Tel Aviv-Jaffa is an Israeli city by the Mediterranean Sea that combines ancient times and vibrant modernity. In addition to going to restaurants and night discos, its guests will enjoy a rich cultural program: Tel Aviv offers unique and completely diverse attractions.
In this article, we have compiled a selection and brief description of several places in Tel Aviv that most often attract the attention of tourists. We hope this will help many of you decide what to see in Tel Aviv first.
Old City of Jaffa
It is from Jaffa, the oldest part of Tel Aviv, that it is advisable to start exploring this colorful city of Israel. The most interesting sights are concentrated here:
- Clock Tower,
- a unique floating tree,
- ancient mosques and christian churches,
- workshops of contemporary artists and sculptors,
- waterfront with stunning city views,
- old Jaffa port,
- a block with streets by zodiac signs.
And literally at every step you come across small shops with colorful souvenirs and antiques, restaurants with unusual interiors and delicious food, bakeries with freshly baked fragrant bread of different varieties.
A detailed description of Jaffa’s old town attractions can be found here.
Note to tourists! Be careful: the ancient narrow streets of Jaffa create a real maze with stone walls. To fully enjoy the fabulous atmosphere that reigns here and at the same time not get lost, it is advisable to use the map of Tel Aviv, which shows the sights of the city.
Tayelet Embankment
Along the famous beaches of Tel Aviv stretches a multi-kilometer embankment, known as the” Promenade “(Hebrew for”Taelet”). The most convenient way to start walking along the embankment is from the ancient port of Jaffa.
Walking around Tayelet is a real pleasure! It is always crowded here, however, it creates an amazing impression of privacy and isolation from the crowd. The embankment is very clean, spacious, well equipped and beautiful. And although the photos of this landmark in Tel Aviv are always bright and picturesque, they can not convey the full force of the impressions received from a real walk.
Curious tourists walking along one of the most famous embankments of Israel will see many interesting sights, including::
- Charles Clore Park scenic views;
- monument to the victims of the terrorist act organized in 2001 at the Dolfi disco club;
- monument in the form of a ship, towering in London Square, where Yarkon and Bograshov Streets intersect;
- Gordon outdoor pool, which draws water directly from the sea floor;
- the old port in the north of Tel Aviv-it is waiting for tourists at the very end of the way along the embankment.
However, it is very difficult to go through the entire Taelet in one walk: numerous cafes distract you.
Old Port of Tel Aviv
On the north side of Tel Aviv is the sea harbor, which operated in the 1938-1965-ies. Only in the 1990s, after 30 years of neglect, the port was converted into a tourist area, which quickly became known as a popular city attraction.
There is a very stylishly decorated territory: picturesque walking paths are landscaped, there are many decent restaurants, there are shops.
On weekdays, the port is quite quiet, and on Shabbat and other holidays there are always a lot of people.
Neve Tzedek District
The first settlement located outside of Jaffa was founded in 1887 and was named Neve Tzedek. The developers were well-to-do immigrants from Europe, so the streets of the Neve Cevek district resemble the streets of Prague, Munich, and Krakow at the same time.
When Tel Aviv began to grow rapidly in the first half of the twentieth century, Neve Tzedek began to resemble a backwater village nestled in the middle of skyscrapers in the south-eastern part of the metropolis. Having miraculously survived and escaped demolition, this area has acquired the status of a historical architectural monument.
Now the Neve Tzedek quarter in Tel Aviv is a tourist attraction that is always popular among tourists who have come to Israel. Unusual residential buildings with unique facades, interesting galleries and museums, cozy cafes and restaurants-all this turns a leisurely walk through the living open-air museum into a colorful series of bright pictures.
In this quarter, you should definitely see the Schlusha Bridge, the twin houses, and the former Alliance School. And you should also visit such local attractions as the museum of the artist and sculptor Nahum Gutman, the center for theater and ballet art “Susan Dalal”.
Rothschild Boulevard in the White City
White City-this is the name of neighborhoods in the southwestern part of Tel Aviv, built up with buildings in the Bauhaus style. This international architectural style was especially popular in the 1920s and 1950s – when a lot of white buildings were built in Israel, and their greatest concentration was in Tel Aviv. The huge complex of 4,000 buildings was declared a World Cultural Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2003.
Rothschild Boulevard, which has become one of the main tourist attractions of Tel Aviv, is located in the center of the White City. It starts at the Neve Tzedek district and ends at the Habima Theater.
What is interesting about Rothschild Boulevard, what sights can you see here? In the middle of the boulevard there is a beautiful park area with rows of ficus trees and acacias, with a picturesque pond. You can borrow a chaise longue and sit in it with a book from the free library located here. You can take a leisurely walk in the shade, without forgetting to look at the buildings:
- No. 11 (Yaakov’s house),
- No. 23 (Golomb House),
- No. 25 (New York Hotel),
- No. 27 (Carousel house),
- No. 32 (Ben Nahum Hotel),
- No. 40 (House of the Community Committee),
- No. 46 (Levin’s house).
On the same street is the Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence of Israel was signed in 1948.
Rothschild Boulevard is also the financial center of Tel Aviv. Behind the old houses, in the second line, towering skyscrapers with offices of large companies.
Shuk Carmel Market
The Shuk Carmel market (or simply Carmel) is the most popular market in Tel Aviv.
This is understandable, because it is the largest one, and it is also located in the central part of the city: it occupies the entire Ha-Karmel Street, from Magen David Square to the end of Karmalit, as well as the neighboring streets of the Keren Haitainam district and the Nahalat Binyamin pedestrian zone. Another explanation for the popularity of this market among almost all residents of Tel Aviv: prices here are lower than in stores.
Note to tourists! Despite the fact that from all sides you can hear the shouts of sellers “only today I will give for the best price”, you always need to bargain. And you always need to be very careful: sellers can easily demand 2-3 times more payment or simply not hand over a couple of hundred shekels, proving at the same time: “I passed everything!!!”. The best option is to give money without change.
Shuk Carmel is a typical eastern market, so to speak, a tourist attraction that allows you to get a closer look at the life and everyday life of the people of Israel. The market is quite sloppy and noisy, but at the same time bright, fun, interesting. Even if you don’t do any shopping, it will be interesting just to see. There is a very rich assortment of all kinds of fruits and vegetables, a wide variety of cheeses and spices, and many other interesting things that eastern sellers usually offer.
A snack, and very tasty, will also work here. If you enter Carmel from the Magen David Square, there is a stall at the entrance with burekas (puff pastry pies) – regular customers claim that it is very tasty. It is also recommended to visit the “Hummus Ha-Carmel” or “Ha-Kitzonet”, which serves delicious hummus with homemade pickles or meatballs. Excellent beetroot soup can be tasted in “Sautot-Mevshlot”.
Most kiosks are open from 8: 00 am to early night. On Friday, Shuk Carmel closes at lunchtime, and on Saturday, as elsewhere in Israel, it is a day off.
Shuk Carmel Market address: Allenby, King George and Sheinkin streets, Tel Aviv, Israel.
You can get to it by public transport in Tel Aviv as follows::
- from the new Central bus station by buses No. 4 and No. 204 or minibuses No. 4 and No. 5;
- from the Central railway station “Merkaz” by buses No. 18, 61, 82;
- from the railway station “University” by buses No. 24, 25.
Nahalat Binyamin Street
Next to the Shuk Carmel market, there is another attraction that is usually recommended for all tourists to see. We are talking about the pedestrian Nahalat Binyamin Street, which connects the northern entrance to Shuk Carmel and Gruzenberg Street.
Nahalat Binyamin is one of the oldest streets in Tel Aviv, with many atmospheric restaurants and cafes. It is quite pleasant to walk along it, see beautiful houses, sit in a cozy cafe.
But twice a week, on Tuesdays and Fridays from 9:00 to 17:00, Nahalat Binyamin is not recognizable: a colorful bazaar opens on the pedestrian street, where handmade products are sold. There is a lot to see here, and you can also buy very interesting things relatively inexpensively: paintings, costume jewelry, toys, lamps, interior decor.
Interesting! Almost every Friday, at the intersection of Nahalat Binyamin and Alenby Streets, you can watch the performance of the famous Israeli singer Miri Aloni.
Museum of Fine Arts
The Tel Aviv Museum of Art is a famous landmark and one of the largest art museums in Israel. It occupies a whole complex of buildings:
- Main building at 27 Shaul Ha-Meleh Avenue;
- Temple of Modernism – new wing of the main building;
- Lola Beer Ebner Sculpture Garden adjacent to the main building;
- Elena Rubinstein Contemporary Art Pavilion at 6 Tarsat Street;
- Meyerhof Art School on Dubnov Street.
The collection of paintings has more than 40,000 exhibits. In the museum you can see famous paintings by Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Alfred Sisley, Pierre Auguste Renoir, Jackson Pollock, Paul Cezanne, Henri Matisse, Amedeo Modigliani. Tourists note that the hanging of paintings is very convenient: the canvases do not interfere with each other, each has special lighting and they do not glare at all.
The main building of the museum is adjacent to the Sculpture Garden of Lola Ebner (an outstanding fashion designer and designer in Israel). Here you can see sculptures by Calder, Caro, Maillol, Graham, Lipschitz, Gucci, Cohen-Levy, Ullman, Berg. By the way, it is worth remembering: when leaving the museum on the street in the sculptural courtyard, you need to take a ticket with you, otherwise you will not be able to get back to the building.
Entrance fee:
- for adults, NIS 50,
- for pensioners 25 shekels,
- Admission is free for children under 18 years of age.
Important! At the entrance to the room, you can take a light portable high chair-cane, and outerwear and bags (if available) must be handed over to the wardrobe.
The Art Museum welcomes visitors at this time of day:
- Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays – from 10: 00 to 18: 00;
- Tuesdays and Thursdays – from 10: 00 to 21: 00;
- Fridays – from 10: 00 to 14: 00;
- Sundays are a day off.
Palmach Museum
“Palmach” – combat units formed before the emergence of the State of Israel. They were organized in 1941, when there was a threat of an attack by the Nazis on Palestine. The invasion of Palestine by soldiers of the Third Reich would mean the physical destruction of the Jews who lived in that country. Palmach units existed until 1948, and then they became part of the Israel Defense Forces.
The Palmach Museum, dedicated to the history of Jewish groups, has been in existence since 2000. From the descriptions and photos of the sights of Tel Aviv, it is clear that it occupies a building resembling a fortress.
The museum format is interactive. With the help of video clips, projections of a feature film and a variety of special effects, visitors are introduced to the history of the formation of the State of Israel. All you can see from the actual exhibits is a couple of photos and flags at the entrance.
Address of the Palmach Museum: 10 Haim Levanon Street, Tel Aviv, Israel. From the city center, you can get there by regular bus number 24.
The attraction can be viewed at this time:
- Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday – from 9: 00 to 15: 00;
- Wednesday-from 9: 00 to 13: 30;
- Friday-from 9: 00 to 11: 00.
Observation deck of the Azrieli complex
Another attraction in Tel Aviv is the Azrieli Business Center. It is interesting because it consists of three adjacent skyscrapers of different shapes: a round tower (186 m), a triangular tower (169 m) and a square tower (154 m).
On the 49th floor of the round tower, at a height of 182 m, there is a glazed observation deck Azrieli Observatory. From this platform, you can view the Diamond Exchange and panoramic views of Tel Aviv, as well as admire the Israeli-owned Mediterranean coast from Hadera (north) to Ashkelon (south) and the mountains of Judea. But from the reviews of tourists who have visited there, a slightly different impression of Azrieli Observatory is formed:
- many new high-rise buildings have already been built around the towers, blocking the panoramic view;
- the observation deck consists of several connected rooms, some of which are used as a warehouse for storing tables and chairs from a nearby restaurant – this furniture creates the impression of a landfill and covers a decent part of the view;
- the site is glazed, and glare on the dirty glass does not affect the quality of photos in the best way.
A high-speed elevator takes visitors to the Azrieli Observatory observation deck-it is located on the 3rd floor of the tower. An entrance ticket (NIS 22) can be purchased at the counter next to the high-speed elevator, but no one checks the ticket at the top. Azrieli Observatory is open daily from 9: 30 to 20: 00.
Note to tourists! On the same 49th floor, next to the observation deck, in the lobby with a sea view, there is a restaurant. From its panoramic windows, you can see much more attractive views, but only if you go there as a restaurant visitor. To get to the restaurant, you do not need to buy a ticket, you can go up to it by elevator completely free of charge.
The Azrieli complex is located at 132 Petach Tikvah, Tel Aviv, Israel. Given the fact that the Azrieli skyscrapers are one of the tallest structures in the city, these sights can be seen very clearly from anywhere in Tel Aviv. Getting to them is not difficult at all: the A-Shalom metro station is located nearby and the Ayalon District Highway passes by.
