A lot of religious Jewish people travelling abroad see such trips as a big “project” they have to prepare for. Planning for such vacations involves a lot of nerves and worries. We decided to easy this process for you and created a list of things that will make all your journey fun and enjoyable.
The most useful advice we can give is not to panic and understand that right now almost everywhere you can find a place to pray and eat kosher.
Important things to check before the journey:
- Check if you can legally enter the country and if you need a visa or any other supporting
- Find out if there is a Jewish community or Habad in this area.
- Check if where is an embassy of your country or any other representative facility.
- Don’t forget to find out information about internet providers and how you can connect
- Find where the nearest hospitals and emergency rooms are situated in case you’ll need
- Check out what kind of vaccines you have to make before entering the country.
- Read about local transportation and download offline maps.
- Check if it is not dangerous to wear Jewish attributes.
As soon as the most important things are double-checked, download these useful apps that will facilitate your journey.
- It is not always convenient to buy your flight tickets and order hotel through travel agencies. In order to save money, time and compare prices you can use online booking systems and applications. Here are some examples:
documents. to your family and friend at home.
medical help.
Kayak
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kayak-flights-hotels-cars/id305204535?mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.kayak.android
SkyScanner
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/skyscanner/id415458524?mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.skyscanner.android.main
Hopper
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/hopper-airfare-predictions/id904052407?mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hopper.mountainview.play
- Many religious travelers seek travel agencies’ help to order true “kosher hotel”. Before doing this, check out these apps that provide the same info about such hotels – you can easily order room online and reduce your spending.
Airbnb helps you find apartments in every city and has a huge database with “kosher apartments” available.
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/en/app/airbnb/id401626263?mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.airbnb.android
Booking.com
Find hotels with kosher food and read reviews from other travellers.
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/en/app/booking.com-hotel-reservations/id367003839?mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.booking
Jewgether
http://www.jewgether.org/links.asp
This is a social website where Jewish people offer an opportunity to stay at their homes. It is like visiting a friend – you get to know the person you will be staying
with before the journey and you can be sure that the place is kosher.
Nowadays you don’t have to carry a luggage full of kosher food with you to every journey – you can use applications that help you find kosher products and restaurants everywhere in the world.
Download these apps before your trip:
Is It Kosher?
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/is-it-kosher/id855252975?mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.kosherdev.koshergator
This application helps to find kosher products in supermarkets, all you need to do is to go to the shop and scan the barcode of the product (or search the database by products’ name) to check it’s status. App is free for online usage and you can always download the offline version.
Kosher Near Me
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kosher-near-me/id479840927?mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.kosherNearMe
Helps you find kosher restaurants in your area.
Open Table
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/opentable-restaurant-reservations/id296581815?mt=8
App has same features as Kosher Near Me.
Is it Gluten Free?
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=953199151&mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.kosherdev.glutenfree
Use this app if you are allergic to gluten – it works the same way as „Is it Kosher?” and gives you info about products’ components.
FYI, you can always eat kosher at Habad!
These apps help you find synagogues and places to pray in the country of visit.
Simple Luach
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/simple-luach-jewish-calendar/id918952058?mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.kosherdev.simpleluach
This app contains a Jewish calendar with the following information included: maps that show nearest minyans; list of Eruvs from all over the world, Shabbat and Zmanim time and a lot more.
Sidur
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/siddur-sdwr-zmanim-luach-minyanim/id286478367?mt=8
With this app you can download Sidur, so you don’t have to carry a book with you.
Use these apps to order a taxi:
Uber
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/en/app/uber/id368677368?mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ubercab
Using this app you can order a taxi and pay for you trip by credit card online (no cash involved, so need to argue with the taxi driver about the price of the journey).
Get Taxi
iOS – https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/gett-nyc-black-car/id449655162?mt=8
Android – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.gettaxi.android
Order a taxi online to any place.
We wish you a safe and pleasant trip!
