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Hello out there.
My sister is getting married IY”H in Eretz Yisroel this coming April 13 2011, shortly before Pesach. The cost of buying a ticket is outside of my means.
I have heard of people getting sponsored, or winning free trips to Israel,and I was wondering who the right people are to get in touch with. Can anyone point me in the right direction?
Thanks a lot.
-Eli
I missed 2 brothers’ weddings in Israel($).It wasn’t the end of the world but you don’t get to know anyone at any point really well.Which isn’t fantastic.
TRY YOUR BEST,LET G-D DO THE REST.
Some practical advice.ALWAYS GET 3 different TRAVEL AGENCY PRICES AND THEN DECIDE.You can’t imagine how widely ranged the prices can be.I’m too tired to fix those caps,sorry.
maybe Moshiach will come then and we will all get a free trip to Israel
EliGildener~ sorry, I have no ideas for you.
Eclipse~ wow! you missed 2 brothers’ weddings š
I only have one sister who lives in Israel. I made a wedding a yr ago, & was soo disappointed that only she, & not my brother-in-law, came to the wedding. they’re both close to my daughter & my son-in-law (who they met in Israel & reallyy liked). then when I made another wedding 5+ months later, neither of them came ($$) & they’re reallyyy close with my son, cuz he was in Israel for over 6 yrs & even lived with them for periods of time there. my son’s wedding was half the size of my daughter’s, 250 guests vs. 500, but I only had ONE relative– a first cousin once removed- from my entire (familial) side. š
I should add also that a frum travel agent might go out of his/her way for you,if your story strikes a chord.(Keep it honest!)
oy! maybe I should’ve put my post on the ‘grumpy/kvetch’ thread! š
If you have never been to Eretz Yisroel, try Birthright
check out Dansdeals.com. He has all sorts of ways to sign up with credit cards and get lots of free miles (enough for a free roundtrip ticket to eretz yisroel)
Become a pilot!
Seriously, try off-brand airlines on websites like sidestep, pricegrabbers. I got GOOD prices more than once.
Buy a ticket in a Chinese Auction and daven!
Make aliyah!
Nefesh b’Nefesh will then pay for the flight (and more!)
Make aliyah!
Nefesh b’Nefesh will then pay for the flight (and more!)
Eli, to get a free ticket that will get you to E”Y at precisely the time that you need and want to be there, is not realistic. You can daven, you can buy Chinese Auction tickets, you can try anything you want. Ultimately, you need to do some actual work to get the money for the ticket. Auction tickets to E”Y are expensive, and while the cost is tzedaka, there is no guarantee of winning.
Unless you have a rich relative who is willing to sponsor your trip, there are a LOT of worthy people out there who would love to go to E”Y, myself included, who cannot afford to go. realistically, nobody is just giving away free money for this, specifically at our convenience.
You definitely should comparison shop for the best price, though.
You want to go just before Pesach time – not an inexpensive time of year, I am afraid to say. Hatzlacha rabbah.
Get a job. Work as many house as you can.
If that won’t be enough to cover the ticket by the time you need to buy, find a friend or relative who will loan you the money. Then continue working as hard as you can until you pay off every dime.
I’ll give $100. Anybody else in this one?
^MONIS^
how about applying for Citi AA Advantage Credit Card?
EliGildener….do you work? can you do overtime?
oomis1105~ “Auction tickets to E”Y are expensive, and while the cost is tzedaka, there is no guarantee of winning.”
I’ve seen tkts for 2 to Israel for as low as a $5.00 raffle. the 2nd half of your sentence it more to the point… in other words, you can hope, but don’t count on it. also– restrictions usually apply, which means there’s a cap on the am’t they’ll allow for the cost of the tkts &/or blackout dates.
onegoal just gave me an idea–you can go to HELP THIS JEW.com
and if they “accept” the case,the money is raised!!Can anyone post the exact link?I don’t know how.
you can make a lot of money shoveling. and with the next storm on the way….
There is no free lunch. If you pile up a lot of airline miles on a credit card, you’ve also piled up a lot of debt – unless you’re paying the full amount due every month. No credit card gives you the miles totally gratis. Sign up deals also include conditions such as “spend $1,500 in the first four months”. But if you had the $1,500 to spend, you could buy the ticket. If you have a credit card, buy your ticket, and then work like crazy to pay it back ASAP.
I will also donate $100..
Owning an airline would probably guarantee you a free ticket or two.
Thank you,onegoal!You and HaMaphkid can put your $100 suggestions towards his account…Eli,are you listening?
AinOhdMilvado — just for the record, the state of Israel pays for your ticket if you make Aliyah (as well as a taxi ride from the airport to anywhere in the country) – not Nefesh B’Nefesh. Just keep in mind it’s a one way ticket. . .
Wow, Mi Kiamcha Yisroel! Two anyonomus people just donated $100 to another yids cause!
The OP needs to register for himself,I believe.
hey eligildener- i feel bad…. well at least ull miss it for financial reasons…. my bro. didnt come to my sis. wed. cvause he would have gotten caout by police ( he ran awy from israeli army)
welll i wish u much hatzlach!!!!
btw, there is a ezer mezion chinees raffle- u might win the free ticket to israel-(its only 25 nis a ticket)
good luck!!
kookalibeer- English please?
onegoal~ I understood every word & some would consider me an old (-ish) lady
go to the link onegoal posted and you are there
I posted info last week, not sure why the moderators didn’t put it up.
Because we don’t allow posting email addresses or contact info. Sorry, Mod.
btw i was writing in English, all those errors are caused by super-fast typing!!!!lol….
kookalibeer- I realized that I was wondering how much 25 nis is.
one\__//goal
Another thing to keep in mind when shopping for a ticket is to give the travel agent leeway of two days on both sides of the trip. There can be a very big difference, especially as you get closer to the travel date.
onegoal~ 25 NIS = $6.80 US
shalom out there to all of you i am new here i just happen to surf the internet searching for ways to go to israel. ok and then i got word back from other sites saying to go to NBN well let me state here i did talk to NBN about aliyah they do not fund pilot trips to israel or any trips not anymore they did when they first started the NBN yes that was only for one year after that now it is on our own expense trip on our own not them, they have already noted and asked people to stop coming to NBN asking for pilot trip assistance to get some other form of support or from outside sources. so i thought ok fine…..i hen came here when i saw on search at msn and thought oh cool i will come in here and post this.i am glad this place is here too
i am looking for help with trip to fly to israel and be there for two weeks at most for my future aliyah. the plans they asked me to make a plan one is take the trip to israel to look at community where i want to live and two to make a job networking with some of israel’s employers for a job there. three i have to find bank where i want to bank at closest to where i would be living and grocery store and transportation sites. and also last is Ulsopan classes to take hebrew lessons and join others in a meeting to discuss feelings about becoming israeli which they do have at times at various places.i was told to post online for anyone willing to make a pledge or a donate funds to help me with the trip they advised me to stick with it and try as hard as i can,this is what i am doing now to ask for thisi have never been to israel in my lifetime, so i want to make this an effort for this. it has been my dream i hold on to.so i would like to see about getting this help with this.this is a first for me and i do hope to hear back soon it is a heartfelt feeling i should do this, i dont have enough to cover the cost of plane to israel thats the only problem. well i do say many many thanks for anything anyone is willing to do for me i will keep my fingers crossed for this take care and happy chanukah
Oorah is giving away tickets to Israel every night of Chanuka. and it’s free to enter. Check it out- and congrats on making aliyah!!
Somethings fishy here…
But I am curious about the OP did he ever make it to the chassana?
ariel51, no offense, we would love to have you join us here in E”Y, but if you can’t afford the airfare for a pilot trip, how do you expect to finance moving here? If you’re in ulpan full-time, you probably won’t be working full time. What do you expect to live on? Aliyah is a wonderful thing, but you MUST plan things out first. Even NBN will tell you that you need to have enough money to live on for several months, as you won’t be working right away. Have you spoken to your local shaliach?
reply to mamashtakah NBN and another agency will have grants and other grant ready to receive upon arrival i have read blogs from others who made aliyah they got thier absorption baskets that contained financial and grant package the money and then can go and open a bank acct and deposit that they explained to me many people are like me too same thing alot of people on aliyah dont have money right away due to bills paid off here in u.s. before they leave of course so i was told dont worry there is a way to work out things told me try not to panic they got everything covered and yes need to get into new home first go to bank deposit grant and financial assistance check from absorption basket get schedules for ulpan classes all these take at least days to get settled in and then its all done once the things are taken care of first at the airport and financial package they are not gonna leave anyone flat without anything they said i should try get free ticket and come to israel thats what i was told
Ariel51:
Shavua tov.
First of all, please, please, please, start using punctuation and upper case letters in your posts. Your writing is almost impossible to decipher.
I think you’re misunderstanding how the financial aspect of aliyah works. Your absorption basket is money from the government deposited into your bank account for a limited amount of time. The deposit is once a month. It’s not enough to live on; it’s there to help with expenses, not cover them completely. You will get part of your first installment in cash when you arrive at the airport, but again, this is only walking around money.
Assuming you get a grant from NbN, are you aware that if you take the grant and then move back to the U.S. before five years, you have to pay back the grant? Do you also know that financial assistance from NbN is a one time shot?
I assume you’ll be renting when your first get here. You will need money to cover the checks. Your landlord may want a check for a large amount of money – not to cash, but as a deposit should you damage the apartment or decide to skip out without paying. If he doesn’t want the large check, he may demand proof that you can cover the rent. Without a job, how will you do that? What about furniture – an oven, a washing machine, and refrigerator? In most cases (unlike the U.S.), they are NOT supplied with the apartment. You buy them, and take them with you when you leave.
I assume you’re single – please correct me if I’m wrong. will you want to live in a city? If so, the rents will be much higher.
If you’re male – and relatively young – you will be expected to do at least some time in Tzahal. Are you ready for that?
You will get a break on health insurance for several months, then you are responsible for paying into the system, either through payroll deductions from work or paying yourself. Transferring your drivers license will cost several hundred shekel, when all is said and done. You will need money for transportation as well, either for buses or gasoline and insurance for a car. If you want television, you will need cable. Don’t forget that some food items are more expensive here, some are not.
I’m not trying to scare you, but you need to do “due diligence” before you make a commitment to come on aliyah. The more research you do before hand, the better off you will be.
Do not look for nonstop flights; they can cost 50% more than stopover flights, if not more (my guess is $1500 from NY instead of $1000). Look for discounted flights from any important European city to Israel and then connect with the best of them by booking a discounted flight from New York to that city. Allow several hours to change flights and don’t be afraid to stay over for many hours.
I’ve assumed that you would be taking off from NY, but the same goes for any N. American city that flies to various European destinations. Good luck.
I know I’m a little late to answering your questions. but you can go to google and search for dirt cheap tickets-they exist!! And they’re super cheap!! Like one way is like $400 or something like that!
ARIEL 51 — I’m not sure who you are talking to,but takahmamash is exactly right. We made Aliyah about 2 years ago, so I am talking form real experience. The “sal klita” from the government is a nice addition, but it absolutely will not cover even your basic expenses. It lasts for about 7 months, after which you receive a small amount of rental assistance for the next few years (less each year) if you haven’t yet bought a house. The NBN grant may depend on your personal situation, but it is also not a ton of money (The amount we got from NBN did not even cover 1 months rent in our Israeli apartment!) I don’t know who said to you “they are not going to leave anyone flat without anything”, but that is a bit of a bizarre statement. Who is this “they” that make sure you have money? There are specific benefits to which you are entitled, and beyond that you are on your own. NBN can help you with job networking, etc., but if you can’t even afford the $1,000 or so for a pilot trip, I would strongly suggest you spend some time saving up for your Aliyah. There are MANY expenses involved in such a big move, even if you don’t plan on sending a lift. Also we found the day to day expenses here in Israel significantly higher than in the U.S. (water, electricity, phone and many food items), and of course after the first few months you have to start paying for your health insurance. You may be entitled to unemployment if you don’t find a job, but beyond that there aren’t really any “welfare” programs here equivalent to for example food stamps, WIC, low-income housing, etc. that are available in the U.S. If you want a successful Aliyah, it is important to plan realistically. Good luck!
Mitzvahgirl613! It’s tourist season now! There are no $400 flights! If you find one please post where!
just saw this to answer OP’s question
flytoisrael.info
Omg! i <3 Israel! When I went 4 sem I was so inspired! I mean I walked on the same streets as MOSHE RABBEINU!
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