Five Days: Tel Aviv

The rich culture and history—and the food—of the Middle East put the region on my travel bucket list some time ago. As a gay traveler, though, I’ve had concerns about safety and whether I’d feel welcome or comfortable (and I’m not the only one, obviously). Cue Tel Aviv, and more specifically, Tel Aviv’s gay pride week.

Located on Israel’s Mediterranean coast, Tel Aviv is warm year round (“We don’t do winters,” a marketing line remarks), which is perfect to take advantage of the miles of sandy beaches on its coastline. Israel is also the most progressive of the Middle Eastern countries in regard to gay rights, making the annual pride festival a major destination for folks looking to celebrate, or even just enjoy a few days without fear of repercussion for who they are and who they love. Check out my pride-specific post for more info about the Tel Aviv pride events.

Regardless of what time of year you go, bring comfortable walking shoes because you’re likely to do a LOT of walking (OMG. My feet are still tired). Truly, it’s the best way to take in much of the city, whether that’s wandering through the markets, exploring street art, people watching along the beach, or happening upon a cute spot to grab a bite or drink. Although scooters and bikes are ubiquitous here—and are a good way to cover longer distances—you’ll miss a lot while you’re dodging traffic and other riders. And not to scare you: I didn’t see any scooter crashes first-hand, but I’ve never been in a city where I’ve seen more folks in casts or with bandaged arms and knees.

Know Before You Go

Before our trip, I’d read a number of guides, watched several videos, and caught up with a co-worker who had recently visited, but there were a few things that seemed worth repeating and a few that I hadn’t heard elsewhere, such as:

• Credit cards are almost universally accepted—except for taxis, where cash is almost essential (some drivers may accept card payment, but in our experience, it was a significant premium). Rides from TLV airport to most hotels in town is fixed price at 200 Sheckels and ATMs were easy to find in the airport.
• Despite reportedly having the most stringent security for air travel anywhere, in our experience, the airport was a smooth, easy process. Entry was as easy as scanning our passports and a brief conversation with an immigration officer. Upon departure, it was similar (plus a scan of our luggage). There’s a more through description of it HERE.
• If you’re not into carrying cash for all your taxi rides, I found the Gett. app to be a decent option to hail a ride. It works just like Uber or Lyft, except that I actually had luck getting a taxi using it (Uber timed out before getting a driver each time I tried it). Some of the wait times were longer than I would have expected, but it worked reliably.
• Shabbat. If you’ve read other info about Tel Aviv (or are Jewish), you likely already know that things shut down from sundown Friday to dusk Saturday for Shabbat. I hadn’t realized from other posts what else was impacted: everything from doors and elevators that were in use to what items were available on a menu (generally, anything that wasn’t explicitly kosher or pareve appeared not to available during Shabbat).
• And if you’re going to Tel Aviv Pride, take note that the celebration here isn’t simply a Sunday parade and festival. For 2023, the parade took place Thursday, the festival on Friday, and many other events (both city-sponsored/promoted and privately held ones) took place earlier in the week as well as on Saturday and Sunday. Plan your itinerary accordingly (and see my other post for more details).

Sightseeing Highlights

Tel Aviv is a vibrant, lively city from dawn until long after dark. There’s no shortage of colorful neighborhoods, bustling markets, top-notch restaurants and bars, night clubs, or tempting beaches, historical sites, and almost anything else you can think of to fill a trip of nearly any length.

During our five days in Tel Aviv, I crossed off many things from the list I’d made beforehand, but aside from my tired feet paying for it, I would have loved to stayed several days longer just to wander through the neighborhoods, try out all the restaurants and bakeries, or just have another day on the beach. In any case, the highlights of our exploring included:

Neighborhoods: Tel Aviv has many neighborhoods one could spend an entire day (or days) exploring and perhaps getting lost in. Some of my favorites included:

• Neve Tzedek – “probably the prettiest and trendiest” in the words of one article I read, with many pedestrian streets and beautiful architecture. It’s also where a good handful of the gay bars are located.
• Florentina is north of Jaffa and south of Neve Tzedek. I read that it was previously one of the poorer neighborhoods that has since been transformed by students to a hip neighborhood. Wandering through, there were signs that it had been less affluent at one point (and I noticed that many furniture makers still kept their workshops here, which was fun to see), as well as signs of gentrification. The street art was particularly vibrant here, as were the restaurants just off Levinsky Street (see more details below).
• Old Town Jaffa has a history that stretches back millenia. In particular, there are numerous landmarks and historical points in or near Kikar Kdumim Square and HaMidron Garden, but don’t stop there. The Jaffa Flea Market is simultaneously organized and haphazard and the narrow streets and stone buildings are beautifully fun to explore.

Markets: Either while exploring one of Tel Aviv’s neighborhoods, or as an excursion of its own, don’t miss the city’s public markets (in addition to the Jaffa Flea Market noted above):

• Carmel Market (or Shuk HaCarmel) is a feast for the senses with the scents of spices, fruits and vegetables, and food vendors filling the air. Seriously, if you’ve ever ground your own spices, that’s what it smells like here. Amazing. Shops throughout the handful of blocks that make up the market are also packed with vendors selling clothes, shoes, pastries, and most anything else. The streets are packed with people, so go early or late if you’re not into crowds.
• Sarona Market may not technically strike most people as a market (it’s perhaps more of a food hall), but the 140-year old formar Templar colony is Israel’s largest indoor food market with international foods and drinks. Sarona is very similar to Oslo’s Mathallen Food Hall in Oslo, or a larger version of San Francisco’s Ferry Building. We spent the better part of a couple hours people watching at the Center Bar where the staff were especially friendly to us. If you go, don’t miss the pedestrian Giv’on Street a block away for more restaurants, Schnitt Brewing, and the beautiful plaza.

The beaches are another great way to spend a day in Tel Aviv. We spent the better part of Sunday at Hilton Beach. Other beaches along the promenade have similar options for chairs, umbrellas, swimming, and people watching. In theory, you could simply bring a towel and find a patch of sand to call yours for the day, but pay station kiosks at each beach allow you to rent a chair, chaise, and/or umbrella for the day—just pay and show your receipt to the staff. The sun is intense here and I found the umbrella a must unless I was in the water.

Even if you’re not into the beach and sunbathing, it would be a shame to skip the seaside promenade. The undulating wood platforms, seating areas, outdoor gyms, and restaurants interspersed along the waterfront are a great spot for resting your feet, watching people, waves, and sunsets … or even the sunrises if you’ve partaken in all of Tel Aviv’s nightlife.

We hardly spent any time at Tel Aviv Port, but it’s a spot where I’d hang out longer on a return trip. The wooden deck overlooks the Mediterranean, along with stores, cafes, and bars. It’s also the spot to get your Instagram selfie with the Tel Aviv sign. Guilty.

Eating and Drinking

Tel Aviv is a city of diverse cultural influence, something that’s remarkably clear from its food scene. We barely scratched the surface of the food here, but if you like Middle Eastern food and if our experience is any indication, you can’t go wrong. Same with watermelon (I know it sounds odd, but fresh watermelon was on lots of menus and was exceptionally sweet and delicious). On a personal note, while I’m not vegetarian, if I had to adopt a veggie diet for any reason, this is the place I’d want to do it.

Hummus Abu Hassan has three locations and from every guide I read, is often considered the best place for hummus in Tel Aviv (so much so, it has its own Wikipedia page). And from what I gather, Tel Aviv is one of, if not the place for hummus. We went to the Jaffa location which is tucked into a residential neighborhood you likely wouldn’t happen upon unless this is your destination (which it should be). New folks show up nonstop to eat or get take out for one of the three options on their menu: regular, spicy, or fava bean. Whatever you order, it’s served with a whole warm chickpeas, a dish of minced peppers, a plate of pitas, and a quartered onion. Scoop the hummus with the pitas or onion, or just eat it with your fork, but you won’t be disappointed if you go here.

Falafel Frishman (and Sabish Frishman, which I was too full to try) is, you guessed it, on Frishman Street. If you like falafel, you’ll love the ones here. If you’re not sure if falafel are your jam, I’m not sure if we’ll be friends, but I still think you’ll find it’s delicious here. The falafel balls are fresh out of the fryer (which you’ll likely see when you’re standing in the inevitable line) and everything else stuffed into the pita is unbelievably fresh. If you’re in need of something sweet afterwards, cross the street and Golda’s (a local chain) is a few doors down.

Speaking of markets, we didn’t check out much of Levinsky Market, but did partake in the food and drinks at a few of the restaurants and bars that surround it, particularly along the Simtat HaShuk pedestrian alley. We checked out a Turkish spot with great fries and black catsup (whatever makes it black was a closely-guarded secret—I asked). About a block away is Barehov. We just had beers there, but the food menu looked great and the staff was awesome. They even out some pickled veggies for us to snack on while we relaxed with our beers.

When you visit Carmel Market, don’t miss the bars and restaurants that surround it. In addition to great people watching from many of the outdoor tables, there’s great food to be had. Hashomer TLV had a super-friendly staff, and the hummus was delicious, but different than that of Abu Hassan (though you definitely shouldn’t try just one). We didn’t eat at Beer Bazaar, but they had a good selection of local craft beers (including a really fascinating fruit sour) and also had a great, friendly staff.

Red Meat is a fast food joint around the corner from gay bar Lima Lima. The portions are large and delicious and it’s open late, so it’s perfect for that after-clubbing fix.

Nightlife

If you’re an American coming to Tel Aviv and planning to explore the city’s nightlife, you may want to consider getting some extra rest before your trip, or at least plan to sleep in. By U.S. standards, things get started late here (things often weren’t busy until after midnight)—and keep going until early. My experience was surely skewed since it was during gay pride festivities (and many of the venues I went to were for organized parties), but even the bar we went to on Monday night was jumping … after midnight, that is.

Shpagat is, as I understand it, the stalwart of Tel Aviv’s gay bar scene. We arrived early on Sunday evening—maybe 7pm (?) and were nearly the only ones there besides the staff. But the staff were fun and attentive, and as the evening wore on, the crowd picked up.

On Monday night, we went to Lima Lima. Even though we didn’t arrive until midnight, given that it was Monday, I had low expectations. Turned out, the place was great. The bartenders here were also super friendly, the music was great and had people dancing the entire time we were there. Lima Lima also has an outdoor courtyard, great for when you need a little respite from the thumping bass or just want some fresh air.

Tel Aviv has a few other clubs we didn’t make it to, as well as regular events at a handful of venues. I have no doubt they’re just as festive and fun as where we went, although obviously I can’t vouch for it personally. Check HERE for more info.

Day Trips

There are more tours one can take to notable and ancient sites from Tel Aviv than most anyone has days in the travel to do them. Jerusalem and its history (holy and otherwise) is less than an hour away. Petra, Jordan isn’t much further. Gaza is a hop, skip, and a jump. And there’s the Dead Sea and Masada, the tour we did. Before you go, take a moment to set your expectations appropriately: both locations are rife with tour busses, so don’t expect a private experience. That said, floating in the Dead Sea was a fun and trippy experience: with a salt content around 30x greater than the ocean, you don’t just float naturally—it’s actually difficult to get your feet below you. The jury is out on how much of one’s youth the mineral-rich mud restores, but hopefully it at least erased the handful of late nights we had the weekend prior. Our particular tour did the Dead Sea before Masada: probably good if the Dead Sea is your priority (as ours was), but Masada in the afternoon is H-O-T. Masada’s well-preserved ruins and the history behind it are fascinating, but we were pretty tapped out halfway through. Going the other direction preserves the R&R for the end, which seems more practical, but at least with our tour, the choice wasn’t up to us. Ask beforehand if it’s important to you one way or the other.

Lodging

Hilton Tel Aviv is where we stayed in town. I cashed in a zillion or so points to make this our crash pad and it was a great choice: I think the hotel goes for $500+ per night otherwise. I’m not sure I’d pay those rates, but the views of the waterfront from our room and our Executive Lounge perks for breakfast, lunch, and cocktail hours (which we made very good use of) made it a solid investment of the points I’d stockpiled.

If I’d been motivated to explore other options, or for a return trip, I’d look more closely at other options more centrally located on the waterfront. Relative to most beaches, Jaffa, and other spots we explored, the Hilton was at the far end of things. Even so, things were pretty easy to access on foot, via scooter, or by taxi.