Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv is located on the coast of Israel. Jeruselem is just 60 km to the south east. And Haifa is 100 km to the north. It is a central location for tourism pre and post the WPS conference.
Hightlights of Tel Aviv
There is plenty to do in your free time in Tel Aviv. Some highlights include:
- Old Jaffa, one of the world’s oldest ports
- Rabin Square, Israel’s largest public square
- Azriely Lookout, with view of Tel Aviv from 200 meters
- Jaffa's Railway Station, a historic outdoor shopping area
- Dizengoff Centre, shopping centre with lively food market on Thursday & Friday
- Rothschild Boulevard, with a lot of Bauhaus architecture, restaurants and cafes in Tel Aviv prettiest street
- Shore Promenade, overlooking spectacular beaches
- Eretz-Israel Museum
- Tel Aviv Museum of Art, the biggest art museum in Central Tel Aviv
- Many museums: Bauhaus Center, Bialik House, The Museum of Town History, Rubin Art Museum, Gutman Art Museum, & Museum of the Jewish Diaspora located in Tel Aviv University
- Azrieli Center towers; with its circular tower observatory
- The beach scene, which is at its best in summer, especially during Friday afternoons as Shabbat comes in, when crowds of buff beachgoers converge to take in the Brazilian drums, the smell of barbecues
Festival - White Night
White Night Festival is an annual event, usually taking place late June or early July. It is a celebration of Tel Aviv's White City's proclamation as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site and organized by Tel Aviv's municipality. During the "White Night", cultural institutions, as well as commercial ones, are open to the public all night long, and many special events take place.
Markets
Tel Aviv's markets are the best show in town, and they're bustling all day long. A Middle Eastern mélange of tastes, scents, sounds, colors – and lots of people.
- The Carmel Market
- The Flea Market
- Creative Artists Fair
- The Nahalat Binyamin Pedestrian Mall
- Antiques and Secondhand items fair
- Levinsky Market - the best place in Tel Aviv to buy spices and dried fruits
- Hatikva Market in HaTiqva — a good place for Jewish-Iraqi cuisine, in the south-eastern "Hatikva" neighbourhood.
- The craft fair in the Nachalat Binyamin pedestrian zone
Shopping
There is no shortage of shopping in Tel Aviv. The city has six major indoor air-conditioned malls. There are also many colourful shopping streets with a wide range of goods on offer.
Climate
Tel Aviv has a Mediterranean climate, with hot, humid summers, unpredictable springs and autumns, and cool, rainy winters. Humidity tends to be high year-round due to the city lying on the coast. In June average temperatures are usually between 21 °C (70°F) and 28 °C (82°F). Humidity in Tel Aviv is approximately 70% but precipitation during summertime is rare.
Jerusalem
Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, and is located 60 km from Tel Aviv. Including East Jerusalem, it is Israel's largest city with a population of 763,800 residents. Located in the Judean Mountains, between the Mediterranean Sea and the northern edge of the Dead Sea, modern Jerusalem has grown far beyond the boundaries of the Old City
Jerusalem is a holy city to the three major Abrahamic religions—Judaism, Christianity and Islam. As a result, and despite having an area of only 0.9 square kilometres (0.35 sq mi) the Old City is home to sites of key religious importance, among them the Temple Mount, the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque.
During its long history, Jerusalem has been destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times, and captured and recaptured 44 times. The oldest part of the city was settled in the 4th millennium BCE, making Jerusalem one of the oldest cities in the world. The old walled city, a World Heritage site, has been traditionally divided into four quarters, although the names used today—the Armenian, Christian, Jewish, and Muslim Quarters—were introduced in the early 19th century. The Old City was nominated for inclusion on the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger by Jordan in 1982.
Pre & Post Conference Tours
WPS IX will offer both pre and post conference tours. Tour options and prices will be available on the web site in late 2012. Some possibilities include:
- Jerusalem one day pre conference tour: This one day tour to the historic and holy city of Jerusalem will include Temple Mount, the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque. Also visit Bethlehem and the Church of the Nativity. The city is one of the oldest in the world and has been designated a World Heritage Site.
- Israel four day highlight post conference tour: This four day private tour will visit the highlights of history rich Israel including:
- Massada and the Dead Sea - Ascend Massada by cable car to tour the 2000 year old fortress and palace built by King Herod - swim and float in the mineral rich Dead Sea - view Qumpan cave where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered
- Nazareth – travel through the plain of Armageddon - visit the Church of Annunciation and St. Joseph's carpentry
- Mt. of Beatitudes and the Church of Multiplication of Fishes and Loaves.
- Capernaum - visit the City of Christ
- Tiberias - visit the site of baptismal on the Jordan River
- And much more …
