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Good place for food and drink on a buzzing corner on Dizingoff street. We ate and drank here twice during our time in Tel Aviv.
Had two mains, three beers, two wines and one coffee for 240 NIS.
Later in the evening queues form, a testament to the popularity of the place. An added bonus is that there is free wi-fi. Some seating outside with more seating inside.
Dizengoff 306, Tel Aviv, Israel
+972 777931840
Google map: bit.ly/RtZoib
Seems to be part of a chain but still a good place for a drink. We sat outside and had a beer and a wine. A pint of Tuborg beer (at happy hour prices) cost 17 NIS.
Located in a busy pedestrian area that hosts a popular craft market Tuesday & Friday.
www.agadir.co.il/
2 Nahlat Binyamin, Tel Aviv, 65161, Israel
+972(0)35160828
Google map: bit.ly/Vi21oL
Came across this place by accident.
Good food and very friendly service. On our fist visit we had two mains (liver and mash and salad) together with sangria for 160 NIS.
Additionally the place has free wifi.
Always seems to be busy with people looking for a bite to eat or simply a drink.
Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Not kosher as I had a bacon cheese burger on my second visit!
www.2eat.co.il/thestreets/
Rehov King George 70, Tel Aviv, Israel
+972 3 620 1070
Google map: bit.ly/QRrUry
We came across this restaurant in the old port of Tel Aviv by accident and loved it so much that we came back to eat again.
The salads were huge and very nice. One night I had kebabs on cinnamon sticks which were lovely.
Very friendly staff.
Only when we came back home, we read about the restaurant on the web and learned that it was a Galilee style restaurant.
This restaurant was named after an Israeli soldier killed in the 2nd Lebanon War in 2006.
www.cafenimrod.rest-e.co.il/
Hangar 8, Tel Aviv
+972(0)579443773
Google map: bit.ly/PmhI91
We stayed here for six nights in early September and were not disappointed. While on the map it looked like it was situated on the northern edge of the city centre, it was in fact very central for us.
Only a few minutes walk from the beach as well as the renovated Old Port area (with many restaurants and shops), quite simply a brilliant location. Great bars and restaurants only around the corner on Dizengoff street (especially on corner of Yirmeyahu street and Dizengoff street).
Very modern spotless hotel with free wi-fi.
We paid $154 per night (which for Tel Aviv was one of the best value decent hotels we could find!)
Particularly liked the fact that our room had a fridge which we were able to fill with drink and food from the nearby supermarkets.
Breakfast was basic but other than that no complaints about this hotel!
www.porthoteltelaviv.com/
4 Yirmeyahu Street, 63507 Tel Aviv
+972 35445544
Google map: bit.ly/QRsRAc
We were in Tel Aviv for six days and came back to this area a number of nights. The old port area has been renovated and was full of shops and restaurants on the water front. Some good bars and restaurants here especially our favourite, Cafe Nimrod.
Would definitely recommend a visit here in the evening. Great buzz about the place especially on the weekend.
Tel Aviv Old Port area (Namal)
North end of Dizengoff Street
Google map: bit.ly/StOTft
Great place to find a bar in Jerusalem. Sit outside and watch the world go by.
Some of the bars have great deals (happy hours etc) e.g. Zollis.
Google map: bit.ly/Qa4wa3
An absolute must see when coming to Jerusalem. The Hall of Names is particularly moving as you can see where pages of around three million names are stored around walls and the gaps for the many millions whose names of the victims we as yet do not know.
The Children's memorial commemorating the 1.5 million children who perished is haunting. This underground memorial has one solitary candle but with the use of hundreds of mirrors creates the effect of hundreds of candles throughout the building.
Additionally the Cattle Car memorial featuring an original German cattle cart used to transport Jews catches the eye as it is on a railway track suspended in the air.
One thing I would say is that despite having a map the outdoor area can be confusing to navigate and we frequently got lost.
www.yadvashem.org/
P.O.B. 3477, Jerusalem 91034 Israel
+972 26443802
Get the tram from Jaffa Road to the end of the line. A free shuttle bus will pick you up every 15 mins from a stop across from the tram stop.
Google map: bit.ly/TdtFyK
This hotel is situated up on the Mount of Olives in Arab East Jerusalem. While not centrally located near the old town, every morning we got the #75 bus that dropped us outside Damascus gate within 10 - 15 mins for five NIS. Taxis at night back to the hotel cost us between 35 - 45 NIS from the centre. Too far to walk especially at night.
The hotel was rather tired but we paid a very good price for Jerusalem at about £43 GBP per night for five nights. The room had an ensuite old bathroom but no TV.
Friendly hotel with a large buffet breakfast on offer every morning. Additionally free wi-fi.
We were surprised to find that the hotel was right next to one of Jerusalem's attractions - Mosque of Ascension which is on the site of Jesus's ascension and contains his alleged footprint!
www.mtolives.com/
53 Mount of Olives Road
+972 (2) 628 4877
Google map: bit.ly/PYkPGP
Good hearty food to be found here. Not high end dining but authentic wholesome food. Food could be described as Kosher Turkish/Kurdish, with Iraqi and Syrian influences. This restaurant has been serving food for decades, where the food is slowly cooked in huge pots over traditional oil burners called ptelias. This authentic place is extremely popular with locals which might mean a little wait during busy times.
We had two hearty mains and soft drinks for 110 NIS.
HaEshkol 4, Jerusalem, 94322, Israel
+972 2 623 5204
Google map: bit.ly/VUHabx
Tel Aviv is a fascinatingly diverse city and one of the reasons is its incredible collection of Bauhaus architecture which is actually the largest collection in the world.
The architecture covers much of the 'old' part of the city (really it's only about 100 years old) but if you have a limited amount of time, don't be tempted to spend it in a museum if you haven't explored here.
www.visit-tlv.com/
www.touristisrael.com/tel-aviv/3/
Best places to walk - Rothschild Boulevard, Bialik Street, and Sheinkin Street
Google map: bit.ly/L5WCc4
The West Bank – May 2011. We drove along the road until our path was blocked by huge boulders and we could go no further. Clambering over boulders we continued uphill by foot. On arrival, we were greeted warmly and shown into a brightly coloured cave by Daoud, our host, who told us of the history of the farm.
Situated on a hill-top south of Bethlehem, Daher’s vineyard has been in the same family since 1916, when it was purchased by Daher Nassar, grandfather of the family who now run it.
In 1991 the Israeli government declared the area including the Nassar’s land, to be Israeli state land. The family’s challenge has meant ongoing litigation. Despite this, the Tent of Nations was founded in 2000 as an educational and environmental organic farm “seeking to build bridges between different people, and between people and the land”
They have no mains electricity or running water. Solar panels have been installed and their water is collected via rainfall. Visitors and volunteers arrive from all over the world, and support groups are based in the UK and North America. They also run a number of other projects locally including projects for young people.
Our visit was part of a Holy Land Pilgrimage, when we met with local people and learn about organizations – of both Palestinians and Israelis - working for peace in the West Bank. Despite their difficult circumstances, I left with a feeling of optimism and hope for the future. A visit is a truly awe inspiring, unforgettable experience.
www.tentofnations.org/
Atan Street 17, PO Box 28, Bethlehem, Palestine
+972(2)2743071
I wanted to book through them, paid the deposit and waited for my holiday. A month before we were due to go, the owner just didn't want us there any more, no reasons given, and home4trip offered us something unacceptable, so we agreed to cancel the contract and get the money back. We're still waiting for the money and our credit card company is now dealing with the case... So unless you have money to lose abroad to frauds stay away from these people.
I recommend all visitors to go to the old city in Jerusalem where they can see the great history of Palestine. You can see really old churches and holy places. Also if anyone is going to Ramallah I recommend them to go to the old city also, which is called Ramallah Al-Taha. There you can see the old city of Ramallah and how it was before the occupation.
Security or land grab you decide - but the Separation or 'Apartheid' Wall as some Israeli activists call it - is an inescapable part of a visit to this part of the world.
Will interest cognoscentis of concrete architecture or grafitti ...
Look out for an original Banksy - a girl holding balloons - just the Ramallah side of the Qalandia checkpoint.
Many locations - within the border of the West Bank and around illegal Israeli settlements.
The stretch near Al Quds university is particularly 'impressive'.
Dheisheh is one of the largest Palestinian refugee camps - in reality a compact town of narrow lanes and tall buildings - 'the only way to build is up' said our guide Khamsi.
Khamsi took us from the Ibdaa centre - whose name means 'creativity' - from near the entrance and took us on what turned into a grafitti tour.
The grafitti is mostly of Handala - the cartoon refugee boy - cartoons include Handala clutching a sword the blade of which is a pen nib and him flying with a Palestinian flag.
Dheisheh is calm and the people friendly.
An important place to visit if you want to understand one part of the story that makes up the current history of this complex land.
Ibdaa Centre, Dheisheh Camp, Bethlehem
www.dheisheh-ibdaa.net
Lonely Planet says catch a service from Bab iz-Qaq in Bethlehem (3NIS).
I travelled with Rawda and Issa Khouriya who run a guesthouse near Ramallah and are happy to arrange trips at reasonable cost if you are staying with them. See their entry on this site.
No self-respecting Guardian reader should visit Israel and the Palestinian territories without experiencing the brutalist modern architecture of the massive checkpoint at Qalandia between Ramallah and Jerusalem.
You can visit Ramallah from Jerusalem - catch the no. 18 bus from the bus station close to the garden tomb by the Damascus Gate - and be whisked past it. You're not a security risk leaving Israel.
Catch the bus back and it's a different matter. Keep your ticket 6.50 NIS (about £1.20) as you'll be leaving your bus at Qalandia and getting onto another one on the other side.
Queue with your fellow passengers and admire their patience as they wait to go through the turnstiles.
Feel for the people trapped in the turnstiles between 'groups'. A woman carrying a toddler was stuck for 20 minutes despite calls to the guard to let her out while I was there.
Wait for the Stasi-like guard to check your passport only to discover it's a bored Israeli teenager dismissively shrugging you through.
Admire the chutzpah of the Israeli 'welcome' notice - 'have a pleasant stay in our country!'
Be thankful that you're a tourist and you don't have to do this every day to earn a living.
On the main road between Ramallah and Jerusalem. You can't miss it.
A Palestinian Christian village perched high in the hills above Ramallah. Jesus stayed here with his disciples to escape the intense atmosphere in Jerusalem. Nothing changes!
Taybeh has three churches, a brewery and a ruined Crusader church.
The Crusader church is built high and gives long views over the rolling hills around.
The brewery welcomes visitors, has a small shop and will show you a video of how come there's a brewery making modern beer in Palestine.
Drink Palestinian!
You will need to drive either from Jericho or Ramallah.
Taybeh is 15km north east of Ramallah. I travelled with friends but Lonely Planet says you can catch a servis for 10 NIS (around £2).
The students at the nearby high school recommend the ice cream at Baladna's. So do I!
I sheltered here from the rain and looked out on the busy main street and enjoyed five scoops of different flavours in one bowl. Wide choice - natural ingredients.
Refreshing and cleaned the palate - followed by an extra large traditional coffee.
A great way to while away an idle half hour or more.
Cost around 23 NIS - about £4.
Follow the main street from Al Manara towards the old city. Baladna is on the right.
A modern spacious and airy home from home just 8km from central Ramallah.
All mod cons including wireless internet alongside traditional Palestinian cuisine make this a place to refresh your batteries after exploring this fascinating land.
Rawda and her husband Issa will also take you on any tour you'd like. Their local knowledge keeps you safe and saves you money from some of the higher prices charged foreigners at some tourist attractions.
Have visited the Separation Wall, two refugee camps, Bethlehem and Jericho with them.
Highly recommended if you want to make your first visit to Palestine.
Jifna Ramallah, West Bank, Palestine
Contact: Rawda Khouriya
Email: rkhouriya@yahoo.com
Tel: 00972-2811485 Mob 00972(0)599587476
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