3.1.1 around town
3.1.1.1 streets
3.1.2 museums
3.1.3 active
3.1.4 beaches
3.1.5 culture
3.1.6 shopping
3.1.7 nightlife
3.1.8 eat
3.1.9 sleep
3.1.10 architecture

Nightime cityscape

Performance artist or regular guy - this is Tel Aviv!

On Rothschild

Performing

I'm in Israel for two weeks, how long should I spend here?

Tel Aviv is Israel's capital of cool, and you can easily make this city a destination in itself for a weekend.

We would suggest using the city as a base for a week and traveling around the country for the rest.

Do not miss:

Sheinkin Street
White City
Tel Aviv Port
Neve Tzedek
Jaffa

Photo credit:

Banner - Flickr user yanivba
1 - Flickr user ZeHawk
2&4 - Flickr user Miss Pupik
5- Flickr user Ilan
6 - Flickr user Or Hiltch
Bottom - Flickr user * Jerry *

3.1 Tel Aviv

“The Mediterranean Capital of Cool" is how the New York Times described Tel Aviv,

Israel’s second city, located on the Mediterranean, a city with a savvy attitude and cultural astuteness. “The city which never sleeps”, as Tel Aviv has come to be known for its renowned nightlife, is also a city of fantastic cuisine, culture, and liberalism. The city’s beaches stretch for miles, whilst many prominent museums, and restored quarters such as the ancient port of Jaffa, Neve Tzedek and the White City of Bauhaus style buildings make Tel Aviv a city which you can never stop exploring.

Tel Aviv is in 2009 celebrating its centenary. Founded in 1909 as a suburb north of the city of Jaffa, believed to be the oldest port in the world, the suburb grew and grew, and eventually overtook Jaffa in size, merging with it after Israel’s independence to form a single municipality. The city is now the largest Jewish city of modern times, at the heart of the Israeli hi-tech industry known as Silicon Wadi.

Immigrants have come to Tel Aviv from far and wide, bringing with them their own styles of cuisine, culture, and architecture. As such, no matter what you are after, you’ll be sure to find it here. In terms of food, the city has gained a reputation for high quality, and, by European standards, lower priced restaurants.

The cultural scene in Tel Aviv is equally diverse. Theaters, dance centres, and concert halls, as well as museums and galleries, are sprawled around the city and Tel Aviv's legendary nightlife just gets better and better.

In 2003, Tel Aviv was designated UNESCO World Heritage Status for its ‘White City’. This is an area around Rothschild Boulevard in the north of the city which has the world’s largest collection of international, or Bauhaus styled buildings. The area has recently been restored and walking tours of the White City take place regularly, whilst the Bauhaus Museum offers an insight into this architectural style brought to the city by German immigrants.

Since the 1980s gentrification has taken place in many of the formerly poor southern neighborhoods of the city to create what are now the trendiest quarters of this cool city such as Neve Tzedek and the Florentin. These more Middle-Eastern style neighborhoods are at the heart of the city’s nightlife. Other areas to go, live, and be seen are the ultra-cool Sheinkin Street with its cafes and boutiques and the redeveloped Tel Aviv Port in the north of the city.

The 1990s saw Tel Aviv move into a new era as the hi-tech industry developed around the city, bringing with it new skyscrapers. The tallest of these, the Azrieli Center Circular Tower offers an observation gallery with views across this vibrant, modern city.

A visit to Tel Aviv couldn’t be complete without a visit to the beach. Running the length of the city, from north to south, many of the large-chain hotels overlook the promenade. The city also has a selection of unique, trendy, boutique or more modestly priced hotels.

More Tel Aviv

Street schene