Probably my own stupid fault, but as its too hot to go outside and the hotel lobby was beginning to get boring, I figured I'd head off the the airport early. Hang around in the lounge, have a few drinks to knock me out for the flight...

But wait, what's that... I can't check in yet? So no access to the lounge? Instead, I have to sit at one of the few tables in the 'departures' area, next to all the closed shops? Oh, and I have to drag my case around with me, because I can't check in...

Am I missing somthing?

Rant over...

Haha I've made that mistake in the past, at TLV check in counters only open 3 hours before departure usually.
Quite annoying really...
At least there's a good duty free shopping "rotunda"

Nothing worth going to TLV early for anyway, as far as I could tell last month. I was not a bit impressed with the Dan lounge. No bar, just an open bottle of house wine, and an iceberg lettuce salad. Long line for it too! I left early and went shoe shopping.

I bought a suit

Yeah, TLV on a Friday evening (or Saturday until Shabbat ends, which is right about now if my time zone and web sundown calculation is correct) is not the most exciting place to hang out. Other nights all of the shops and restaurants in that long area behind the checkin counters (before security) are a reasonable way to kill a couple hours, but at least when I was there on a Friday night a few months ago, the only thing open was one of the coffee stands.

You'd still have to carry your luggage around, but at least something to do. You're not missing anything, that's kind of just the way it is at TLV. All of the airlines with just a flight or two don't open checkin until 3 hours before; I've heard sometimes you can check in earlier for El Al...but they don't fly or open the counters on Shabbat at all (they do after it ends for their Saturday night flights), so that's moot.

At least once you get checked in, most of the post-security shops (plus your lounge) should be open -- about half to 3/4 were even on the Friday night I was there. Maybe the food will even be fresh after sundown (Burger Ranch was the only thing open, and I'm pretty sure they were only serving reheated food during Shabbat because they're Kosher).

Sorry it didn't work out the way you planned.

It wouldn't be so bad if it was not Shabbat... Everything is closed, all I have is one single sandwich stall.... That sells fish and vegetable sandwiches.... At least they sell beer, that should keep me going for the next hour and 20 minutes... Worst tuna sandwich I have ever had...

Ahhhhhhh....... Pizza hut just opened! Didnt relise the sun had gone down already... Wow, I just looked up and the other stores have just opened too... As is the staff were just sitting... waiting... Lurking behind the counters for the sun to go down.

Happy days... (wonders if pizza hut only does tuna and vegetable pizza...)

Grrr.... Jumped the gun a bit there, only a couple of places have opened and none of them particularly interesting... Oh, and Pizza huts menu? Tuna and vegetable pizza...

Can't wait for the chicken on the plane. Still, there is plenty of beer left and less than an hour until check in

I'm curious--how many hours before your flight did you go to the airport? I would have gone and sat by the beach!

It's hardly the only airport that does that.

Even at LHR T5 you cannot check in until 3 hours before your flight unless you have status with the airline or traveling Business/First.

While I'm no fan of the Dan lounge (use the KD lounge myself) that's a little unfair.

There is always more food and drinks than that.

Well it's kosher so you're not going to find any pepperoni pizzas there...

Which is stupid since you can usually check in online 24 hours before your flight, and if you have no bags to check you can go airside 12 hours early if you want in theory.

Is that true at TLV though? I've never not checked a bag, but I was pretty sure everyone needed to be interviewed and have a sticker put on their passport -- I'm pretty sure you can't get beyond either security or the passport control without going to the checkin counter. But I'll be happy to be contradicted if I'm wrong.

TLV now has a lonely security agent sitting behind a podium just before the glass area (where you enter the x-ray area). This is a special checkpoint for people with carry-on only.