'Late holiday deals to Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, plus offers on skiing breaks to the French Alps'
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‘Tel Aviv's 100th birthday celebrations culminate next month. Paul Clements joins the party’
Founded 100 years ago on a vacant stretch of Mediterranean coast,
With miles of boardwalked beaches, upscale shopping, world-class nightlife and head-turning buildings by some of the 20th century's leading "starchitects" (most notably those from the Bauhaus school), Tel Aviv lives up to its billing as the Miami of the Middle East.
An urban, sophisticated city, crammed full of impossibly beautiful people, it has been celebrating its centenary all year, with concerts, water displays and fireworks. Three walking trails covering key aspects of the city's attractions – its architecture, beaches and greenery – were unveiled last month. Travel you need: http://www.e-batteries.com.au/
The festivities culminate on December 15 with the opening of the Museum of the History of
If the centenary celebrations aren't reason enough to visit, prices for the five-hour flight are tumbling. Now that easyJet has launched a six-times-a-week service from
Travel by…
Low-cost airline: easyJetoperates from Luton, from £103 return, while Jet2.com flies up to twice a week from
Stay at…
The city's most exclusive address, the Dan Tel Aviv, an exquisitely designed waterfront hotel with a newly renovated spa; doubles from £187.
For alternatives to the large chain hotels that predominate here, try the Montefiore Travel you need: http://www.e-batteries.com.au/, a new 12-room residence fitted out in contemporary colonial chic; doubles from £167. Architourists and cineastes alike will enjoy the 82-room Hotel Cinema Travel you need: http://www.e-batteries.com.au/, set inside a former Bauhaus-designed film theatre; doubles from £104.
Spend the morning…
Ticking off the city's 20th-century architectural treasures. Some of the most striking buildings in the so-called International Style – sleek-lined in concrete and glass – are within the
Have lunch at…
Manta Ray (Alma Beach, 00972 3 517 4773), a nautical-themed bar facing the lapping shore. Pick at fresh shrimps, or free-flowing, tapas-style bowls of squid, French beans and lightly spiced okra for about £
Spend the afternoon…
Lost in the
Dine out at…
Travel you need: http://www.e-batteries.com.au/, a serious-minded, modish gourmet favourite with ultra-modern luminous décor and ambitious kosher Med dishes; try the whitefish falafel. The wooden bar at French-Italian hang-out Herbert Samuel (Kaufman Street 6, 00972 3 516 6516, Travel you need: http://www.e-batteries.com.au/is perennially propped up by oenophiles sampling
After hours, night-owls refuel at the Dixie Grill Bar (120 Igal Alon, 00972 3 696 6123, Travel you need: http://www.e-batteries.com.au/, a 24-hour kosher diner owned by Israeli celebrity chef Haim Cohen and serving hearty burgers, Cajun chicken wings and fries with everything; mains from about £12.
Spend the evening…
On the tiles. A suitable springboard is
More boho-chic is Nana (1 Ehad Haam, 00972 3 516 1915), a bare-brick lounge bar near the beach kitted out like a Louis XV orangerie, with foliage creeping around the gilt-framed oil paintings, chandeliers and chaise longues.
Spend the next day…
Amid the old stone houses in the alleys of
Alternatively,
At all costs avoid…
Tel Aviv's "celebrated" markets. The vast, open-air Carmel Market (Allenby Street) is good only for knock-off designer T-shirts; Jaffa's Shuq Hapishpeshim flea market specialises in scrap jewellery; and the reputed bazaar on Nahalat Binyamin Street is piled high with flick-knives, bootleg CDs, and – improbably – piles of yellowing 1930s newspapers carrying Hitler headlines.
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Since the global economy took a nose dive at the end of 2007,
But the city’s “holiday” sales start in earnest after Thanksgiving, on Black Friday (November 27 this year). This is the heaviest shopping day of the year, when American retailers traditionally slash prices. My top tip is to log on to
“One of the best things about shopping in this city is that you never really have to pay the full price,” says Amina Akhtar, fashion editor for nymag.com. She recommends that shoppers ask if there are any sales or special promotions when they come to pay.
There are also the sample sales – which in
Where to shop
If you go to one department store, make it Saks (
On the third floor are 16 rooms for personal shopper consultations (001 212 940 4200 for appointments, which can often be made on the same day). It’s a free service no matter how much you plan to spend. A new designer floor opened in September selling 49 labels, while the eighth-floor shoe department is so large it has its own postcode (look out for the sale racks). Less expensive shoes are sold on the fifth floor.
For cosmetics I would recommend supermarket-style Sephora (www.sephora.com ), with 14 branches across the city. Stick to American brands like Benefit, Laura Mercier and Urban Decay for bargain deals. Make-up artists flock to Ricky’s (19 locations in Manhattan; www.rickysnyc.com) for its high-quality cosmetics, toiletries and luxury hair products, including Bumble and Bumble and “it” haircare brand Phillip B. Don’t be put off by the stores’ slightly trashy appearance; you’ll find some gems. Uptown on Fifth Avenue is Elizabeth Arden’s flagship Red Door Spa and shop (54th Street; www.reddoorspas.com); Eight Hour Cream is $17 (£10), and facials start at $75 (£45).
At Paragon Sports (867 Broadway; www.paragonsports.com) just north of
For camera equipment, a trip to B&H Photo and Video (
Other great places for bargains are: Anthropologie (West Broadway, between Spring and Broome; www.anthropologie.com) for pretty homewares which are cheaper than in the new
Lastly, don’t leave the city without visiting Michelle Obama’s favourite store, J Crew (www.jcrew.com); there are 10 branches, including two – at 484 Broadway and 235 West Broadway – devoted entirely to their stylishly preppy men’s clothes. Their
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