Many travelers long to spend a vacation in Israel. Some come every year, while others once in a lifetime. For some, the hardest thing about traveling 6000 miles from home is being away from friends and family. For others, it’s being away from their PC. Fortunately, there are several solutions to stay connected, keep in touch with friends and family back home, and connect to your favorite sites and apps.
Most Israeli cafes and restaurants have free WIFI for guests eating there. The same applies to most hotels, but some hotels charge as much as $25/day for one internet connection (which only works in the hotel). It’s always a good idea to check first with your hotel about the costs and internet speed. Please keep in mind that the busier the hotel is, the more likely you are to have slow internet.
Another economical Wi-Fi alternative when traveling to Israel is to use NES Mobile’s mobile broadband solutions. The prices vary from $5-$7.5 per day for NetStick and Mifi devices respectively (long term rental plans range from $40-$55 per month), which is significantly cheaper than many Israeli hotels which charge $25/night. In addition, these devices are not limited to the hotel, but work virtually everywhere in Israel. There are three options for mobile broadband.
- If you have a suitable UNLOCKED GSM mobile smartphone, all you need to do is to insert the NES Mobile SIM card with Unlimited Data.
- Rent a USB modem (NetStick) from NES Mobile to insert in your laptop
- Rent a Mifi device in Israel. The MiFi device does not have to physically touch the computer and can connect to 5 devices simultaneously, such as a PC, laptop, tablet, iPad, or a smartphone. The Mifi device is small and can fit into your pocket, and the rechargeable battery lasts for 4 hours (you can also leave it connected to electricity the entire time). The MiFi device needs to be within 30 ft of the devices. You pay by day or by the month.
All plans include Unlimited Internet Data. More details at NES Mobile Short-term plans.