Ramat Gan (Israel) is the most successful city in the country. Of course, it surpassed Haifa,Hadera, Tel Aviv, and other major Israeli cities in terms of happiness, education, and life expectancy.
General information
Ramat Gan (Hebrew for “garden on a hill”) is a small city located in Gush Dan, the central agglomeration of Israel. Green streets with low-rise buildings are mixed with skyscrapers, sports facilities, private mansions and elite clubs and restaurants.
If you look at the map, you can see that Ramat Gan is a satellite of cosmopolitan Tel Aviv – only Ayalon hwy, the country’s largest highway, separates it from the most famous metropolis in Israel. It is for this reason that Ramat Gan and Tel Aviv are included in the same tourist route, which is in great demand among modern tourists.
Sports life
Despite its relatively modest size (according to 2018 data, just over 150 thousand people live in the city), Ramat Gan boasts a certain number of notable places. First of all, it is worth noting the stadium, designed for 42 thousand spectators. This is not only the largest football field in the country, but also one of the 3 sports facilities in Israel that have a high UEFA rating.
In addition to the main arena, the stadium has 2 training fields, restaurants and cafes, Parking for 4 thousand cars and many other structures. Developed infrastructure and excellent coverage made it the main venue for the national team of the country, as well as various world matches and championships (including the opening of the Maccabiads, international sports games). In addition, concerts and other festive events are regularly held here.
Another important sports destination in Ramat Gan is Marom Nave, an urban complex designed for training and competing in volleyball, handball, mini-football, basketball and other sports. You can also play a game of tennis or go for a swim in the pool.
Education
The scientific life of Ramat Gan deserves no less attention. So, on its territory there are several educational institutions at once – the Bar-Ilan University, the A. Shenkar Academic College of Textile Technologies and Fashion (the only one in Israel!) and the Beit Zvi Higher School of Performing Arts. In addition, the city operates:
- 30 primary schools,
- 154 kindergartens,
- 10 high schools.
All educational institutions are equipped with air conditioning, educational laboratories, modern computers and a library fund.
Nature and Parks
Looking at photos of Ramat Gan in tourist avenues, you will probably notice another important city attraction. We are talking about the National Park Leumi, on 2 km2 of which there is a picturesque lake (they say in its waters there are 12 kg of carp!) and a huge number of flowers, palm trees, oaks and eucalyptus trees. This is a favorite holiday destination not only for locals, but also for most tourists. It is really very beautiful here – especially in February, when after the rainy winters characteristic of the middle latitudes, you find yourself in the realm of evergreen summer.
Finally, we note that the city has about a thousand enterprises and a large medical center “Shiba”, which provides work for more than 5 thousand people. All this makes Ramat Gan one of the most economically and socially prosperous regions of the country.
Attractions and entertainment
Ramat Gan regularly hosts various cultural and entertainment events. The city Theater and the Palace of Culture often host lectures, exhibitions, performances, concerts, and other large-scale events. Fans of panopticonism should visit the city’s many museums. Night-time partygoers will also find something to do – there are plenty of bars and clubs in Ramat Gan, so you don’t have to go to Tel Aviv next door. However, the two most popular tourist destinations are the Zoological Safari Park and the diamond Exchange. Let’s talk about them.
Safari Park
Ramat Gan Safari Park can be called without exaggeration the most famous attraction of this small city. Being the largest zoological center in Israel, it accommodates about 1,600 animals, of which:
- 25 reptile species,
- 68-mammals,
- 130-birds.
The safari center itself, which covers an area of about 100 hectares, is divided into 3 parts. The first, standard, is represented by a free zone in which rhinos and hippos, zebras and ostriches, kangaroos and other harmless inhabitants stay in the most natural conditions. In the second zone, you can see elephants, monkeys, giraffes, crocodiles and bears, tigers and other animals, most of which live in separate closed enclosures. The third is the Lviv region. It can only be accessed by safari jeeps with their windows up. In addition, there are children’s playgrounds and various attractions on the territory of the safari park.
Staff at the Ramat Gan Safari Zoological Center do their best to protect wildlife and preserve rare and endangered species. Animals even breed here, which is a rare occurrence among animals living in captivity. Although the conditions of this zoo cannot be called involuntary. Its inhabitants feel quite at ease, which allows visitors to observe all stages of animal life-from food to finding a family companion, mating games, producing offspring and physical competitions for a place in the sun.
You can move around the territory of the safari park either on foot, by private transport or by rented electric car. In addition, you can buy a ticket for a special bus that makes stops at the most popular sites of the complex. As a rule, there is a guide who tells interesting stories from the life of local residents. The most popular tours include:
- Memories from Africa – a fascinating journey in which you will learn all about forgotten tribes and endangered animals;
- Morning safari-starts before the property opens (approximately 07:30);
- Night safari-a walk through the open area, allowing you to get acquainted with the life of the zoo’s nocturnal inhabitants;
- Midnight safari – is an analog of the previous version, but is held a little later.
Before visiting the safari center, visitors are told about the safety and behavior rules, one of which prohibits feeding animals with food brought with them.
Practical information
Ramat Gan safari’s opening hours are affected by the time of year. If it is open from 09:00 to 17:00 in winter, it will close no later than 19:00 in summer. You should come early. Entry stops 2 hours before closing time. The park is open seven days a week. The only exceptions are a few Jewish holidays and cases of bad weather (for example, prolonged rains).
Cost of the session:
- Regular ticket (children from 2 years old with a birth certificate and adults) – 74 ILS;
- With a discount (students, disabled people, pensioners, veterans, etc.) – 67 ILS.
Diamond Exchange and Museum
Another important attraction of Ramat Gan is the Diamond Exchange, a private company located in the city’s business center that provides diamond processing and diamond trading services. Selling more than 50% of all the stones mined on the planet, it has remained the largest for 50 years, not only in Israel, but also in the whole world.
The Diamond Exchange occupies a complex of 4 buildings headed by Moshe Aviv or the so-called City Gate. 74 floors, soaring into the sky to a height of 244 m, made Israel Diamond Exchange the tallest and most recognizable skyscraper in the country.
One of the exchange’s premises houses the Harry Oppenheimer Diamond Museum, a themed institution named after one of the leaders of the diamond processing corporation. The permanent collection of the museum is represented by unique diamonds, unprocessed precious stones and various jewelry items. At the same time, the most famous expositions include:
- Call of Diamonds-tells about the history of diamond mining and processing methods, contains about 60 diamond jewelry created by Israeli craftsmen for folk art competitions;
- Silver images of Golden Apples – a collection of ancient diamond jewelry found during archaeological excavations;
- Indian Legend-showcases the jewelry of Indian Maharajas;
- Breathe life into stone-an exhibition of original jewelry created by the world’s best craftsmen.
The main pride of this place is the inlay of a helicopter model studded with small precious stones, a fountain pen made of multi-colored diamonds, and an hourglass diamond clock that turns over every half hour.
You can only enter the Diamond Exchange Museum as part of an excursion group. After viewing the exhibits, visitors are transferred to the sales hall, where everyone can buy something to remember them by.
Today, the Ramat Gan Diamond Exchange is as fair and open as possible. It is visited daily by more than 6 thousand people. Entrance for tourists is free. In addition to visiting the museum exhibits, most of them tend to go to the central hall to watch the negotiations of brokers, businessmen and buyers.
Where to stay?
The city of Ramat Gan in Israel is not the largest choice of housing, because most tourists who come here prefer to stay in the neighboring Tel Aviv. As for prices in high season (May-October):
- a double room in a 4* hotel will cost 900 ILS per day,
- accommodation in the guest house will be slightly cheaper – about 400 ILS,
- the price of an apartment or apartment will be at least 230 ILS.
On a note: What to see in Tel Aviv-the main attractions of the city.
Food
Ramat Gan has many bars, restaurants and cafes of various price categories. So, in the area of the Diamond Exchange, you can find several respectable establishments offering Lebanese, Chinese, American, Italian and Syrian cuisine.
Do you want to save money? Go to any food court-it serves both traditional European and national Israeli dishes, represented by forshmak, tzimes, falafel, hummus and various sweets.
No less popular is street food – it is just as delicious as restaurant food. The only difference is in the pitch. By the way, in most urban establishments, Kashrut is observed – cooking according to Jewish canons (without certain seafood, pork meat and other prohibited components).
If we talk about the cost, then:
- lunch or dinner for 2 in a mid-range restaurant will cost 220 ILS,
- cheap cafe menu will last for 96 ILS,
- a snack at McDonald’s will cost even less – about 50 ILS.
As for street food:
- the cost of coffee with a bun will be about 20 ILS,
- the price of shawarma starts from 15 ILS depending on the size and ingredients.
Weather and climate
The mild climate and comfortable temperature regime make Ramat Gan a great holiday destination at any time of the year. The average annual air temperature is +24°C during the day and +18°C at night. The hottest months are July, August and September (+30°C), while the coldest and rainiest months are December, January and February (+17°C). The lowest amount of precipitation falls in the summer months, and the high season falls in November, April and May – at this time, the air in Ramat Gan warms up to +22-+25°C.
Read also: Tel Aviv Beaches Review – where to relax best.
Interesting facts
Biography of the city of Ramat Gan (Israel) is fraught with many interesting facts. Here are just a few of them:
- The Leonardo hotel chain, considered the best in the country, has made it the “residence” of one of its hotels.
- Ramat Gan is the oldest city in Israel – 10% of its population has passed the 75-year mark.
- The mayor of the city, Avraham Krinici, won the city elections 12 times in a row. At the same time, for all 43 years of his leadership (from 1926 to 1969), he did not receive a single salary, as he refused it on the first working day. Perhaps Krinici would have remained the head of the city until now, if not for his premature death in a car accident.
- Ramat Gan was originally called Ir Ganin.