 to $1,000. You can save about $100-$200 by taking some flights on other carriers with a connection but you have to be crazy to incur the additional time/flight delay risk by making an unnecessary stop.