Hotelsforlife

I'd like to be on or at least near the beach. I've heard the Hilton is a good option. Are the executive rooms worth the extra money? Do they just give you access to the lounge or are the actual rooms nicer?

Jasper2009

IMO Tel Aviv lacks any true luxury hotel as you´d find them in other large cities such as NY, London, Paris etc.

The best hotel IMO is the David Intercontinental which is on the beach (or across the road to be exact), but is a bit further away from the busy parts of the beach (closer to Jaffa).

My 2nd choice would probably be the Dan Hotel followed by the the Hilton or possibly Isrotel or the Dan Panorama.

Can´t really comment on particular room categories at the Hilton, sorry..

Blackbook

Israel is unfortunately not blessed with any real luxury hotels of comparable international standards. For example, the FS Amman, is light years ahead of any hotel to be found in Tel Aviv. The King David in Jerusalem desperately needs a renovation beyond what it is now and the service is so/so. Fortunately, RC is opening a hotel in Herzliya. Until then, Israel is a four star destination.

Shangri-La

Isn't the Waldorf Astoria also opening a property in Israel soon, Jerusalem?

sgold88

Waldorf opening in 2014 in Jerusalem. Finally. Been building it for years
Shalom hotel is great in tel aviv. South beach Florida decor, modern and cheap.

mike_la_jolla

I was just at the David Intercontinental Tel Aviv. Describing the service as so/so is much too nice. 'Hostile, dense, rude' would be the terms I'd use. This Intercontinental is at the low end of the chain and in desperate need of renovation and completely new management.

My room was not ready for checkin at 6:30pm. If you go to the hotel for a trade show, don't ship trade show material to the hotel. They reject all such shipments. Breakfast, a rather poor buffet, is crowded and doesn't open until 7am. I found the food to be poor at all the hotel restaurants, including the bar. The rooms with views look out on a debris field that used to be an amusement park. Don't pay extra for a view. The club lounge is poor and not worth the money. The elevators are painfully slow.

damaxer91

King David Tel Aviv??

Blackbook

Thankfully that Hotel wasn't turned into a chain.

mike_la_jolla

Sorry. I fixed the post. The hotel has several different names and I had to go thru them sequentially to get the cab drivers to understand. I feel sorry for Israel. The David Intercontinental, as poor as it is, appears to be the best option in Tel Aviv.

OliverB

Avoid the boutique hotels in TLV, we made the mistake last fall and ended up switching halfway through. The problem is that the hospitality industry throughout the country is so poor and out of proportion with what you'd would come to expect from luxury properties throughout the Western World, Europe, Asia, etc. There a select few properties in Jerusalem and Acre believe it or not, that are exceptions. But otherwise I've traveled the entire country and only met disappointment in each city. I think it's best to adjust expectations for Tel Aviv and personally, I would stay at The Dan if returning again. We'd initially considered The Rothschild but chose the Shalom & Relax instead, where we ended up for 5 nights. The food (breakfast/brunch incl.) was truly excellent and noteworthy and the location was okay, but that's as good as it gets. The rooms were uncomfortable, the beds were awful, a/c was problematic (controlled by downstairs lobby), the space was tiny and the hallways, stairways, corridors and most common areas (save the very nice rooftop terrace) were all dark, cramped, sweltering hot because of lack of a/c and smelled mildewy. We were sorely disappointed and glad to check out. I hadn't seen the actual rooms at The Dan but very much enjoyed their lobby and this would be my pick for any future trips. Instead we took a safe bet at the IC David and our trip improved ten fold! We booked into an Executive Room or possibly base level Suite with ocean views on one of the top floors and were so much more comfortable! The hotel itself is completely charmless and nothing special. It's a huge lego stacked tourist zoo without much distinguishing character, but it's in a great location a short skip to the beach and walking distance to everything worthwhile; offers exceptional views, closest to Jaffa, and having the swimming pool deck was very nice in the end. I was initially hoping for something more exotic,historic, luxurious, etc. but that doesn't exist anywhere in TLV. The Dan is probably the closest you'll get, though I can't comment on the rooms themselves. YMMV. If you want a TRULY memorable experience unlike any other, stay in The Efendi in Acre. It's a beautifully restored 19c Ottoman Palace that's definitely world class and one of the nicest hotels I've ever stayed anywhere in my life. Destination worthy on it's own, approx. 2 hrs drive from Tel Aviv. The service, food, cocktails, attention to details were top notch and unmatched - the best we've experienced in the country! It's owned, operated and personally overseen by famous chef Uri (forget last name) of Uri Buri who was there to personally wlecome us on arrival and apologize for some issues we had entering the old town due to some kind of Muslim celebration that had blocked off the streets. The hotel had sent someone on foot to collect our luggage and escort us to the property, which is tucked away inside winding alleys above a centuries old mosque and the bustling marketplace overlooking the old ramparts and Mediterranean. We lucked out in that we were among the first guests to stay after it's opening and booked the best suite they had. Here are some photos, sadly none of the room...








The only two properties I'd return to in Israel are The Efendi and American Colony in Jerusalem. The Efendi would be a destination on it's own. The town itself was in my opinion, the most fascinating, picturesque and exotic feeling in Israel.

OliverB

While I didn't like the hotel itself, I disagree about the view, which was it's one saving grace (well that, and the fact that the beds were very comfortable and the room & bathroom spacious!) but this is Tel Aviv for you... here's the view from our club level Executive Room:



My wife played around with Instagram a bit, obviously.

It's has the feel of a Disneyland resort hotel. Kids running around all over the place, busy, noisy. But the location is good and the rooms are comfortable and unfortunately, that's the best you can hope for in Tel Aviv. If you do stay here, I suggest opting for the preferred view... it happened to be very pretty at sunrise/sunset in the mornings and evenings and it's nice to look out on the coast. It takes you a bit further away from the otherwise generic IC you're staying in and the circus around you. I would still suggest looking into The Dan though... at least the building is more interesting both historically and architecturally! Though it too is nothing special really. I'm sure it's equally comfortable. And it's right on the beach, which is a slight edge over the IC, which is a short 3 min. walk.

OliverB

I don't think that was an old amusement park btw, I'm pretty sure it was a popular local nightclub that was bombed during the intifada in which many young teens were killed. I think it's left as it currently stands as a memorial, though I'm not certain fo that.

Kagehitokiri

i see 12 room efendi opened march (14th?) 2012, after perhaps 8.5 year restoration

tel aviv >

speedbird001 on hilton >

1/4MM@20 on montefiore >

mike_la_jolla

I do understand that the amusement park has some (bad) history. But it is now strewn with garbage and graffiti.

About the hotel --As a business traveler not going to the tourist areas, I was shocked at the incompetence and hostility of the IC David. Service and quality issues aside, it has the ambiance of a barn with elevators. I have been lead to believe that this is typical of this country.

The view from the David IC -- I don't disagree. Your view was the identical one that I had at this hostile, ill-managed hotel. The problem is that my frame of reference is La Jolla.

OliverB

Well I agree with you when compared to other travel regions; we stayed at (supposedly) some of the best hotels in the country... The Mizpe Hayamim in the Golan Heights was a total dump and we paid over 1k per night. There were water stains on the carpet, the furniture hadn't been updated since the late-80s, the entire place was just outdated, moldy and gross and I never felt so ripped off in my life. But that's Israel for you. The Efendi and to a lesser extent, The American Colony, were the only two exceptions that I would return to. Even the AC was priced high for what it offered though (the actual room), and we stayed in one of the top suites overlooking the interior courtyard with a separate balcony and outdoor terrace. It was beautiful, but the hospitality industry throughout the region is completely disproportionate to anywhere else your tourist dollars would be spent. I kept thinking how far the money that I was spending would've taken us in Europe or Asia... again, you either adjust your expectations or settle for something midrange so as not to be disappointed. The only hotel to discuss on this forum (Luxury Hotels) in the whole of Israel is The Efendi. There really isn't any other truly luxe property in the country, although The American Colony comes second, though not by any close call.