Coming2Israel.com - The Best of Israel!

As we have said, many times before, there are loads of things to see and do in Israel. G-d willing, those of us here at Coming2Israel.com, will have plenty of time, to see and do as much as we can - we live here!  But for you, the tourist coming to Israel, well, your time will be limited.  Of course, if you are visiting us regularly, you can see and do more over your multiple visits and cross items of your bucket-list a little at a time. But, for those of you with a short time, and/or only a single visit, we begin our section on The Best Of Israel.  Good luck and have fun! As a note, this page will be an on-going project for us.  As new things come up, we will do our best to update accordingly.  Also, if we have missed one of your personal or recommended favorites, please let us know and we can possibly add your suggestion to our list.  And, we will try and add new types of lists to this page as often as we can.

Best Over all Things About Coming To, Around and In Israel:

1) The Sun: And it’s FREE!  The number one, overall, best free thing in Israel, bar-none, is, quite simply, THE SUN. For better or for worse, Israel has one of the world’s highest percentages of sunshine for the amount of available daylight hours. The sun shines here nearly 75% of the time that daylight is available - around 3000 annual hours of sun from an available 4000, or so, hours.  And without all that sunshine, the rest of the great things to do here would be, well, quite simply, not as fun.  Just remember to use suntan lotion, wear a hat and drink lots of water - yes, drink the water that isn’t falling from the sky...   Need we say more? 2)  The Beaches:  Well, you gotta enjoy all that sunshine somewhere, so it may as well be on the beach!  Take a stroll or a dip, soak up the above mentioned sun, the beach really is the best place to do it.  And if there is a body of water close by, then there is more than likely a beach not to far from it to go to and enjoy.  Since Israel is such a small country, with most of the major cities built up on the coast, you really are never that far from the beach. 3)  The History:  For starters, Israel is the home and birth to the three major monotheistic religions and all that history and archeology that goes along with it.  Okay, okay, we’re ignoring the politics, but as we’ve said before, this site is not about politics. Look at this way, there are so many places in Israel where you can walk in the same steps as people have lived their lives more than 2000 years ago. 4)  Museums:  Want to see some art? Or see some relics? Or learn about science and technology? Chances are there is a museum that specializes in what you are looking for.  And, some of the museums even bring in major exhibitions from all around the world. With over 200 museums in Israel, we have the highest amount of museums per capita in the world.  We are sure that you’ll find one, maybe even two, that would interest you. 5)  Parks and Outdoor Spaces:  Whether it be a small park on the corner, or the Monster park in Jerusalem, or the sprawling HaYarkon Park in Tel Aviv, there is a place for both, young and old, to enjoy some outside, fresh- air time.  Stroll, ride a bike, let the kids have some fun. 6) The Nightlife:  Clubs and bars can be found in just about every city.  Most of them only start getting “warmed up” around 11:00pm.  And some will even stay open until the “last-customer”.  You may find yourself stumbling ‘home’ at the beginning of a new day, as the sun starts to rise!  Where did the time go??? 7)  Culture / Performance:  Along with all of the museums that we have already mentioned above, there are also plenty of artistic, musical, dance, ballet, and play / musical events happening just about every night throughout the country.  Opera, orchestra, classical dance, modern dance, vocal, rock, Jazz, DJ, electronica, chill, we got it.  Again, you may find yourself stumbling ‘home’ at the beginning of a new day, as the sun starts to rise! 8)  Restaurants:  Hungry?  Good.  Let’s eat!  Although eating out in Israel may not always be a cheap endeavor, we do have quite a great selection of types of restaurants to satisfy your hunger.  Fast-food, Falafel, Shwarma, Asian-Fusion, Sushi, gourmet and just about everything in between.  Bon-appetit!  Thirsty?  No problem. We’ve got you covered.  Coffee, beer, wine and even an Israeli Whiskey coming soon!  Cheers, or as we say in Israel, “Lechaim!”. 9)  Shopping:  Again, maybe not always the cheapest to be had in the world, but shopping in Israel has come a long way and you have quite a few options.  From individual local and specialty shops, to outdoor “farmers- markets”, to full size metropolitan shopping malls, we can almost guarantee that you’ll find what you are looking buy. 10)  The People:  We think that we have saved the best for last! Regardless of the origins of the people that you meet living in Israel, after you crack the nut, you will defiantly find that most Israeli’s are a very warm and hospitable people.  And Israelis really love to host foreigners.  We’re a little country, so we take a certain pride in the chance to mix-it up with people from different places, and it’s our chance to show off a little too.  So, it may not take long for them to want to invite you to their house for a meal, especially on Friday night Sabbath meal.  Now with this warmth, comes a bit of a lack of privacy, as once Israeli’s feel that they know you, which can usually take as much as a minute and a half of some casual conversation, they may start asking you personal questions about your family, or your income, or why you have the strange little bump on your forehead.  But don’t worry, even if you don’t ask, they just may start telling you about theirs.  But, you should know, this is normally, or hardly ever malicious in intent.  Israeli’s simply love to know the details about people that they know. Uh, yes, we’re nosy.  We were doing social media and twittering, long before the Internet made it so easy!  Oh, hugs and kisses on the cheek, may soon follow. And, when speaking with Israeli’s, personal-space buffer zones can be non-existent - just stand back a little when their arms start flying around - and they will.  Don’t say that we didn’t warn you.  If you are looking for shorter conversations, never, ever, ever, ever ask an Israeli his or her opinion about anything.  Chances are they have one, and maybe even two or three about the same thing.  And, they are very happy to tell you all of them.  But, overall, you should try and let your guard down a little bit and enjoy.  Like we said, we are warm and hospitable.  And more often than not, all of the above comes without judgment.  If an Israeli feels like you have a made a real connection, chances are that you have made a friend for life.  And we will do whatever we can to help you out of a situation, if you need it, while you are visiting our country.

FREE Israel!

Perhaps everyones favorite word!  We know we love ‘free”, But of course for the good things only. So that’s what we are giving you here - GOOD and FREE things to do in Israel. BTW: When we say free, we are usually talking about no admittance fee.  Eats, drinks, parking, buses, taxis etc. will require an outlay of cash.  What can we say? The best things in life may be free, but ya still gotta get there.  And have a nosh while you’re there too!

Best FREE Israel:

1)  The number one, overall, best free thing in Israel, bar-none, is, quite simply, THE SUN. For better or for worse, Israel has one of the world’s highest percentages of sunshine for the amount of available daylight hours. The sun shines here nearly 75% of the time that daylight is available - around 3000 annual hours of sun from an available 4000, or so, hours.  And without all that sunshine, the rest of the great things to do here would be, well, quite simply, not as fun.  Just remember to use suntan lotion, wear a hat and drink lots of water - yes, drink the water that isn’t falling from the sky...    And! Don’t forget to stick around for the fabulous Mediterranean sunset!!!

Best FREE Tel Aviv:

1) Tel Aviv Beaches: Sun, sand, surf. Need we say more?  Family, religious, hippie and hipster, and gay beaches - Tel Aviv seems to have them all. Pack the sunscreen, wear a hat and stay hydrated, but have a ball - a beach ball, that is!! Here’s more beach details at the Coming2Israel.com Beaches Primer. 2) Tel Aviv Parks, Walkways and Promenades. There are many wonderful parks located throughout the city and the outlying areas.  Most of them have been around for a while, so the trees are mature - providing cooling shade from the strong Mediterranean sun.  And, since most of the parks are within the city, proximity to amenities is close at hand.  You are never too far from a mini-mart, coffee shop or a restaurant. The two most notable stretches worth spending time on, are the Tel Aviv Beach Promenade, and the HaYarkon park.  The Beach promenade, or as we say, Tayelet, runs north from Jaffa to the old port of Tel Aviv (the Namal) and The Reading Power Station. You can continue north, past Reading to the Tel Baruch Beach, or turn right at Reading, and enter the Hayarkon Park.  The park runs inland from the Mediterranean Sea, following the HaYarkon River to Ramat Gan, near the Ayalon Mall and the Ramat Gan Stadium.  The stadium is a location for sporting events and a major concert venue as well.  Of course, Hayarkon Park is a great place to go for a walk, or a bike ride, have a picnic or sit and catch up on some reading or just people watch.  The HaYarkon park also is part of and connects to the Israel National Trail - Shvil Yisrael - the trail system that runs north and south from the far north of Israel all the way down to Eilat.

MORE COMING!  Stay tuned!

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