I asked a guy in a cafe to lend me his phone and paid him the call back.
“Hello Yaron? Do you remember me? This is Giulia the travel blogger”…
The first thing I did when I crossed the border from Aqaba (Jordan) to Eilat (Israel) was calling Yaron, one of the owners of the worldwide notorius Abraham Hostel in Jerusalem.
I crossed the border after days without a working internet connection, then Petra, then the desert of Wadi Rum… so once in Eilat I had no idea what to do. I had no booking, no itinerary. But Yaron saved my life!
All I had to do was take a bus to Jerusalem and have a good night of sleep.
The following morning, Yaron met me with a map, stretched it out on the table, and showed me all my options. Thanks to the free ILH map, I suddenly had a whole range of choice for my upcoming nights just under my nose.
In case you are wondering, YES they have options for the West Bank too (and I will definitely check those out too next time!).
It wasn’t hard to pick! Here is where I stayed during my trip in Israel:
Abraham Hostel, Jerusalem
Fauzi Azar Inn, Nazareth
Prices: from €18/night in a dorm, up.
Check availability and book Fauzi Azar
Gengis Khan Camp, Golan Heights
When I saw the photo of the Gengis Khan Camp, I decided I wanted to go. Mongolian tents, AKA Yurts, sounded too cool to be skipped. I’ve always wanted to go to Mongolia, so I guessed that could be a good training!
These tents are really big and can hold up to 10 people.
Sleeping on the mattress in the Yurt was very comfortable and definitely a new experience. I find this a perfect solution for families, or in general groups of people who travel together. You have your comfort, your privacy, and a pinch of adventure!
Of course this is a very fancy version of yurt! Every tent has A/C, and a private bathroom on the side.
Watch: how the Yurts were built!
There’s a big, nicely equipped shared kitchen and a garden with any herb you may need for your tea.
If you plan to visit the Golan Heights, I suggest you to have a car in order to explore it freely. There are not many buses up there, even if you can always easily and safely hitchhike.
The surrounding area offers many activities, such as hiking (lots of it), rafting, bathing at water springs, kite surfing in the Sea of Galilee, and of course the holy places such as ‘Kursi’, the place where the miracle of the swine is said to have taken place.
Price: from €20/person/night.
Check availability and book Gengis Khan in the Golan
The Negev Camel Ranch, Negev Desert
You know I love the desert! I wanted to sleep in the Negev ever since I stepped into Israel, and finally I found the perfect place! The Negev Camel Ranch looked just perfect.
Most people go there for camel rides, but I was happy with observing them and taking photos! The owners live in the ranch and breed camels for passion. As they state on their website, “one can have a camel ride for 1 hour or up to 2 days!”.
Accommodation comes in huts. Every hut has a lot of privacy and mine also had a nice view on the desert, a lovely setting where I took a nice nap before dinner.
The Negev Camel Ranch is on the ancient Incense Route, and not far from the camp you can visit the Nabatean city of Mamshit.
Vegetarian food is available on request… so request it! It’s seriously great food.
Price: from €28/night/person.
Check availability and book Negev Camel Ranch
The Green Backpackers, Mitzpe Ramon
The Green Backpackers is a tiny little hostel that feels more like a house, in the pretty much deserted town of Mitzpe Ramon.
I just loved the details of this place. Vintage and recycle here are combined and taken to another level… with cute results!
So what is so interesting about a deserted town in the middle of… pretty much nowhere?
Well, you just have to walk a couple of hundred meters to find out.
Mitzpe Ramon lays on the edge of what is erroneously referred to as “a crater”, but was formed by erosion and not by a meteorite. This kind of geological formation is called a “Makhtesh”. These are extremely rare and there are only a handful of these in the world.
Mitzpe Ramon is paradise of hikers. You can cross the whole Makhtesh following different paths and climb the edges on the sides. Did I tell you that Makhtesh Ramon has the shape of a heart? It’s so romantic for you couple travelers!
The green backpackers is very close to another famous landmark of Mitzpe Ramon: the camel shaped rock. Can you see it on the right?
Dorms are basic, cozy and clean. I had a really good night of sleep here!
Private rooms are more than beautiful! See? It really looks like a house… this is why I like this place so much.
You can check the board for what’s up at the hostel…
…Have a free introductory tour of the Makhtesh… which I highly recommend. Here is Lee, the owner of the hostel, explaining us how the crater was formed and showing us the main hiking trails.
…or just leave a message!
Apart from the Makhtesh and the camel shaped rock, there’s not much to do in Mitzpe Ramon. Walking around made me feel like I was in a ghost town. Then I had an unexpected encounter.
Price: from €15/night in a dorm, up.
Look for your accommodation in Mitzpe Ramon!
I hope you enjoyed the tour of these five unique forms of accommodation. Did you stay at any of them? Would you suggest other places?
15 Comments
Yes, my friends suggested me the Abraham’s. You have got great convincing pictures too. I loved your rooftop picture of Abraham Hostel & Shabbath dinner concept. Looking forward to staying there :)
Hey! I love your new layout :-), well done! That’s a superb review. I will keep this article in my favourites and definitely use it when travelling to Isreal again. I really enjoyed myself in this country two years ago. Happy travels!
Thanks Agness! Glad to hear you like the new look. :)
And yes, next time you go to Israel check out these places, you won’t be disappointed! Happy travels to you. :)
You certainly found some incredibly unique places to stay in Israel. I am impressed! I would love to sleep in the yurt, and I’m definitely going to be staying at Abraham Hostel on my next trip to Jerusalem. I’ll be referring back to this post if I do ever decide to spend time in the desert (despite my love of the Middle East, I am not a desert person). I’m happy you got to stay in such cool places!
Hey Sabina, yes, I found some really cool places, it was a great surprise!
You will love Abraham Hostel :)
Oh and I want to know how come you don’t like the desert! Hehe. Thanks for liking the post!
Wow! They’re all quite good! From the hostel to the elegance of the Fauzi Nazar Inn, they all seem to be a comfortable place for some nights. I’ve never been to Israel before but it’s on my bucket list and I hope that next spring I’m going to realize it.
That is one quirky door handle! Those rooms look quite comfy to me as well. I would definitely try to go to Makhtesh some time next year.
Very interesting information. May be during our next visit to Israel we’ll use some of it :-) Thank you.
[…] I met so many people I can’t even count them. Of course staying in hostels helped a lot (click here for my recommendations on where to stay in Israel) because of the common areas and the higher […]
Wow! Nice tips, and they’re actually really useful for me, because we’re going to spend the first two weeks of December in Israel! Thanks for the helpful tips!
[…] in a mill, how cool is that? I am a fan of unique forms of accommodation (I slept in a Trullo and a Yurta before to name a few!), but I’ll tell you more about this […]
Israel is definitely somewhere I would love to travel and stay. Although it seems a little scary or dangerous. However everyone says there is nothing to worry about.
This is a good tip.
Simple but very accurate information.
Its fantastic as yur other articles :D, regards for posting.
[…] the Gobi desert and sleeping in yurtas -which I actually did once, in the Golan– sound like heaven to me (I know I am weird). I actually want to visit Mongolia and spend […]