Tel Aviv's seafront promenade from the Port down to Jaffa

Walking the Tayelet

Shlomo Lahat Promenade (the Tayelet) carries the whole of this walk, a wide pale limestone boardwalk laid in curving terraces that step down to the sand. Blue-and-white railings run along the seaward edge, and a separated red cycle lane keeps riders clear of the walking surface. Palms and lifeguard towers mark off the distance.

Walk it late in the afternoon, heading south. Jaffa's minaret and the Andromeda cliffs close the view ahead of you, and the light comes off the water rather than down onto it. Guided walking tours run the promenade daily if you would rather have the history read aloud while you walk.

It is public space with no door policy. Walking and cycling groups of any size use it.

Tel Aviv Port and Metzitzim Beach

Tel Aviv Port (Namal Tel Aviv) holds the northern end of the walk. The 1930s working quay now carries a wave-shaped deck of pale wood that rolls over the old stone, with children running its dips and the breakwater and fishing boats beyond. The corrugated hangars behind the deck were converted rather than cleared.

The deck itself is free. Inside Hangar 12, the Shuk HaNamal food market runs 09:00 to 19:00, with a farmers' market outside on Friday mornings. Eating here costs anywhere from ₪ to ₪₪₪ depending which door you pick, and the hangar restaurants take large bookings. In rain, or in the middle of winter, this is the part of the seafront that still works.

Metzitzim Beach sits two minutes' walk from the Port's food, and takes its name from a 1970s Israeli film. A stone breakwater half-encloses the crescent of sand, which holds the water flat. Entry is free and there are lifeguards in season. Timber shade shelters stand on the sand with a playground beside them, and sunbeds and umbrellas cost ₪ on top. Barbecues are not allowed here.

Independence Park above the sea

Independence Park (Gan HaAtzmaut) was founded in 1953 on the limestone ridge above Hilton Beach. It is the highest and quietest ground on the whole promenade. Pine and bougainvillea gardens run across the hill, past a mosaic ornamental pool and Pietro Cascella's pale stone Gate of Peace. The Hilton's long slab bulk stands alongside the gardens.

Climb up for sunset instead of staying down on the sand; the view from the ridge is the better one. The park is free and open at all hours. Locals picnic and barbecue in groups, and the north lawns take big parties.

Hilton Beach and the surf break

Hilton Beach lies directly below the park's green bluff, free and lifeguarded in season. It runs in three informal parts and people sort themselves between them. Surfers mass on the break at the north, the central section is Tel Aviv's main gay beach and flies rainbow flags, and dogs run off-lead on the sand beyond the break. Sunbeds and umbrellas cost ₪. Surf schools run group lessons on this water.

Topsea Surf Club stands beside the concrete deck of Atarim Square with the Hilton break working in front of it, a weathered shack stacked floor to ceiling with soft-top longboards and wetsuits. It was founded in 1956, is still run by the family, and opens all year.

The adult beginner group class runs Friday 08:00 to 10:00 and costs ₪250. Book that one 24 hours ahead. A private hour is also ₪250, with a set price for each extra person. Boards hire at ₪50 an hour or ₪100 a day. The club also runs surf camps for children.

Gordon Pool and Gordon Beach

Gordon Pool is a fifty-metre open-air pool of pumped Mediterranean seawater set on the marina edge, the masts of moored yachts standing immediately behind the lane ropes. Swimmers spread out on a wooden sundeck under parasols. The water is held near 24°C all year, which is why it swims well in winter when the open sea has gone cold. Day entry is ₪70 to ₪80, and walk-ins are taken, visitors included. Swimming lessons and water classes can be booked, and a children's pool and slides open in summer. It is the one paid attraction on the promenade that locals use daily.

La La Land sits in the sand at Gordon Beach, tables and low wicker chairs under cream parasols with the surf a few metres off and strung lights overhead after dark. Staff work in beachwear. The kitchen runs from breakfast through to cocktails. Groups are welcome. Book for the evening; walk-in groups at sunset often wait. Service slips when the place fills up, so keep the order simple and go for the setting.

Charles Clore Park and Manshiya

Charles Clore Park is the city's seafront lawn, broad green on a low bluff directly above the sand. It was built over the ruins of Manshiya, and sandstone remnants of the demolished quarter still sit scattered across the grass, with Jaffa's skyline framed to the south. Kite-surfers work the water offshore and their sails are the thing to watch from the grass.

The park is free. Picnics and large groups are normal, and barbecues are restricted to the marked areas. This is the pause in the walk between Banana Beach and Alma Beach.

Etzel Museum 1947–1948 (Beit Gidi) stands alone on that grass, a black glass-and-steel box set directly on top of a roofless ruined sandstone house. Go for the architecture as much as the exhibits, and go before you cross the lawns, because it accounts for their emptiness. Opening is Sunday to Thursday, 08:30 to 16:30, and the museum closes Friday and Saturday. Entry is ₪20 for adults and ₪15 for students, seniors and youth. Groups and guided visits book ahead by phone or through the website.

Hassan Bek Mosque was built in 1916 by Jaffa's Ottoman governor and is the last mosque standing in central Tel Aviv. The white limestone and its slender pencil minaret rise straight out of the beachfront, hemmed in now by glass towers with the Opera Tower behind. It is a working community mosque and not a ticketed sight. View and photograph it from the street. Groups should not expect to go inside, and nobody should approach during prayer.

Banana Beach on a Friday

Banana Beach (Drum Beach) is the long open sand at the southern end of the walk, with Charles Clore's lawns above it and Jaffa's silhouette directly down the shoreline. Arrive late on Friday afternoon. A loose ring of drummers and dancers forms on the sand at dusk and plays Shabbat in, and anyone who turns up is welcome, instrument or not. It costs nothing to stand in it.

Eating on the seafront

Chacoli (Retsif Herbert Samuel 3) cooks Spanish-leaning food over charcoal on the promenade itself. Whole fish and fire-roasted vegetables come off glowing coals at a long central bar, worked in front of you, and the pale wood deck faces straight out to sea. It took first place in the fish category at the 2026 Secret Tel Aviv food awards. Reserve ahead for that sea-facing deck, which is small and goes first at sunset. Group bookings are taken. ₪₪₪.

Treysar occupies the top floor of Hangar 12 at the Port, an upstairs room of muted tones and hanging plants with an open kitchen and floor-to-ceiling windows filled with flat horizon. The fish is micro-seasonal and cooked simply. American Express named it Best New Restaurant in Israel. Expect around ₪280+ per head (₪₪₪₪). Reservations are essential. Dinner service runs on weekdays; confirm the days before you book for a group.

Drinking at the Port

Shalvata holds the far northern tip of the Port, past the hangars, a sprawling open-air deck with hammocks and sand underfoot, a bar under canvas sails and a dancefloor facing the open Mediterranean. Sunset drinks drift into dinner and then into a club. It runs May to October, so check before a winter visit. ₪₪. The deck takes groups, and tables on Thursday and Friday nights need a call ahead.

Where to stay on the beachfront

Hilton Tel Aviv stands alone on the green bluff of Independence Park, a monolithic 1960s concrete slab of deep horizontal balcony bands with a saltwater pool terrace above the surf break. It has 393 rooms, five kosher restaurants, and the capacity for conferences and large parties. A path runs from the grounds down to Hilton Beach, and the promenade runs unbroken from the door to Jaffa. ₪₪₪₪.

Hours, bookings and closures

The Etzel Museum closes on Friday and Saturday, and Shalvata shuts outside May to October. Reserve Treysar and the sea-facing deck at Chacoli, call Shalvata for Thursday and Friday tables, and book the Topsea group class a day ahead.

See the Tel Aviv guide and the Tel Aviv hotel search.