Beachfront Hostel

The 2011-opened Beachfront Hostel occupies a building that's around 100 years old. Though there are layers of paint decorating the inside of the hostel with colorful door frames and beach scenes, it can’t escape feeling tired. During our visit, renovations were being planned for the shared shower area and the rooftop bar area -- two spots that could definitely use some TLC and updating. 

While this is a hostel, it’s not a place for the unsocial. Expect to share your space, every space with everyone. Sliding glass doors in dorms are often opened up to the shared courtyard area in order to ventilate rooms, and guests sleep in tents on the rooftop. Since the hostel is open to the public, it's best suited to carefree travelers looking for social experiences. This hostel is run for backpackers on a budget and shouldn’t be confused with the chic and contemporary budget spots found throughout Europe.

This hostel is located on Retsif Herbert Samuel Street, a road that runs parallel against the boardwalk on Trumpledor Beach. It’s centrally located on Tel Aviv’s beach strip, and within easy walking distance to several restaurants, bars, and popular streets. To reach the beach, guests will have to cross a busy thoroughfare. 

• Two-minute walk to the beachfront boardwalk
• Four-minute walk to Ben Yehuda Street
• Six-minute drive or 14-minute walk to Carmel Market
• Seven-minute drive to Old Jaffa 
• Eight-minute drive to Rothschild Boulevard
• Nine-minute drive to Tel Aviv Port
• 11-minute drive to Rabin Square
• 12-minute drive to Sarona Market
• 13-minute walk to Dizengoff Street
• 24-minute drive to Ben Gurion Airport

The Beachfront Hotel has 30 budget rooms ranging from dorms to private doubles, triples, and quads. All private rooms are basic but clean, with tile floors and a contemporary look. Beds are topped with crisp white sheets and turquoise bed runners, and portholes are painted onto the walls. Each room has a small bar fridge and a large flat-screen TV with cable. Some private options have their own bathroom, while other share them with the dorms. For a small personal tiled terrace with wicker tables and chairs overlooking the street to the beach, ask for a ground-floor room. Private doubles can have either a double bed or two twins, while private quads always have a set of bunk beds.  

The dorms are contemporary, but don’t feel as fresh as the private rooms, probably because of the high traffic and turnaround. Expect wood laminate floors that are peeling in the corners, lockers, and bunk beds with personal lights and charging outlets. Some dorms open up to a shared courtyard area via sliding glass doors. The hostel’s one female-only dorm has a private shower that tends to stay steamy and stuffy in the mornings due to low ventilation. 

The shared bathrooms are located down the hall and are separated by gender. These are clean but often still feel grimy. We recommend shower shoes for the semi-private, frosted-glass stalls.

Tents are available during the summer and are tight fits with either two bunk beds or a single bed and two bunks. This area is essentially one large tent separated by canvas walls and is the cheapest accommodation. Due to late-night parties on the roof, it can be noisy, though the hotel does give tent guests free earplugs. 

The Beachfront Hostel looks out for its budget-minded guests by providing a handful of valuable freebies, discounts, and affordable extras and experiences. However, by far, the hostel’s best feature is its big rooftop terrace and bar area. Basically a large sundeck, this space has fantastic beach views and is the heart of the property. Open to the public, there’s a relaxed vibe and tons of partying to be shared by all. During the summer, the cushioned wooden patio furniture and large circular lounge center space is shared with tent accommodation. 

For those who would rather see the beach from the sand, the hostel has a dedicated tent space for guests across the street. Open between April or May to November (or weather permitting), this space has room for a handful of people, plus a few beach games. 

There’s no official breakfast here, but a free small morning snack of fresh fruit, bread, butter, jams, and juice is laid out on the rooftop. Nighttime freebies include a loosely guided night out at two bars in the area, or guests can sign up for the more official TLV pub crawl organized by the hostel. This leaves three times a week and costs extra, though crawlers get free beer, shots, and entrance to the bars. Discounts are available for the beachfront Le Mer restaurant across the street and the hostel-run surf club that rents boards, gives lessons, and has paddleboarding.  There’s coin-operated laundry with detergent available at the 24-hour reception desk.

The guest kitchen is located on the rooftop and is a chaotic space in somewhat disarray, and it doubles as the hostel bar. A large communal fridge holds the food, while a collection of electric burner hobs, two toaster ovens, and a microwave are on hand to cook. The hotel also has a popular hummus workshop for an extra fee. 

Sim cards are available for an extra fee, as are Friday night Shabbat dinners. These dinners are vegetarian and feature homemade hummus and an introduction to the history of the tradition of Shabbat. Wi-Fi, the lobby computer station, and beach towels are free, and guests have all-day access to self-serve coffee and tea, slushies, and filtered hot and cold water. Lockers are free but require a deposit.