Bat Yam- Revived (hotel- wise)

Bat Yam currently has about three hotels, The Mercure Suites, the Bat Yam Howard Johnson Sun Hotel (another "fake" HoJo?), and the Armon Yam Hotel. None of these hotels are great, they basically represent the city of Bat Yam- a trashy, low level suburb of Tel Aviv. Soon, though, Bat Yam will be transformed. Three new hotels are being built along the beach, and another five are planned for the city itself. The three beach hotels will be four or five-stars, and will include about 300 rooms and large areas for commerce and conventions. The estimated cost of construction is NIS 240 million (about $62 million), excluding the price of the land. The goal of the project is to extend Tel Aviv into Bat Yam with regard to accomodations, by offering travelers hotels comparable to those in Tel Aviv at lower prices.

Progress on the Palace

The long- awaited Palace Hotel Jerusalem has risen up. This Waldorf Astoria hotel, which for months was seemingly stationary, is now progressing. Already, concrete walls of the ground floor and the first floor are built in the historic building, as is the entrance to the parking garage and the underground levels. As for the hotel building, it now rises one floor high (the bottom floor in the picture). Will the hotel make its original December 2010 deadline? Almost decidedly no. Will it make its new vague "2011" deadline? Probably not. But we can hope- after all, a year and a half is a good amount of time. As far as the construction, we noticed that the street in between the historic building and the new building is being put together again, after being dug up to seemingly link the two buildings underground. The underground will probably hold the choice of three restaurants, a 5,381 square‐foot spa and fitness facility with pool, and the extensive conference and meeting facilities and on‐site parking. We'll look forward to staying here in 2011! UPDATE: Level two in both buildings is now up, and the street in between has been filled in. Please note: Unless otherwise indicated, IsraelGuest is simply posting its own opinion, based on TripAdvisor reviews and other indicated sources. IsraelGuest representatives have not been guests of the hotels.

Beware of Be'er Sheva

The good news is that no one really ever needs to go to Beer Sheva. The bad news is that in the rare event that someone did, like a tourist, they would have no where to stay. Beer Sheba, Israel's fourth largest city, boasts exactly two hotels, The Leonardo/Golden Tulip/Paradise HaNegev/Hilton, and the Desert Inn. The Leonardo is described as "ok", "nothing great","worn out". The Desert Inn has some horrible reviews, from "the hotel was pretty terrible. The room's television didn't work, and the bathroom was disgusting. The room itself was pretty dirty and more like a hostel." to "purse was stolen from the locked room." Upon doing some searches, I found out that the Desert Inn is in fact closed, so there is only one hotel left. The Desert Inn is going to be replaced with Israel's largest mall. When asked "Why Beer Sheba"?,Yaakov Ben Yizri, president of the commerce bureau in the Negev, answers that "Beersheba and the Negev are about to undergo a revolution in the coming years," "This is a good enough reason to understand why Beersheba of all places." And the real news? In the area near the mall the municipality is interested in setting up a hotel. Please note: Unless otherwise indicated, IsraelGuest is simply posting its own opinion, based on TripAdvisor reviews and other indicated sources. IsraelGuest representatives have not been guests of the hotels.

What's up with "Chain Hotels" in Tel Aviv?

Yes, so while doing some research for yesterday's posting, I came across two interesting hotels- The Best Western Regency Suites Tel Aviv, and the Howard Johnson Express Tel Aviv. The intriguing names, so familiar to Americans, sound so foreign in Israel. It seemed almost impossible that these chains had hotels in Israel.
Upon searching for the Best Western Tel Aviv on the global website, it came up! This hotel is actually a member of the international chain. What's more, it even looks like a Best Western from the inside. On the Hotel's website, the Best Western logo is prominently displayed. For these reasons, we had high hopes for the Howard Johnson as well. No such luck. On the HoJo website, the hotel is not listed, and on the Hotel's website, the Howard Johnson name is not even used (replaced with Shalom Hotel Tel Aviv), even though the HoJo name is prominently displayed in a photo of the Hotel's facade. Very Interesting. Does anybody know what the deal is with this hotel? Please note: Unless otherwise indicated, IsraelGuest is simply posting its own opinion, based on TripAdvisor reviews and other indicated sources. IsraelGuest representatives have not been guests of the hotels.

Tel Aviv Hotels, in depth

So, what is the best hotel in Tel Aviv?
Is it a classic large hotel, like the David InterContinental, the Sheraton, the Hilton, the Dan Tel Aviv, the Rennaisance, a Crowne Plaza, the Isrotel, the Leonardo Plaza, or the Carlton?
Is it a luxury boutique, like Art Plus, Cinema, Sadot, Savoy, Melody, Vital, or Hotel Montefiore?
It's too hard to say. But, with out any further ado, we present to you:
The Official IsraelGuest Guide to Tel Aviv Hotels
Top Chain Hotel
1. Dan Tel Aviv
This luxury hotel has always been one of the top hotels in Tel Aviv, with its exclusive clientele, high end lobby, great service, beautiful rooftop pool, and now recently renovated rooms, we can pronounce it the top chain hotel in Tel Aviv.
2. The Crowne Plaza City Center
Yes, it's a shame that a Crowne Plaza, which is not really a luxury chain, comes in second place. It really says something about the sorry state of Israel hotels in general. This newer hotel has fabulous views, colorful rooms with flat screen TV's and nice amenities.
3. The David Intercontinental
While this hotel is really not that much better overall than its other chain counteparts, we felt we had to include it because it is regarded by many to be the top hotel in Tel Aviv. It has a gorgeous atrium lobby and lovely pool, as well as marble bathrooms in the rooms, but the rooms themselves tend to vary- some are old and shabby, while others are stunning and even nicer than those at the Dan.

Top Boutique
1. Hotel Montefiore
Yes, this small hotel is not very well known, but each of the twelve rooms offers a marble bathroom, book library, and a balcony. Together with amazing, personalized service, and a good location, this is everything a boutique should be.
2. Art+ Hotel
This hotel has been getting a lot of hype since it opened, centered around artists and artwork, it offers nice rooms (if not very original or luxurious) and beautiful public spaces.
2. (tied) Melody Hotel
The Melody hotel offers really nice but small rooms, with "rubber duckies" in the bathrooms (a copy of Kimpton Hotels, but who cares?) kind staff, family friendly amenities like DVDs at the front desk, and sea views.
3. Savoy Hotel
This new hotel offers chic rooms and a great location, but the lack of public spaces is a real fault- there is no sitting area in the lobby except for the breakfast room.
Please note: Unless otherwise indicated, IsraelGuest is simply posting its own opinion, based on TripAdvisor reviews and other indicated sources. IsraelGuest representatives have not been guests of the hotels.

More on Mamilla

Just out of curiosity, I decided to check the rates at the Mamilla Hotel and compare with those at the David Citadel and King David. The results: for 2 adults in a standard room for tonight, Mamilla offered $370 per night, DC $416 per night, and the KD was $419 per night. Oh, and the Inbal was $330. For the price, I suppose one could stay at Mamilla and save themselves $45, plus get a nicer hotel than the DC. They'd just have to overlook the one doorman, and the design issues.

What's wrong with Mamilla Hotel?

Why, why can't Jerusalem get a perfect hotel, one that is both luxurious and well liked, with good service and nice rooms? For those that thought that Mamilla was the answer, think again. The hotel is beautiful, but the rooms are just horrible- so many TripAdvisor reviewers complain about the design, the lack of work desks, the high closets that require poles to hang up things? And then the service? Rude, nasty, unhelpful, stupid? When driving by the hotel recently, I was horrified to note that there was one doorman at the entrance, compared to five at the David Citadel and four at the King David. This hotel is supposed to at least surpass the David Citadel! Well, excuses can be made since the hotel is still considered "new", but really, get your act together, Mamilla! Please note: Unless otherwise indicated, IsraelGuest is simply posting its own opinion, based on TripAdvisor reviews and other indicated sources. IsraelGuest representatives have not been guests of the hotels.