Accommodations & Hotel Information
Welcome to the Fourth Israel Behavioral Finance Conference! We are very glad you will be participating in our conference.
Here are some suggestions for accommodation and how to get around in Israel. Please keep in mind that they are a little biased reflecting our tastes and experiences.
The best way for getting an hotel is via the internet. In the previous conference many participants stayed at the Marker House hotel (it’s a boutique hotel) which is reasonably priced and great location. At that time of year prices should be reasonable. Good prices can be found also at the Diaghilev which we also recommend. If you prefer big hotels we suggest to choose from the many hotels on Hayarkon Street (near the beach). These hotels are close to the conference site and to all the entertainment places of Tel Aviv. We recommend choosing a 3 stars Hotel or better. Dan Panorama is a little expensive but worth it. You can't go wrong with the four or five stars hotels, but if you are looking for less expensive, you can consider the Olympia hotel, Jaffa courts, De La Mer, Ophir, Leni's, Dan Hotel and Dan Panorama. In general Tel Aviv’s boutique hotels are nice. Market House Hotel (recommended) and Margosa Hotel are close to the conference’s site.
Another suggestion is to buy a tour guide of Israel and/or Tel Aviv (to avoid my biases). They are usually better than the advice that ordinary people can give you.
We suggest commuting within Tel Aviv only by taxis and to avoid public transportation. This will save you time and the taxis are quite cheap. All drivers speak English and they are quite reliable and rarely cheat.
To tour the country outside Tel Aviv a rented car is useful. When you rent a car a GPS is a must, and if you have a smartphone, we suggest downloading the "Waze" application. It is free and it is the best GPS there is. In general Tel Aviv is worth touring for few days but you may want also to see other Israeli attractions such as Jerusalem, the Galilee, The Dead sea and Eilat.
When you arrive at the Airport we suggest to carry with you the invitation to the conference letter. It might save you some hassle from the security people if they ask too many questions. From the airport to the hotel take a cab (about $40). Usually it goes by the meter. If the driver asks for slightly more than that in a fixed, it’s OK.
The conference site is in Jaffa, which is in the southern part of Tel Aviv, 10 minutes’ walk from the old city; a great touristic place, and from the flea market which used to be flea market (of which very little is left) and by now became a very gentrified community full of upscale restaurants and bars. Tel Aviv is a great entertainment place with an abundance of all styles of restaurants and cafes. You have to tip in restaurants and cafes (10-15%) and many places ask for the tip in cash, but some will allow also to pay by credit card. You do not have to tip the taxi drivers (you can round up the price).
The currency here is Shekels (officially New Israeli Shekel or NIS, about 3.14 NIS for a US dollar). The hotel, and the omnipresent banks and ATMs will change the money for you or provide cash, but it may be a good idea to change some of your currency at the airport.
We hope the above helps and we will be happy to answer any specific question you may have.
Best regards and see you soon,