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Tel Aviv is a big city with a picture perfect location at the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is a city with skyscrapers, pedestrian streets, shopping centers, museums and at the same time large parks and a long sandy beach in the heart of the urban area. It is a great cocktail for sights, activities and recreation.
Locals use Tel Aviv’s seafront promenade to bike, run, swim or just relax to the sound of the Mediterranean waves. The weather is mild all year round and the promenade always buzzes with life. High-rise buildings are located along the coast, and to the south you can see the old city of Jaffa rising on the horizon with St. Peter’s Church as a characteristic silhouette.
Tel Aviv-Jaffa are two cities that have grown together today. Tel Aviv is the modern metropolis of the 20th century, while the history of Jaffa dates back several thousand years. Thereby, there are great architectural contrasts between the cities. Tel Aviv is widely renowned for its almost endless number of fine examples of Bauhaus buildings, and the so-called white city is, as a whole, architecturally inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage list.
In Jaffa, the building style is old with beautifully restored houses, squares, churches and museums. The city is located on a ridge from which there is a magnificent view to Tel Aviv’s skyline. In contrast to Tel Aviv, the streets are narrow, and towards the harbor you find nice places for a snack or a great dinner.
The Tel Aviv Promenade is a lovely promenade along the Mediterranean Sea throughout central Tel Aviv. The promenade was conceived at the end of the 1930s, when the English, however, in light of the outbreak of World War II, banned bathing on the city’s beaches.
Since then, the promenade has been extended several times, and it is today Tel Aviv’s major recreational attraction, where the city’s citizens and tourists enjoy themselves all year round.
Along the promenade there are many beaches, where bathing from the fine sand is a pleasure. There are also bike paths, running tracks, bars, restaurants, hotels, parks and much more that make the promenade a great asset in Tel Aviv.
To tie the city and the promenade together, several squares and parks have been built between them. One of them is London Square/卡行 لوندون, which was laid out in 1942 and named after London and the will of the English city’s inhabitants during the German bombardment of London during World War II.
The Bauhaus Center is an organization whose work focuses on Tel Aviv’s significant architectural heritage of buildings in, starting from the Bauhaus school in Weimar. With Tel Aviv’s vigorous expansion from the 1920s-1930s, many Jewish architects who had fled Germany’s persecution of Jews worked here.
In 2003, Tel Aviv’s Bauhaus architecture was recognized by UNESCO as a world heritage site, and in the Bauhaus Center you can see pictures and other things that show and document the city’s beautiful buildings from the time. The center also organizes tours around Tel Aviv with a focus on Bauhaus architecture.
This is Tel Aviv’s premier art museum, and its focus is international art from the 20th century to the present day. You can experience the various genres that characterized this time, and there are both permanent and changing exhibitions of various works and collections. Among several highlights are the art movements Cubism, Impressionism, Expressionism, Constructivism and more. Artists such as Wassily Kandinsky, Gustav Klimt and Roy Lichtenstein can be mentioned.
The museum was founded in 1932, and at that time it was located in a building in which Meir Dizengoff had previously lived. The current main building opened in 1971, and parts of the exhibition are located in the exciting Herta and Paul Emir Building from 2011.
This is a museum that was established to describe the history of the Jewish people. The idea for the museum was fostered by Nahum Goldmann, who was president of the World Jewish Congress, and it was to span the entire world’s Jewish community, past and present. At the museum, you can learn about Jewish history and see the period depicted from the deportation of the Jews from Israel in the 5th century BC. to the return of the Jews to their land from the 19th century to today’s Jewish community.
Jaffa is the name of the southern part of the Tel Aviv-Jaffa urban area, and it stands as an old contrast to the new and modern construction of Tel Aviv, which towers over the Jaffa skyline. Jaffa was mentioned in several places in the Bible, and as a city it goes back several thousand years. It is located like a protruding bastion out into the Mediterranean on a 40 meter high cliff, and you can therefore see the city from a long distance along Tel Aviv’s coastline.
Throughout history, Jaffa has been an important strategic port, and the city has been the target of conquests several times; among others by French Napoleon in 1799. In modern times, Jaffa has become part of the Tel Aviv-Jaffa urban area, and the two cities are completely integrated today. Jaffa’s Old Town is the atmospheric historical Jaffa, and the area around Kdumim Square has been elegantly restored and is almost like a living open-air museum, which is worth a trip for the atmosphere, the buildings and the view of Tel Aviv.
The Great Synagogue is Tel Aviv’s largest synagogue, but not necessarily the busiest. The synagogue was designed by Yehuda Magidovitj in 1922 and completed in 1926 in what was then a booming district in terms of population. From the 1960s, the neighborhood increasingly changed its character to a financial district, and with the move to other parts of the city, the synagogue was no longer used to the same extent as before.
The original building from the 1920s was dominated by the large dome, which still adorns the synagogue; also after the major rebuilding in 1969, which, among other things, consisted of concrete columns and surfaces that, in terms of style, should give certain similarities to modernism from other parts of the city. The interior of the synagogue is a large bright room with arches and columns.
Rabin Square is one of the largest squares in Tel Aviv. It was formerly called Kings of Israel Square and is home to the city’s town hall, which lies to the north. At the southern end you can see the city’s memorial for the Second World War holocaust. The monument was designed in such a way that, viewed from above, it forms a Star of David.
In the north-east corner of the square you can see another memorial. It marks the spot where Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated on November 4, 1995. Rabin was shot after speaking at a major event related to the then peace process for the region. The square was named after Rabin after the murder.
Meir Park is one of Tel Aviv’s smaller parks, and it is a well-visited respite in the middle of the Israeli metropolis. The park opened in 1944 and is named after Meir Dizengoff, who was Tel Aviv’s first mayor.
There are many dog walkers in the park, and this is also where you find the city’s public LGBT center. The center carries out various cultural events, and here there is general information and so on. The center is housed in a building from 1920, which was originally built as a school building.
Dizengoff Square is the central square in Tel Aviv, and has been since the laying out of the area in the 1930s. Dizengoff Square was part of urban planner Patrick Geddes’ original plan for Tel Aviv, and it was named after Zino Dizengoff, who was the wife of the city’s first mayor.
Dizengoff Square is today a traffic hub, where a pedestrian area has been built above the road at street level. On top of this there is a central fountain and many places where you can enjoy the surrounding Bauhaus architecture.
The square was initially a traffic-quiet place with a large green area in the middle with a number of trees around. Six streets radiated from the square’s roundabout, and around it noble buildings were erected in the architecture of the time. This applied, for example, to the Cinema Hotel, of which you can still enjoy the lines.
The current square was created in the 1970s, and since then there have been several plans to recreate the square’s design from the 1930s. In 1986, the Fire and Water fountain was set up in the middle. It was designed by Israeli artist Yaacov Agam and the style is kinetic art that provides optical effects.
Polishuk House was designed in 1934 by architects Shlomo Liaskovsky and Yaakov Orenstein. It stands as one of the best examples of an office building among Tel Aviv’s many Bauhaus-style buildings.
Independence Hall is the building where Israel’s Declaration of Independence was signed. In this way, the state of Israel was proclaimed right here, and it happened on May 14, 1948 at 4 p.m. A museum has now been set up for this great event in the house.
Previously, the house went by the name Dizengoff House, which was due to the fact that it was the residence of Tel Aviv’s first mayor, Meir Dizengoff. That story began on April 11, 1909, when 66 families gathered in the area for a lottery for plots of land. Among the families were Meir and Zina Dizengoff who acquired this very plot of land. The lot had number 43 and they then built their house.
After Zina Dizengoff’s death, Meir donated the house to the city of Tel Aviv in 1930 with the aim of setting up a museum here. The Tel Aviv Museum of Art opened its doors at the address in 1932 and was located here until 1971, when it moved to a new and larger location in the city.
It was David Ben-Gurion who on 14 May 1948 read the Declaration of Independence aloud. It happened eight hours before the British mandate in Palestine expired. A rabbi blessed the declaration and the ceremony ended with the signing of the Israeli national anthem Hatikvah. In 1978, the hall for the declaration was recreated as the original, and you can thus experience the time from 1948 up close by visiting the house.
Boat House was designed by Shimon Hamadi Levi and built 1934-1935. Boat House is one of Tel Aviv’s best-known buildings in the Bauhaus architecture that is ubiquitous in the Israeli metropolis.
This atmospherically located church building is a Franciscan church that was consecrated in 1654 on the site where the German-Roman Emperor Frederik I had a citadel built in the 12th century.
The church is dedicated to Saint Peter, which is due to the association of the disciple Peter with Jaffa. This is where, according to the Bible, he was called to save the believer Tabitha, who had passed away. Peter was taken to her room where he prayed for her and Tabitha opened her eyes and had come back from the dead.
Saint Peter’s Church has been destroyed several times over time, and the current building was built in the years 1888-1894. The interior is beautiful under the high vaulted ceiling, and you can see both stained glass and artwork of scenes from the life and deeds of Saint Peter.
Pagoda House is a characteristic building in an eclectic style in central Tel Aviv. The house was completed in 1924, and among the residents of the apartments was Poland’s ambassador. The prominent resident had the house install Tel Aviv’s first elevator in a private residence.
The property was built in Tel Aviv’s construction boom in the 1920s, and the eclectic style stands as a mix of oriental and western style elements. The architect was Alexander Levy.
At the top of Jaffa’s Old City is Ramses II’s Park, which is a lovely green area from which there is a wonderful view of Tel Aviv’s seafront and many high-rise buildings. The park is definitely worth a relaxing walk.
The park is located on a site with an Egyptian past. During the Bronze Age, Jaffa was part of Ramses II’s Egyptian empire, and excavations in the 1950s uncovered finds that outlined the history of the past. Today, two arches have been erected in the park, and they give the illusion of the entrance to Ramses II’s palace and a triumphal arch.
Jaffa Port is the historically central port of the region around present-day Tel Aviv. The port itself has been known for three millennia, and the strategic location also provided access to Jerusalem.
Jaffa was the port where fishing, trade and immigration flourished. It was thus here that many settlers over time have come to Israel with, for example, Tel Aviv as their destination.
A port was built in Tel Aviv in 1936 and it partially took over the traffic from the port of Jaffa. The area’s activities in the industrial ports were moved to Ashdod Port to the south in 1965.
Today, Jaffa Harbor is an atmospheric area at the foot of the city of Jaffa, to which there are narrow and atmospheric passages from the harbor. Several activities have been established around the harbor and, among other things, good places to eat in the old warehouse buildings.
Jerusalem is one of the world’s great historical and cultural travel destinations, and throughout the city you can find and experience places and buildings from not least the rich Bible history. Unforgettable things are almost every corner in the old city center.
For most, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre with the tomb of Jesus will be the most important and memorable of the many sights. The church contains Calvary and also contains the very grave where Jesus was laid after the crucifixion. As a prelude to the Church, you can walk the Via Dolorosa between the place where Jesus was sentenced to death and the place where he was buried.
Bethlehem is a city whose history stretches back at least to the 14th century BC. The city is located quite close to the south of Jerusalem, and it is not least known as the place where Jesus was born. According to the Hebrew Bible, Bethlehem was the city from which David came and where he was crowned king of Israel.
In Roman times, Bethlehem was destroyed under the Emperor Hadrian. It happened in connection with the Bar Kokhba rebellion, which took place during the years 132-135. The revolt was a Jewish revolt against the Roman Empire led by Simon bar Kokhba, and it led to a short-lived Jewish state, which was subsequently defeated by a large Roman army.
Empress Helena and her son, Emperor Constantine the Great, rebuilt Bethlehem from around the year 300. Constantine was the one who initiated the construction of the Church of the Nativity in 327.
Later, Muslims came to rule the city until the Crusaders recaptured the city for Christianity in 1099. Bethlehem became Muslim again with the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, and the Muslim Empire ruled the city and the area until the end of World War I.
After World War II, Bethlehem came under Jordanian rule with the Arab-Israeli war in 1948. From 1967 to 1995, Israel administered Bethlehem, which has since then been under Palestinian administration. Today, Bethlehem is a small town whose main source of income is the tourism industry.
There are a number of famous sights in the city, the Church of the Nativity being the most important. The Church of the Nativity is an important place of pilgrimage for Christians from all over the world. In its first version, the church was built in the years 327-339 on the site of the grotto where Jesus was born. Already in the 100s, the place had been established as a sanctuary. Emperor Hadrian had a temple to Adonis built over the birthplace of Jesus.
The Church of the Nativity is located on Manger Plads/卡行 मांगर, where there are several other worth-seeing churches whose location is due to the birthplace of Jesus. Around the Church of the Nativity you can see the Neo-Gothic Church of St. Katarina/Church of St. Catherine, which is the main Roman Catholic church in the city. There are also three different monasteries; one Greek-Orthodox, one Armenian-Apostolic and one from the time of the Crusaders.
Masada is one of Israel’s absolute top sights, and you immediately understand that upon a visit here. Masada is a castle that was established on a 400 meter high cliff top in the Negev Desert overlooking the Dead Sea and a large part of the surrounding area.
It was Herod who had Masada built, which happened in the years 37-34 BC. Masada was partly a palace, which lay at one end of the ridge, and partly a colossal fortress, which had to be able to withstand all conceivable attacks. The clifftop, and thereby Masada, measures around 700×350 meters, so it is a complex of large dimensions.
According to tradition, the Jews conquered Masada in the year 66 during the first Jewish-Roman war. In 72, 15,000 Roman soldiers under the leadership of Flavius Silva began to besiege Masada and with it the approximately 1,000 Jews who were in the fortress. The following year, the Romans occupied the cliff top, and in that connection the Jews committed collective suicide instead of being captured. This episode has since then stood as a symbol of the Jews’ struggle for their own country without foreign rule.
Regardless of whether the story of Masada is historically correct or not, Masada is an impressive and unforgettable place. You can visit the fortress at the top by cable car, and here you can experience the grandeur of the past and also see the remains of Roman camps that were used during the siege of Masada. The view over the landscape is naturally also worth a trip in itself. Since 2001, Masada has been included in UNESCO’s list of world heritage sites.
The Dead Sea is a saltwater lake that lies on the borders between Israel and Jordan and thus also the West Bank. The lake is known for its high salt content and for being the lowest place on the earth’s surface. The water table and thereby also the coasts are 429 meters below sea level.
The lake is up to 330 meters deep, and with a salt content of 30-35%, it has an unusually high buoyancy, which tourists quickly feel when they take a trip in the water.
The Dead Sea is located in the Jordanian gorge depression, which extends along the entire length of the Jordan River, which is the lake’s only tributary. It is believed that the salt water comes from the Mediterranean Sea, which, before the rise of land by, among other things, what is now Israel, had access to the area, which lay as a kind of lagoon.
Today, the Dead Sea is the center of a spa tourism that was already active in King Herod’s time. There are several resorts along the shores of the lake on both the east and west sides. The largest Israeli hotel areas are located towards the south-western part of the lake on a stretch several kilometers long. The northern end of the lake is the quickest to reach from Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, and there are also several accessible bathing spots here. The first is Kalia Beach, which has all the facilities for a good experience in and by the Dead Sea.
Caesarea is the name of a former Roman port city, whose well-preserved ruins can be seen on the Israeli Mediterranean coast. The ruin area extends over a larger area behind Caesarea’s fortress walls, an area south of this with, among other things, palace ruins and a theater as well as a preserved part of the city’s water supply some distance to the north.
It was Herod who founded Caesarea, and it happened in the 10-20s BC. The Roman settlement was called Caesarea Maritima and was named after Augustus Caesar. After a short time, the settlement became the seat of the Roman prefect and acted as the administrative capital of the region. It was also here that Pontius Pilate had his official residence. The status of the settlement was elevated to Colonia by the Emperor Vespasian, and on that occasion the original name was changed to Colonia Prima Flavia Augusta Caesarea.
With the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, Caesarea was strengthened as the capital of the province of Judea, and with changing rulers, Caesarea remained the capital of the region until the 7th century. Later, both Arabs and Crusaders came to build further in and on Caesarea, before the city was destroyed in 1265.
The site was excavated from the 1950s, and the result of those efforts was a well-preserved part of Caesarea’s Roman and later buildings. From the south you can see, among other things, the Roman theatre, Herod’s residence palace, the hippodrome, the walls and moats of the colony, an advanced bastion, crusader gates, a temple area and the Roman forum.
Caesarea Maritima was built in a place without natural fresh water, and therefore the Romans built an aqueduct along the Mediterranean Sea, which transported water from Mount Carmel to the people of Caesarea. On the beach north of the ruined city, you can still see part of the aqueduct.
The Sea of Galilee is the largest freshwater lake in Israel and a favorite excursion destination for locals and tourists. The lake lies at a height of around 210 meters below sea level, and it is, after the Dead Sea, the lowest lake in the world. The primary source of the lake is the Jordan River, which continues south to the Dead Sea through the valley depression that runs through eastern Israel.
The lake is linked to many episodes in the Bible, and thus one can think of some of the miracles that Jesus performed on and around the lake, such as when Jesus walked on water. It was also from here that four of Jesus’ disciples came.
At the time of Jesus, there were many villages around the Sea of Galilee, and Tiberias developed into the main city of the area, which gained increasing importance for the Jews after the Roman expulsion of Jews from Jerusalem in the year 135. Over the centuries, many of the settlements were abandoned, but Tiberias continued is the main city in this part of Israel.
There are hotels by the water and also lovely beaches around the lake where you can enjoy its recreational values in many places. Biblical sites are well visited, and among them is the course of the Jordan River from the Sea of Galilee. In that place there are many who allow themselves to be baptized.
The Sea of Galilee is an important source of drinking water for the people of Israel, and in 1964 the country’s National Water Carrier was completed. It is a water pipeline which leads water from the lake to, not least, the densely populated areas around Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. The water level in the lake is under constant observation, and this is maintained within a limit that means that the lake does not become too salty or otherwise does not maintain its current consistency, flora and fauna.
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and it is the country’s third largest city. Haifa is beautifully situated on the Mediterranean Sea and Mount Carmel, which many of the city’s neighborhoods stretch up, with fantastic views as a result.
Haifa’s history goes back over 3,000 years, when a small port was the focal point for the development of a settlement. Since then, countless cultures and leaders have left their mark on the city and thereby contributed to the beautiful metropolis that you can experience today.
Until the end of the 18th century, only a few hundred people lived in Haifa, which began its development in earnest with the establishment of the so-called German Colony by German settlers from 1868. The German Colony is to this day one of the most popular places in the city.
Among Haifa’s attractions, the Bahai Temple Bahai World Center is one of the highlights. The center is a place of pilgrimage for the Bahai religion, and one can also enjoy a stunningly beautiful park, which has been laid out in terraces on the slopes of Mount Carmel as an axis towards central Haifa and the port of the city. At the center of the Bahai World Center is a gold-domed building that is the mausoleum of the Báb, who founded the religion. The Báb’s tomb was moved here from nearby Akko in 1909. Today, the Bahai World Center is included in UNESCO’s list of world cultural heritage, and the trip through the park is also an experience with beautiful plantings, elegant buildings and one breathtaking view after another.
The Monastery of Stella Maris/מנזר סטלה מאריס and Elias’ Tomb are other famous places in Haifa. Stella Maris is beautifully situated on Mount Carmel. It was founded in 1631, after believers had lived in caves on the mountain for centuries in imitation of Elijah’s prayers on Mount Carmel in the battle against Baal. Elias’ grave can be visited by going up from Allenby Street.
A curiosity is a large industrial building that stands in Jaffa’s port area. The building is the so-called Dagon Warehouse, which is a silo building that stands very beautifully as one of Haifa’s landmarks. Dagon Warehouse opened in 1955 in an unusual design for its time and function.
Akko is a city located on the northern part of Haifa Bay. Acre is strategically located as a gateway to the Levant, and it is considered one of the world’s oldest cities. Its importance can be seen today in the many old buildings that can be seen here. This primarily concerns the entire well-preserved old town, which is on UNESCO’s list of world heritage sites.
The Crusaders in their time left their mark on Akko with many fortifications such as city walls. On the remains of these walls, Zahir al-Umar, as ruler of Akko, had new walls erected in 1750. These walls were strengthened later in the 18th century, and they resisted attacks by Napoleon’s forces. The walls are beautifully preserved to this day, and among the impressive parts are the walls and fortifications facing the sea as well as the city gates.
Akko Citadel, Jazzar Pasha Mosque/מסגד אל-ג’זאר and the hostel Khan al-Umdan/חאן אל-עומדאן are some of Akko’s great architectural sights. The citadel dates back to the time of the Crusaders, but the current building is the result of a construction by the Ottomans. The Jazzar Pasha Mosque was completed in 1781 and is a fine example of Ottoman architecture. Khan al-Umdan is the most impressive hostel called caravansarai in Israel. It was completed in 1784 as one of several inns in the city. Among other things, you can see a preserved part of the Crusaders’ harbor and a larger aqueduct from the Ottoman era.
Jericho is a city located between Jerusalem and the Jordan River. It is believed to be one of the world’s oldest cities, and excavations have resulted in finds from a number of settlements over time, with the oldest dating back some 11,000 years.
Jericho is known from the Bible in connection with the Israelites’ migration that brought them to the city. Jericho refuses the Israelites passage, after which Joshua has horn blowers blow and wander around the city walls until they give way and collapse.
In and around Jericho there are many historical footprints that are worth experiencing. Here, for example, are foundations from historic settlements and several preserved parts from the Roman Jericho during Herod’s time.
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The urban area around Tel Aviv began with the establishment of the port city of Jaffa, mentioned for the first time in preserved documents in the year 1470 BC. However, archaeological excavations have resulted in finds that are older, but the early history is uncertain.
In 1470 BC was the Egyptian Pharaoh, Tutmoses III, on a conquest voyage, and on that occasion it is mentioned that he successfully won the dominion over Jaffa. The port city is also mentioned several times in the Bible; Among other things, it was from here that Jonas sailed before being swallowed by a fish for being there three days before throwing him up on a beach. It was also through the port of Jaffa that wood for the erection of Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem came to the area.
With the centuries, Christianity emerged, and from the Holy Land, religion proceeded to victory in Europe, where Catholicism prevailed. From time to time, crusades were launched to secure Christianity in the biblical land, and in 1099 Godfred captured Bouillon Jaffa from Muslims who left the city. With Godfred’s success, the time of the Crusades in present-day Israel had begun.
Godfather of Bouillon strengthened Jaffa’s defense; it applied to both the city and its strategically important port, which quickly evolved to become the gateway from the sea to the kingdom of Jerusalem. In 1192, Muslim Saladin conquered Jaffa, but Richard the Lionheart quickly won the city back on Christian hands.
The 13th century became the end of Christian rule over the area. German-Roman Emperor Frederick II had expanded Jaffa’s defense in 1223, but this was not enough to withstand the Muslim armies of the Mamluk sultan Baibar, who could conquer the city in 1268. On that occasion, the invading army destroyed the city’s fortifications and parts of the port facility.
A new crusade was planned in the mid-1300s, but it did not achieve the desired success. Over the following centuries, the greatest administrative change occurred in the 16th century, when the Ottoman Empire conquered Jaffa during the growth period of this Muslim kingdom. Jaffa was then ruled as one of several villages in the Gaza region.
During the Turkish Ottomans, Jaffa grew to some extent throughout the 18th century. This happened after the Ottoman government in Istanbul sent an increased number of troops to the city to secure the important port against not least pirates and Bedouins. With the increased military presence, the population of the city grew to just over 2,000 by the year 1800.
The 19th century brought relatively large growth in Jaffa, but before then Napoleon’s troops had besieged the city in 1799. Some of the inhabitants lost their lives in fighting or in the plague epidemic that hit Jaffa after the siege.
However, the growth came, and from the beginning of the 19th century, Jaffa’s old city walls were demolished to allow for expansion of the city, which in the 1880s had 17,000 inhabitants. It was mainly trade with Europe that brought prosperity and growth, and the most traded goods were silk and oranges.
The latter half of the 19th century was also where Jaffa’s Sephardic Jewish community was supplemented by traveling and similar Jews from North Africa and by Ashkenazi Jews. Yemeni Jews started the first settlement in what later became Tel Aviv, outside Jaffa in 1881. Several traveling Jews were attracted to Zionism, and they went to Jaffa in increasing numbers after the first aliyah that started in 1881 and lasted until 1903. In the 1880-1890s, they founded several settlements that eventually evolved into neighborhoods in Tel Aviv.
In 1906, a group of Jews decided to establish a new Hebrew city, to be established with modern standards in, for example, health and the environment. The thoughts behind the city were driven by contemporary green thoughts during the so-called Garden City Movement, and as a first, a number of plots were offered. Between the city’s dwellings there should be wide streets, street lamps and water supply for each house.
The region was under the rule of the Muslim Turks and the authorities banned Jews from buying land. The ban caused the first 60 plots of land to be acquired by Dutch Jacobus Kann, who registered as a buyer of all land in order to evade the Turkish rules. One of the driving forces behind the new city was Meir Dizengoff, who later became Tel Aviv’s first mayor. His vision with the city was that Jews and Arabs should live in peaceful coexistence, and after the acquisition of Jacobus Kann, the city could be realized.
On April 11, 1909, 66 families stood together at the uninhabited present-day Tel Aviv. They stood together to draw lots for the first 60 plots, and these events mark the official founding of Tel Aviv. The draw was done by collecting 60 white and 60 gray seashells. The names of the families were written on the white shells, while the numbers of the land were written on the gray. A girl pulled shells from one pile and a boy from the other. In doing so, Tel Aviv’s first residents found their new home, and with 66 families for 60 plots, six of the plots had been shared.
During the first year, the city’s first many streets were laid out, and water supply was established for homes and other buildings that jammed with the new city. Founded as an educational site in 1906, Herzliya Hebrew High School was an example of the urban development that took place in the early days. The school was built on Herzl Street, which along with the streets Ahad Ha’am, Yehuda Halevi, Lilienblum and Rothschild were in the first Tel Aviv.
Already at the start of World War I in 1914, Tel Aviv had grown to an area larger than a square kilometer. However, development stopped abruptly in 1917, the administration of the Ottoman Empire expelled the inhabitants of Tel Aviv and Jaffa. The following year, however, the Jews could return, the Ottomans having lost the war.
The British took control of the area from the Turks and it started a time of increased migration to the region. There was also increased tension between Arabs and Jews, and on May 1, 1921, they came to actual fighting with many dead and injured. The fighting caused many Jews to move from Jaffa to Tel Aviv in the following years, and the city grew from 2,000 inhabitants in 1920 to about 34,000 in 1925.
Tel Aviv was established as the area’s leading city during this time in the 1920s. Economically, it was rapidly developing, and it was the first city in British Palestine to receive electricity. The light was lit in Tel Aviv’s main streets on June 10, 1923.
In 1925, Scottish Patrick Geddes developed a large-scale urban plan for the expansion of Tel Aviv with streets, squares, housing and centrally located institutions such as administration and cultural centers. Part of this plan was implemented as intended, but with the increasing number of refugees from Europe in the 1930s, another part was developed with higher housing carriers than intended.
In 1934, Tel Aviv gained the status of an actual city, and in the following years immigration greatly increased. It was Adolf Hitler’s Germany that the Jews left, and in 1937 the population numbered 150,000, which was more than twice as many as in Jaffa.
The many new inhabitants brought new growth with them in economy, culture and logistics. In 1938, a new port was opened in Tel Aviv, enabling direct sailing instead of the Arab Jaffa. The city’s two airports, one of which is now known as Ben Gurion Airport, also opened during this time.
With the many emigrants and refugees from Germany came also some architects who were educated on and with Bauhaus and modernism. They continued to work with these styles in Tel Aviv, which in this context became one of the cities in the world where modernism had the greatest impact on the street scene. It was in 1930 that the so-called White City of Tel Aviv emerged and it was included on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 2003.
World War II was a terrible year for the Jews of Europe who found a sanctuary in Tel Aviv. However, the city could not completely avoid the war, and on September 9, 1940, Tel Aviv was hit by bombings of the city.
With the end of World War II, the European map had been changed and a solution had to be found to create a shared future for British Palestine.
Under the auspices of the UN, a divisional plan was drawn up and with this plan Tel Aviv with 230,000 inhabitants became part of a Jewish state, while Jaffa with 100,000 citizens became part of the proposed Arab state; about 30% of the people of Jaffa were Jewish.
A civil war broke out and it came to battles between Tel Aviv and Jaffa. The Jews won over and after a month-long siege, Jaffa fell on May 13, 1948. Subsequently, large parts of the port city’s Arab population left Jaffa.
On May 14, 1948, Israel declared itself an independent state and Tel Aviv became the administrative center until Jerusalem became its capital in December 1949. However, diplomatic relations continued to characterize Tel Aviv, with most of the country’s embassies and still lying here.
With the Arab defeat in Jaffa, it was unclear how Tel Aviv and Jaffa should be administratively linked. From 1948 to 1950, Jaffa was gradually incorporated into Tel Aviv, and in 1950 the city’s name was changed to Tel Aviv-Yafo to emphasize the history and location of both places.
Tel Aviv’s development continued through the 1950s in the young Jewish state. In the 1960s, the development in, among other things, the population was so significant that some of Tel Aviv’s lower buildings were demolished to make way for the country’s first high-rise buildings.
In the early 1960s, nearly 400,000 lived in Tel Aviv, which was a highlight compared to the following decades. During the 1960s and 1980s, the population gradually dropped to around 315,000. One of the contributing factors was the rising housing prices, which made it difficult for young people to buy housing in the popular Tel Aviv.
In the early 1990s, everything still didn’t look fancy. Iraq fired Scud missiles against Israel and Tel Aviv, and although the effective Israeli defense resisted the attacks, the missiles obviously made headlines. However, a total of 74 Israelis died in connection with the Iraqi attacks.
After a few decades of stagnation and decline in population, the 1990s brought new growth. Urban renewals were carried out in several places, and a special effort was made to preserve the city’s many modernist constructions.
In the same period came another great wave of immigration; this time it was from the countries of the former Soviet Union where, after the dissolution of the Union in 1991, it was possible to emigrate if desired. New high-rise buildings and new high-tech companies were some of the most prominent achievements of the 1990s, helping to establish Tel Aviv as an important economic and financial center.
Tel Aviv was attacked with Scud missiles in 1991, and through the 1990s the first INTIFADA raged, requiring many victims of Arab suicide attacks. Recent years have brought relative calm, and in 2009 Tel Aviv could celebrate its first hundred years since its founding.
Tel Aviv, Israel[/caption]
Overview of Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv is a big city with a picture perfect location at the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is a city with skyscrapers, pedestrian streets, shopping centers, museums and at the same time large parks and a long sandy beach in the heart of the urban area. It is a great cocktail for sights, activities and recreation.
Locals use Tel Aviv’s seafront promenade to bike, run, swim or just relax to the sound of the Mediterranean waves. The weather is mild all year round and the promenade always buzzes with life. High-rise buildings are located along the coast, and to the south you can see the old city of Jaffa rising on the horizon with St. Peter’s Church as a characteristic silhouette.
About the Whitehorse travel guide
Contents: Tours in the city + tours in the surrounding area
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Author: Stig Albeck
Publisher: Vamados.com
Language: English
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The Whitehorse travel guide gives you an overview of the sights and activities of the Canadian city. Read about top sights and other sights, and get a tour guide with tour suggestions and detailed descriptions of all the city’s most important churches, monuments, mansions, museums, etc.
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Rabin Square is one of the largest squares in Tel Aviv. It was formerly called Kings of Israel Square and is home to the city’s town hall, which lies to the north. At the southern end you can see the city’s memorial for the Second World War holocaust. The monument was designed in such a way that, viewed from above, it forms a Star of David.
In the north-east corner of the square you can see another memorial. It marks the spot where Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated on November 4, 1995. Rabin was shot after speaking at a major event related to the then peace process for the region. The square was named after Rabin after the murder.
Meir Park is one of Tel Aviv’s smaller parks, and it is a well-visited respite in the middle of the Israeli metropolis. The park opened in 1944 and is named after Meir Dizengoff, who was Tel Aviv’s first mayor.
There are many dog walkers in the park, and this is also where you find the city’s public LGBT center. The center carries out various cultural events, and here there is general information and so on. The center is housed in a building from 1920, which was originally built as a school building.
Dizengoff Square is the central square in Tel Aviv, and has been since the laying out of the area in the 1930s. Dizengoff Square was part of urban planner Patrick Geddes’ original plan for Tel Aviv, and it was named after Zino Dizengoff, who was the wife of the city’s first mayor.
Dizengoff Square is today a traffic hub, where a pedestrian area has been built above the road at street level. On top of this there is a central fountain and many places where you can enjoy the surrounding Bauhaus architecture.
The square was initially a traffic-quiet place with a large green area in the middle with a number of trees around. Six streets radiated from the square’s roundabout, and around it noble buildings were erected in the architecture of the time. This applied, for example, to the Cinema Hotel, of which you can still enjoy the lines.
The current square was created in the 1970s, and since then there have been several plans to recreate the square’s design from the 1930s. In 1986, the Fire and Water fountain was set up in the middle. It was designed by Israeli artist Yaacov Agam and the style is kinetic art that provides optical effects.
Polishuk House was designed in 1934 by architects Shlomo Liaskovsky and Yaakov Orenstein. It stands as one of the best examples of an office building among Tel Aviv’s many Bauhaus-style buildings.
Independence Hall is the building where Israel’s Declaration of Independence was signed. In this way, the state of Israel was proclaimed right here, and it happened on May 14, 1948 at 4 p.m. A museum has now been set up for this great event in the house.
Previously, the house went by the name Dizengoff House, which was due to the fact that it was the residence of Tel Aviv’s first mayor, Meir Dizengoff. That story began on April 11, 1909, when 66 families gathered in the area for a lottery for plots of land. Among the families were Meir and Zina Dizengoff who acquired this very plot of land. The lot had number 43 and they then built their house.
After Zina Dizengoff’s death, Meir donated the house to the city of Tel Aviv in 1930 with the aim of setting up a museum here. The Tel Aviv Museum of Art opened its doors at the address in 1932 and was located here until 1971, when it moved to a new and larger location in the city.
It was David Ben-Gurion who on 14 May 1948 read the Declaration of Independence aloud. It happened eight hours before the British mandate in Palestine expired. A rabbi blessed the declaration and the ceremony ended with the signing of the Israeli national anthem Hatikvah. In 1978, the hall for the declaration was recreated as the original, and you can thus experience the time from 1948 up close by visiting the house.
Boat House was designed by Shimon Hamadi Levi and built 1934-1935. Boat House is one of Tel Aviv’s best-known buildings in the Bauhaus architecture that is ubiquitous in the Israeli metropolis.
This atmospherically located church building is a Franciscan church that was consecrated in 1654 on the site where the German-Roman Emperor Frederik I had a citadel built in the 12th century.
The church is dedicated to Saint Peter, which is due to the association of the disciple Peter with Jaffa. This is where, according to the Bible, he was called to save the believer Tabitha, who had passed away. Peter was taken to her room where he prayed for her and Tabitha opened her eyes and had come back from the dead.
Saint Peter’s Church has been destroyed several times over time, and the current building was built in the years 1888-1894. The interior is beautiful under the high vaulted ceiling, and you can see both stained glass and artwork of scenes from the life and deeds of Saint Peter.
Pagoda House is a characteristic building in an eclectic style in central Tel Aviv. The house was completed in 1924, and among the residents of the apartments was Poland’s ambassador. The prominent resident had the house install Tel Aviv’s first elevator in a private residence.
The property was built in Tel Aviv’s construction boom in the 1920s, and the eclectic style stands as a mix of oriental and western style elements. The architect was Alexander Levy.
At the top of Jaffa’s Old City is Ramses II’s Park, which is a lovely green area from which there is a wonderful view of Tel Aviv’s seafront and many high-rise buildings. The park is definitely worth a relaxing walk.
The park is located on a site with an Egyptian past. During the Bronze Age, Jaffa was part of Ramses II’s Egyptian empire, and excavations in the 1950s uncovered finds that outlined the history of the past. Today, two arches have been erected in the park, and they give the illusion of the entrance to Ramses II’s palace and a triumphal arch.
Jaffa Port is the historically central port of the region around present-day Tel Aviv. The port itself has been known for three millennia, and the strategic location also provided access to Jerusalem.
Jaffa was the port where fishing, trade and immigration flourished. It was thus here that many settlers over time have come to Israel with, for example, Tel Aviv as their destination.
A port was built in Tel Aviv in 1936 and it partially took over the traffic from the port of Jaffa. The area’s activities in the industrial ports were moved to Ashdod Port to the south in 1965.
Today, Jaffa Harbor is an atmospheric area at the foot of the city of Jaffa, to which there are narrow and atmospheric passages from the harbor. Several activities have been established around the harbor and, among other things, good places to eat in the old warehouse buildings.
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