How do I deal with parking?
Parking in Israel, really isn’t so difficult – IF, you know what your doing. On the flip side, if you don’t know how to read the signs or where to park, you could get some hefty fines or even get towed…which will certainly be a pain to resolve.
So, what’s the secret for parking? There is essentially only one thing to know. On the streets where it’s ok to park, you will see a painted blue and white line. If you see that and there is a space – grab it!!! In Jerusalem, they are hard to find, but outside the city, it’s a little easier. Once you park, go find a posted sign with instructions. You don’t have to know how to read Hebrew, although it can help.
What you want to look for on the posted sign, is the start and end time. The start time tells you how early you are allowed to park or when the parking fees start, and the end time is when you are allowed to park until or when the parking fees no longer apply, and it’s free to park. PAY VERY CLOSE ATTENTION to what we just said. Some areas only allow permit holders to park before and after the start and end times. This means STAY AWAY before the start time and after the end time. You should see this mentioned on the sign, so be sure to read the signs. If there is no mention of permits required, then it’s free to park there before the start time and after the end time.
So, how do you pay? Here is the tough part. Unfortunately, Israel doesn’t really have meters or machines to pay in most areas, they use a mobile app. There are two mobile apps you could use. One is called PANGO and the other is called CELLOPARK. If you do not have a smart phone, you can pay with your mobile phone by calling the number SOMETIMES posted at the bottom of the parking signs – HOWEVER- you must have an Israel SIM card or phone with an Israel mobile number for this to work.
The better and easier option is to have the mobile app on a smart phone. To sign up for the apps above, you will need an Israel phone or SIM card with an Israeli number (except for the hack we discovered – see below). The reason it requires an Israeli number is because it sends you a text code to confirm the account. For some reason, it won’t send the text to an American number.
If you have an Israeli SIM card and phone number, just sign up for a new account, add a credit card for payment and be sure to enter the license plate on your car – this is how parking enforcement will know your car has an active parking session.
HOWEVER, if you are using you American mobile phone number and SIM card, there is a hack. Download the app and start filling out the registration. At some point it will ask for your number so it can send you a code to verify your account and phone. Since this doesn’t work with American numbers, you will contact customer service for CELLOPARK via their Whatsapp customer service number by clicking this link. https://api.whatsapp.com/send/?phone=972543231266&text&type=phone_number&app_absent=0
In our experience, the customer service agent (during daytime business hours) was quick to get us signed up on the app.
Once you are set up, the app is pretty simple. The CELLOPARK app will show you where you are on the map and at the bottom of the page, there is a big button to click, which says PRESS TO START – this starts your parking session. Wait! Remember above that we discussed the start and end times of each parking area? The app will ask you which area you are parking at. Typically it will be an ending time of 18:00 or 19:00, so be sure to select the correct one. Once you select the start button, you will see a countdown to how much time you have left, based on the amount of money in your account. Be sure to come back to your car before the timer runs out. When you get back to your car, don’t forget to click STOP on the parking timer, as each minutes deducts from your paid balance. REMEMBER, just because you started the parking session, doesn’t mean that you are allowed to park there – make sure to read the signs to make sure there aren’t any special rules or permit times as we mentioned above.