Last Updated on November 17, 2021
Purim in Israel – Price Check
Anglo-list’s price checks and comparisons have helped our immigrant community make important financial decisions and build their Aliyah budget. Grocery and food items, holiday packages and cost of living are just some of the price checks and comparisons we’ve done in the past. Purim gift giving (mishloach manot), fancy dress costumes and charitable contributions can add up to large sums of money. We hope this price comparison and tips will make for a pleasant, stress-free Purim this year.
Purim Costumes
Purim falls during the month of Adar in the Hebrew calendar. As you amble along the streets, at least one month before the festival of Purim, you will see shops in Israel stocked up with fancy-dress costumes and accessories for adults and children, for both the religious and secular communities.
Creative parents have probably already come up with a unique and affordable Purim costume idea, but many Israeli children will want to dress up like their favorite superhero, a character from a movie or popular children’s television program or perhaps something more traditional like Queen Esther or a High Priest.
Kindergartens and day care centers, in Israel, encourage the children to start playing dress-up games a few weeks before so that when the big day comes, they don’t get stage fright and refuse to dress up at all.
One of the local Israeli suppliers we contacted, offers a selection of some 350 different ready-to-wear costumes but that does not include all the accessories that go with the perfect Purim outfit; wigs, masks, make-up, crowns, hats and other items. Purim is big business in Israel and competition is rife.
Shop Prices
At Toys-R-Us masks, wigs and other accessories are priced at less than 50 shekels. Costumes (from their on-line catalog) start at 120NIS for a toddlers outfit and their most expensive outfit was a Ninja costume retailing at 299NIS. You can purchase online or have it delivered directly to your home. Toys-R-Us also offer an in-store pickup. Allow 10 days for delivery. Orders of less than 200NIS come with a 30NIS delivery fee.
The Stock chain, our favorite dollar shop, has a selection of Purim costumes for boys and girls of all ages as well as adults. Best of all, they have inexpensive Purim accessories. If you prefer ready-to-wear, Stock has toddler outfits for 50 shekels, children’s costumes for around 150 shekels. Adult costumes start at 120 shekels.
If you can do-it-yourself you might consider making a hammentaschen (oznei hamman) from cardboard, Sponge-Bob, a remote control, colorful butterfly wings which would set you back less than 50 shekels. Make-up, face paints, colored hair spray can be bought cheaply and so can body accessories like Hamman’s ears (or maybe they are Mr. Spock’s), Pinocchio’s nose or oversized rubber feet.
Buying Online
If you are an online shopping addict, we found a few websites to order from. Better hurry though!
For out American readers, Buycostumes.com has a range of approximately 4,000 costumes to choose from. The most expensive costume we found on this website was for a Star Wars Black Shadow Trooper priced at $1,319 (a whopping 4,000 shekels). Accessories start at $5. Amazon is selling the same costume for $799 and they will ship it to Israel.
Amazon is selling baby and toddler outfits starting from $1. An adult’s cosplay princess gown and cloak will set you back $80. Remember personal imports about $75 are subject to duty in Israel.
AliExpress is selling a much cheaper version of the Star Wars Black Shadow Trooper for around 100NIS. The Cosplay Darth Vader Costume is selling for 235NIS. Allow 2-6 weeks for delivery.
LightInTheBox have some nice-looking adult costumes like Cleopatra, Gatsby, Medieval and an Audrey Hepburn outfit. Starting at around 100NIS, their most expensive ladies Gothic Rococo gown sells for 650NIS. For men there is a kilt on sale for 140NIS.
Make your own Purim Costume
Here are 4 great ideas:
- Collect leaves and branches from the garden and fashion them into a headgear (a hot glue gun will come in handy). A piece of brown fabric, tailored to resemble the bark and hey presto, you are now a ‘tree’.
- The hat of the cat from The Cat in the Hat, is an easy one to make; all you need is some stiff, white cardboard, red paint and a few staples to put it together.
- Remember Love Hearts – those sherbet sweets you ate when you were a child? You can make your own. Cut a large circle from a piece or colored cardboard (Heb: bristol), draw a heart in the same color and print your special message. You can go with something traditional like “I’m Yours”, “You’re Cute”, or something more modern like “YOLO” or “Text Me”. Thread a ribbon in a matching color to go around your neck
- DIY Minions can be put together with an inexpensive, yellow T-Shirt, glue on some plastic eyes (bought at a craft or dollar shop) and draw in the facial expression of your choice with a colored marker. Emojis can be made in the same way.
Swap
One of our readers suggested shopping for Purim at second hand stores and she recommended Meshumashehu, in Misgav, near Karmiel (see below). If Karmiel is far or similar shops are not accessible, swap Purim outfits with friends. You might want to consider posting on one of the many Buy, Sell & Swap groups on Facebook. You will save a bundle.
Safety First
According to the European standard, children’s fancy dress costumes fall under the category of toys and as there is a ‘play hazard’ whilst wearing them and they must conform to laid out standards. Before granting the local safety seal of approval (Hebrew: Tav Teken – תו תקן), the Standards Institution of Israel, tests toys for the following:
- Heavy metals
- Fire hazard (wigs, fabrics, colored hair sprays all present a safety hazard)
- Choking hazard
- Loose parts (eyes, buttons, badges that could fall off)
- Sharp edges
- Durability
Some 10% of toys imported into Israel, do not pass the Israel Standards Institution testing. Before you buy, check that the items carry an Israel, American or European safety seal of approval especially if you are buying a heavily discounted item.
Here are examples of a few safety seals, you might look out for on local or imported toys.
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 |
 |
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| Israel Safety Seal | European Union Safety Seal |
German Safety Seal | International Safety Seal – ISO |
Not only should an item carry a recognized safety seal of approval, like the examples above, the item should be clearly labeled and any hazard warning should be listed. The importer’s details should also be clearly marked.
Hammentaschen (Oznei Hamman)
What would Purim be without Oznei Hamman? Indulge yourself! Oznei Hamman with a selection of fillings like poppy seed, chocolate, halva and dates have been on supermarket shelves and in bakeries since Tu B’Shvat .
How much do they cost?
| Rami Levi Online | Not available |
| Shufersal Online | 43 shekels/kg – reduced from 52 shekels |
| Make your own | 75 – 100 shekels for a large batch, depending on the fillings you choose. Our recipe, yields about 50 pieces. You will need at least 4 hours of uninterrupted prep time. Flavor wise, there is nothing to beat homemade. |
Mishloach Manot (Purim Hampers)
Parents, if this is your first Purim in Israel, you will be expected to provide one small hamper for each of your children to take to school to be swapped with classmates.
- Small hampers for children, can be bought from the supermarket from around 15 shekels.
- Ready-made family hampers can cost anywhere between 50 – 200 shekels each at the supermarket.
- Buy online for family and friends abroad.
- Make your own. Supermarkets have stocks of 5 shekel items that you can use to fill your hamper. Buy hamper items in the shuk and save! Your local dollar shop has a selection of inexpensive baskets and gift bags for your Purim hampers.
Chag Sameach!
