bigboy

Just sharing my experience in Tel Aviv. Uber - don't bother for now. Everyone uses Gett to hire taxis. The benefit is that you can use credit card payment with Gett, as many taxis only take cash.

EDIT: And one more thing - you can't take Gett from the airport. Taxis or prearranged car services are your only choice (other than light rail).

craz

When did a light-rail start service to the airport? Theres been reg train service for awhile now but no light-rail that I know of. The only light-rail in the whole country is in Jerusalem, they are building one in TA

bigboy

Sorry - it's probably regular rail. I just assumed it was light, but probably not.

mbgg

Taxis at the airport are regulated and supervised. The fixed prices to all cities are posted at the head of the line and you can get a printout showing the price. I have never seen a complaint on any of the forums about taxis from the airport so there is no reason to order or pre-book one.

Ditto

That is true for almost all airports, except:
1. There are always scams done by unofficial taxi drivers
2. Sometimes it is cheaper/about the same price to pre-book, and then it is nice to have someone waiting for you rather than having to look for the taxi stand

entropy

luckily the taxi stand is right at the exit.

Personally, if you get out of customs within 10 mins of a train departure to Tel Aviv, I think that's the way to go, its cheap and quick, especially if there's bad traffic. You can always grab a much cheaper local cab at Azrieli or Arlozorov.

I use Gett but I don't really find it so much better aside from the cash situation.

joshwex90

You can use Gett from the airport but need to order in advance. Benefit is they will be waiting for you. Issue is they tend to be more expensive than Hadar, who is the official stand at TLV.

There are some Hadar taxis who now taki credit card but they are few and far between.

If you have cash, Hadar is easiest as they are indeed right by the exit and they're right there. You don't need to find a taxi - there's a line with a dispatch who sends you to your taxi.

The only real issue is since they take only cash, if you don't have ILS, you can be in trouble. There is an ATM in the airport that doesn't charge fees of its own (and you get the standard exchange rate). However, it's sometimes out which leaves people with little option other than exchaning foreign cash at the echange desks which charge a fortune. I actually once landed with no cash and the machine not working but the driver said we could stop by a machine near my destination and I would take out cash there (I had my roommate meet me instead with cash). So some drivers seem to understand this is an issue

mbgg

If the ATM is out of cash and you exchange $50 at the exchange counter to pay for the taxi, how much do you lose compared to the ATM or change stores in the city?

joshwex90

You gotta check the exchange in the airport again. I have no clue what rate they're giving but I know they charge at least 2% fee on top of their worse exchange rate. How bad is that rate? When I changed $100 in 2011, they gave me 220 shek. I thought they made a mistake. They didn't. I exchanged back. (This was the stand by baggage claim.)

When my dad exchanged $40 last November, he got 125 shekel.

mbgg

I didn't realize the rates were that bad!

joshwex90

Some article in Hebrew recommends going upstairs to the post office, though only if trading at least USD 800 or ILS 800 - can't remember which one. I'll look

mbgg

The post office gives competitive rates with no commission - you can always see their current rates on their website. The problem is that they are open only from 7 AM to midnight on weekdays, 7 AM to 2 PM on Friday, and are closed on Saturday.

joshwex90

Which is why TLV needs multiple ATMs in multiple locations, to ensure that at all times, some are working and have cash! Thankfully I no longer need cash when landing (my own, friends/family, public transportation, pre-arranged taxis, etc.), but I can commiserate with anyone landing in Israel, tired, jetlagged, disoriented, not knowing Hebrew, and now being thrown for a loop and (rightfully) feeling taken advantage of at the cash changes

Ditto

But there are multiple ATMs, I arrived to TLV this morning and counted 4:
1. At the back of the Bank exchange in the luggage reclaim area
2. As you go out of customs to the left, right next to the other bank exchange
3+4. As you go out of customs to the right you will see them straight ahead

And I wasn't even actively looking for an ATM! (I personally rent a car and find that I have no real need for cash during my stay except maybe for tips, although most places accept that on CC as well)

I also had a look at the exchange rate, it was 4.11 NIS for € and 3.67 NIS for $ (according to xe.com, the exchange rate is 4.22 & 3.75 respectively), I have no idea if they charge commission but even if they do it cannot be that bad for an airport change (try changing Euros to Koruna in Prague airport, you might as well buy a cheeseburger at McDonalds and get the change instead!)

seaskybound

I will reiterate that Train to a one of Tel Aviv's 4 stations and a taxi from there is usually a better solution, if the wait for train is not long (twice an hour)