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Sightseeing Overview
Sightseeing Overview
The Tel Aviv-Jaffa city center is a long, narrow strip along the seashore. Jaffa (locally called, and written, Yafo) is located south of the modern city, while Ramat Aviv, home of Tel Aviv University and the extensive Eretz Israel Museum, is located on the outskirts of north Tel Aviv on the other side of the river Yarkon. Along the prized city-center coastline are many upscale hotels, notably the Dan, the David InterContinental and the Sheraton, with the Hilton a little further north, and prestigious residential and commercial centers, such as Opera Tower. Continuing north is the dormitory town and beach resort Herzliya. To the east and south of Tel Aviv are the residential suburbs of Ramat Gan, Giv’atayim, Holon and beach resort Bat Yam.

All the various quarters of central Tel Aviv have their own unique attractions and to get a flavor of this enigmatic city, visitors should spend time wandering the streets.

North Tel Aviv is generally more prosperous, while Allenby Street, which runs south-east from the city center and beach, can be very seedy in places. In the adjacent central neighborhood known as Little Tel Aviv, there are excellent examples of the city’s remarkable Bauhaus architecture – Tel Aviv has the world’s finest surviving collection of this distinctive 1920s/1930s style, totaling over 3,500 buildings. Many, especially around Rothschild Boulevard, have been handsomely restored. The Florentin Quarter is lively and full of interest , with a selection of some of the best local cuisine in the city. Several restaurants located in this district are long-established small family businesses – the popular Elimelech, on Wolffson Street, has reputedly been serving the best traditional Ashkenazi food since 1936. Visitors should also feast their eyes on some of the bakeries scattered throughout the area, which serve delicious borekas (savoury-filled pastries) and other traditional snacks. The narrow streets lined with old buildings in the Yemenite Quarter, settled by Jewish refugees from Yemen but now much taken up by young arty types, are still imbued with an Oriental, almost Arabic style contrasting with the rest of the city. The large and busy Carmel Market (the city’s main open- air food market) runs alongside the Yemenite Quarter. Neve Zedek was the first Jewish neighborhood outside Jaffa (established in 1867) and it is currently benefiting from extensive restoration. Over the years, it has served as a home for numerous artists and now houses various different galleries.

Tel Aviv’s major sights are its diverse and unusual museums, some focusing on Israel’s ancient history, some on landmarks in its 20th-century Zionist history, with very poignant records of the struggles of Jewish refugees, the conflict with the British and with the Arabs, and the first steps of the new state. Among the most impressive is the Museum of the Jewish Diaspora, while in the old town of Jaffa, there are remnants of the history of the world’s oldest port, as well as another important museum. However, perhaps the best of Tel Aviv, though, is the more frivolous side, especially its superb beach and promenade. And Jaffa remains the Tel Avivians’ perennial favorite, with a host of galleries, craft shops and cafés set against the landmarks of the Mamoudiyeh Mosque and St Peter’s Monastery. Whether by car, or by foot strolling along the coastal walkway, all routes into Old Jaffa are busy as the evening begins. Climbing from the Ottoman Clock Tower to Kedumim Square, visitors can view the breathtaking coastline of Tel Aviv as the metropolis prepares for another vibrant night.

When sightseeing or just exploring, visitors should be aware of the intense campaign of terrorism being waged against Israel. Although these attacks have been almost completely halted by the construction of the security barrier separating Israel from the Palestinian territories, there remains a risk that a determined individual may get through. Popular crowded venues (busy street markets, family restaurants and cafés, crowded buses, student canteens, teenage discos) have especially been targeted by suicide bombers. Security guards have now been posted at the doorways or entrances to most such locations and it is advisable to be wary of venues that have not put any security measures in place. To date, tourist sights have not been struck by the bombers, and Arab areas are unlikely to be hit except in error.

Tourist Information
Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo/Association for Tourism
Main office: Tel Aviv Promenade
46 Herbert Samuel Street (corner of 2 Geula Street)
Tel: (03) 516 6188.
Website: www.tel-aviv.gov.il
Opening hours: Sun-Thurs 0930-1730. Fri 0930-1300.

Information desk: City Hall Lobby
69 Ibn Givrol Street
Tel: (03) 521 8500.
Opening hours: Sun-Thurs 0900-1400.

There are also tourist information desks at the Central Bus Station (sixth floor) and Ben Gurion International Airport.

Key Attractions:

Eretz Israel Museum
The name of this important museum on the northern edge of the city means ‘Land of Israel’ and it aims to trace 3,000 years of material culture through the artifacts found on this very site, as well as examples brought in from other Israeli locations. Constructed around the extensive archaeological site of Tel Kasile, the museum resembles a park and is housed in a dozen separate pavilions, each of which could be viewed as a museum in its own right dealing with a separate aspect of Israel’s material culture and ethnography. The Glass Pavilion traces the history of glass making from the earliest examples through to the Middle Ages. The Kadman Numismatic Pavilion, tracing the history of various currencies, has an extensive display of coins, while the Ceramics Pavilion has an extensive collection of ancient and traditional pottery. The Nechustan Pavilion displays exhibits sourced from the Timna copper mines, more famously known as King Solomon’s Mines. There is also a planetarium and an extensive research library open to the public. Visitors are advised to buy a site map upon arrival at the museum, to help navigate their way around the different pavilions.

2 Haim Levanon Street, Ramat Aviv
Tel: (03) 641 5244.
Website: www.eretzmuseum.org.il
Opening hours: Sun- Thurs 0900-1500, Fri and Sat 1000-1400.
Admission charge.

Tel Aviv Museum of Art
Featuring works from around the world, the Tel Aviv Museum of Art has been the nation’s principal showcase of modern art since the 1930s and was originally housed in the home of the city’s first mayor, Meir Dizengoff. Today, the main part of the museum occupies a large purpose-built structure adjacent to its separate wing, The Helena Rubinstein Pavilion for Contemporary Art. There is also another wing, along with a sculpture garden. In addition to hosting a succession of exhibitions brought from the world’s leading modern art museums, the museum maintains a distinguished permanent collection of European and American art of the 20th century, notably Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings by Paul Cézanne, Claude Monet, Salvador Dali and especially Marc Chagall. The museum also serves as a venue for a wide variety of artistic exhibitions and concerts, as well as discussions and debate on a range of cultural topics.

27 Shaul Hamelech Boulevard
Tel: (03) 607 7020 or 528 7196 (Helena Rubinstein Pavilion).
Website: www.tamuseum.com
Opening hours: Mon and Wed 1000-1600, Tues and Thurs 1000-2200, Fri 1000-1400, Sat 1000-1600.
Admission charge.

Beth Hatefutsoth (Museum of the Jewish Diaspora)
Devoted to the record of Jewish history and migration, particularly since the Jews were expelled by the Romans from Israel (or Judea, as it then was) in AD70, the Museum of the Jewish Diaspora (its Hebrew name is pronounced Bayt Ha-tay-foot-sot) provides a unique look into the development and cultural heritage of the Jewish people up until the return to Israel. On six floors, the museum displays the astonishing diversity of various Jewish communities, also highlighting the common cultural and religious threads that enabled the Jewish people to cling on to their ethnicity and identity for almost 2,000 years. Especially enjoyable are the musical sections, in which one can listen to Jewish music from Ashkenazi and Sephardi communities and the rousing songs of Zionist pioneer days. The museum regularly hosts special exhibits related to the migration and cultural contributions of immigrants. Special exhibitions have dealt with the island of Malta, Lithuanian Jewry and the cultural influences on the work of Sigmund Freud.

Tel Aviv University Campus, Klausner Street, Ramat Aviv
Tel: (03) 640 8000.
Website: www.bh.org.il
Opening hours: Sun-Tues and Thur 1000-1600, Wed 1000-1800, Fri 0900-1300.
Admission charge.

Independence Hall
The building that houses Independence Hall is one of Tel Aviv’s original structures, formerly the home of Meir Dizengoff, the city’s first mayor. On 14 May 1948, it served as the venue for the historic declaration that brought the State of Israel into being. The house has since become a museum recalling that momentous day and the events that led up to it. The building also serves as a museum giving a rousing and patriotic history of Zionism. Among extraordinary displays in the museum are several fascinating historic photographs, showing such moments as the barren sand dunes north of Jaffa being awarded by lot to Jewish settlers. Others record the United Nations in session in November 1947 voting to partition Palestine and the meeting at which David Ben-Gurion announced the creation of the State of Israel.

16 Rothschild Boulevard, south Tel Aviv
Tel: (03) 517 3942.
Website: www.eretzmuseum.org.il
Opening hours: Sun-Tues and Thu 0900-1400, Wed 0900-1700, Fri 0900-1300.
Admission charge.

Old Jaffa
The most enjoyable way to and from Jaffa is on the waterfront walkway from Tel Aviv. Some attractive cafés are set beside the walk as it approaches Jaffa, the tables on their large outdoor terraces positioned for the best views along the coast. For those arriving by car, the entrance to the Old Town is marked by the Ottoman Clock Tower, a small landmark built in 1906 to honor Palestine’s Turkish ruler, Sultan Abdul Hamid II. Identical towers were built elsewhere in the Ottoman Empire, including the other two most important towns in Ottoman Palestine, Akko and Hebron. The clock tower serves as one of Jaffa’s main focal points for weekend crowds, who gather around it to socialise in the balmy air or meet up before eating at the many nearby restaurants. Around the corner from the clock tower rise the minaret and domes of Mahmoudiyeh Mosque, constructed by the Turks in 1809 and renovated three years later – with stonework taken from the Roman ruins of Ashkelon and Caesarea. Across the street, housed in the former 17th-century Turkish government building, is the Jaffa Museum, with a remarkable collection of artifacts illuminating Jaffa’s long history. A few paces uphill is the pretty Abrasha Park and Kedumim Square, Old Jaffa’s main plaza, dominated by St Peter’s Monastery. Narrow steps and lanes (named after signs of the zodiac) zigzag down from here to the historic harbor, busy with traders and mariners for thousands of years but now strangely empty except for tourists sitting at fish restaurants.

Ottoman Clock Tower and Mahmoudiyeh Mosque
Ottoman Clock Tower Square, Yefet Street, Old Jaffa

Jaffa Museum
10 Mifratz Shlomo Street, Old Jaffa
Tel: (03) 682 5375.
Opening hours: Sun-Thurs 0900-1300.
Admission charge.

St Peter’s Monastery
Kedumim Square, Old Jaffa

Further Distractions:

Shuk HaCarmel (Carmel Market)
Situated on the edge of the Yemenite Quarter, this packed daily market extends along the long, narrow HaCarmel Street (and neighboring lanes), which branches off Allenby Street at Magen David Circle. Despite the lack of traffic, it is noisy with stall-holders’ cries and busy with the extraordinary crush of people. Huge piles of fresh fruits, vegetables, olives, herbs, spices and meats are on sale for the lowest prices in the city. Stalls often specialize in just one item, offering only crates of nectarines, for example, or olives or oranges. The market is a perfect location to observe the bringing together of East European shtetls (Jewish villages), the Jewish quarters of Arabia, the sophistication of European Jewry and the raucous energy of the sabras (Jews born in Israel), all of whom are pressed shoulder to shoulder here. The market is especially hectic and colorful on Fridays, as people shop for Shabbat. A more sedate craft market can be found in parallel Nahalat Binyamin.

HaCarmel Street, south Tel Aviv
Opening hours: Sun-Thurs 0600-1900, Fri 0600-1300.
Free admission.

Azrieli Center
For a phenomenal view over the unplanned sprawl of still-growing Tel Aviv and Jaffa and far beyond the city limits, visitors should take the high-speed lift (traveling at 6m, or 20ft per second) to the 49th floor observatory of the downtown Azrieli Center. On a clear day, it is possible to see (with the aid of the powerful telescopes) Jerusalem in one direction and Haifa in another. Although its 84-window observatory is the highest in Israel, this remarkable circular tower (with 50 floors above ground and seven below) is not quite the country’s tallest building, having been exceeded by the City Gate Tower (opened in Ramat Gan in 2001). The Azrieli Center in fact consists of three separate buildings, housing hundreds of offices, three embassies and a shopping mall and attracting 40,000 visitors a day.

132 Petach Tikvah Road
Tel: (03) 608 1179.
Website: www.azrielicenter.co.il
Opening hours: (Observatory) Tues-Sun 1000-2000 (Fri closes 1800).
Admission charge.

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