This may be one of my most favorite lookout points in all of Israel, or in the whole world, especially with the beautiful Baha’i Gardens below. It’s a site that can’t be missed if you’re touring Israel.

I wanted to thank our sponsors for this Israel trip:

ELDAN CAR RENTAL
and
TRAVELCELL Cell Phone Rentals

In my trip this past summer, I made sure to visit one of the most amazing locations in the country: Rosh Hanikra. It is rich in both history and beauty, and I highly recommend visiting the area when you’re in Israel.

I wanted to thank our sponsors for this Israel trip:

ELDAN CAR RENTAL
and
TRAVELCELL Cell Phone Rentals

Earlier this year, I flew KLM/Delta to Israel, with a nice 8+ hour stopover in Amsterdam. I liked this option as it gave me the opportunity to leave the AMS airport and explore the city.

In the short time there I managed to figure out exactly how to (using public transportation only) get to the Jewish area to find the Kosher restaurants, head downtown, find a couple attractions, and get back to the airport in time for my flight to TLV.

Now I’m hearing more friends opting to take this route, since it’s a cheaper option to flying El Al, and it offers a short European excursion…. and it doesn’t hurt that flying KLM is an amazing experience!

Flying on KLM, we were offered fairly large kosher meals from Borenstein Caterers, and they were pretty good all things considered. Remember to call your airline the week before your flight to confirm that you will have a kosher meal on EACH leg of your trip. (If you have a stopover in each direction, that’s 4 legs).

When we arrived at AMS around 12pm local time, we took our carry-on luggage and deposited it in one of many lockers in the airport for about €5. Be sure to remember exactly where that locker is, because we got lost trying to find it on our way back.

Inside the airport there is a huge train terminal, with intercity trains leaving every few minutes. Trains can take you into Amsterdam, around Holland, or even south to Brussels, Antwerp, and Paris.

We headed directly to the Kosher restaurant area, and ended up eating at Golan Grill in the Jewish neighborhood south of the city. Here are exact directions there. You will end up taking a local train and then switching to an above ground tram. Once you figure out which train and track you need and buy your tickets, the trip should take ~40mins. Maybe a little longer if you get lost. For this first train, you want to buy a ticket to “Amsterdam Zuid”, which was not apparently clear to us originally, and shouldn’t cost more than a few Euro. Once arriving at Amsterdam Zuid, you will buy tickets for the tram. If you follow my itinerary here, you will only need two rides on the tram per person. One to the Jewish area, and one into the city.

• Important Tip for Americans: Using your American credit cards will not work when buying tickets from machines at AMS (or from most machines in Europe for that matter). These machines only accept credit cards with a “chip & PIN”, which our cards do not have. You can use your Debit card, which has a PIN by default.

Golan Grill is a small, clean, Israeli style restaurant. Since we didn’t speak Dutch, we spoke to the owner in Hebrew. We had shwarma in pita, which was very different from what I’m used to, and it came with some interesting toppings. Click here to see their menu.

View Larger Map

Down the street from Golan was a Kosher deli / market / eatery called Mouwes (they have a few tables in the back, but at first glance, it does not appear to be a sit down place).

From there we headed into the city via tram. We wanted to walk around and see the sights, but given the fact that we needed to be back in the airport in a few hours, we chose one site to visit: the Anne Frank House. See map to the right for exact directions from Golan Grill to the Anne Frank House.

Once we arrived at the Anne Frank House, there was a line to get in and pay. Forewarning: The house is very narrow and you’ll be doing some climbing in very narrow staircases. If you have extra time, you’re about a 10+ minute walk from the center of town and tons of museums and other sites. Unfortunately, we needed to be back in the airport as our flight was leaving within the next 3 hours. We walked to the central train station: Amsterdam Centraal, which was a nice ~20 minute walk through central Amsterdam. See the map below for walking directions. If you have extra time, and want to check out the Spanish-Portugese Synagogue, you’ll need to take another tram across town (approximately 15 minutes). Click here for directions from the Anne Frank House.

Once at the station be sure to buy tickets to the airport which is a fairly short ride and only 1 or 2 stops. The trains pull up underneath the airport and relatively close to the lockers where you may have stored your carry-on luggage.

Traveling to Israel is something people do for vacation, business, visiting friends and family, as a student, or to attend a simcha. One of the things that nowadays is impossible to live without while traveling to Israel is your cell phone (mobile for you Brits and Aussies here). This is especially true if you get envious of seeing a million people around you yapping away on their phones or texting or playing Angry Birds, and you’re stuck device-less.

For the past 10 years I have been traveling to Israel for a multitude of reasons (including everything I mentioned above) from anywhere from a 5 day trip to a 6 month internship. Throughout the past decade I made sure to always bring a rented cell phone with me lest I be unreachable.

While renting is not your only option, I think it’s the best option for most travelers.

• Option 1: Renting a cell phone before you leave. In the U.S., there are a handful of companies that offer this service including TravelCell, Amigo, and Talk & Save. I had the opportunity to work with TravelCell (they are sponsors of YTK) and rent from them 2 phones for a 3 week trip earlier this year (I paid for my service).
  
  They have offices where you can pick-up/drop-off your devices in Brooklyn, NY; 5 Towns, NY; Teaneck, NJ; Lakewood,NJ; Southfield, MI; Chicago, IL; Los Angeles, CA; Silver Spring, MD; Boca Raton, FL; Toronto, ON; London, England; and in Jerusalem, Israel. If you don’t live near one of these centers, you can have your phones shipped to you before you leave, overnighted, or it can be delivered to one of the International Airports in NYC (where most Americans end up passing through to get to Israel anyway).
  
  Renting offers you a plan with set prices, free incoming calls, and a bill in English upon your return. If you have issues, their customer service is in English.
  
  TravelCell also offers other devices such as Blackberries, mi-fi hotspots, and internet aircards for your laptop.

• Option 2: Renting / Buying a SIM card in Israel for your own phone. This is a decent option only if: you have or are able to unlock your phone, you have a GSM phone that accepts SIM cards, you’re willing and able to deal with the Israeli phone companies … in Hebrew. If you’re capable of dealing with all of that – go ahead. You may save a few dollars, and get to use your own phone, but personally, the hassle isn’t worth it.
• Option 3: Using your Israeli cousin’s phone. Well … this one seems like a no brainer to me. If you can, go for it.
• Option 4: Go phone-less. Good luck my friend.

This post is sponsored by:

Eldan Car Rental The Best Way To See Israel
and
TravelCell International Cell Phone Rentals

According to The Independent (original article), Switzerland and Israel topped the list of “Adventure Tourism”. Israel ranked top amongst “Developing Nations” (which is an odd placement if you ask me) and Switzerland topped the “Developed Nations” list. The 3rd annual Adventure Travel Development Index (ADTI) which ranked 195 countries, giving a score to each one signifying its potential for adventure tourism based on ten factors including infrastructure, safety, sustainability policies, natural resources and adventure activity resources.

Israel overtook last year’s (developing countries) winner, the Slovak Republic, to win first place, with the Adventure Travel Trade Association noting that Israel’s appeal is broadening, with statistics reporting a drop in religious tourism and a rise in general interest tourism.

Top developed countries:

1. Switzerland
2. Iceland
3. New Zealand
4. Canada
5. Germany
6. Sweden
7. Ireland
8. Norway
9. Finland
10. Austria

Top developing countries:

1. Israel
2. Slovak Republic
3. Chile
4. Estonia
5. Czech Republic
6. Bulgaria
7. Slovenia
8. Jordan
9. Romania
10. Latvia

If you’re like me, you drool every time you pass a Cinnabon shop in the U.S. The way those cinnamon buns smell and look make me hungry and want to skip lunch just to try them.

So we’re excited to report that Cinnabon is opening a Kosher shop in Tel Aviv by Rabin Square at the corner of Ibn Gvirol st. 62and Zeitlin st.

Now … I need a kosher Cinnabon in NYC.

Thank you to @BenjiLovitt for the h/t.

Roladin is a delicious bakery/ restaurant/ cafe I had the opportunity of trying on a recent stay in Jerusalem. The restaurant is located at the Mamilla mall, near the Jaffa Gate of the Old City. The place is somewhat pricey for dairy, but well worth it.

The restaurant offers a well lit indoor seating area, and a more scenic outdoor area complete with views of the Old City walls and Yemin Moshe. The outdoor area also has special outdoor heaters to insulate you from Jerusalem’s windy nights and cold winters.

The fresh bread delivered to the table was amazing, and the coffee we took to go was equally excellent.

We tried to mix it up by ordering something different. I tried the quesadilla salad, which was a delicious fresh salad surrounded by 8 slices of quesadilla with cheese, pesto, and sweet potato inside. The dish was extremely tasty and I’d easily order it again.

My wife ordered the ravioli filled with cheese and sweet potato in a pesto cream sauce. Also, delicious. (We can’t get enough of pesto!)

I was initially concerned by the mix of sweet potato and cheese, but it turned out to be delicious and just the right texture in both dishes.

We took our coffee and dessert to go, and was still impressed with their presentation of their doggy box. The coffee and cheese cake were both excellent. I highly recommend trying out Roladin.

This post is sponsored by:

Eldan Car Rental The Best Way To See Israel
and
TravelCell International Cell Phone Rentals

Cruising in general has become a huge fad in travel over the past few years since it’s affordable and is basically a hotel that takes you to various amazing destinations. It’s no surprise that Israel has become a hotspot for cruises this year to disembark…

News from Israel’s Ministry of Tourism:

Cruise travel to Israel is expected to reach an all-time high this month with the confirmed arrival of 50,000 tourists and crew docking in the Israel port cities of Ashdod and Haifa.

Israel has seen a steady increase in cruise travel over the past two years with the arrival of 169,200 cruise visitors in 2010–a 250% increase compared to 2009. Also, approximately 68,000 cruise travelers arrived in Israel between January and April 2011–a 37% increase compared to the same period last year.

“We are thrilled to be experiencing a new wave of international cruise travel to Israel,” says Haim Gutin, Israel Commissioner for Tourism, North and South America, “and hope this trend will inspire travelers to return to Israel for an extended stay.”