Are you wondering the best way to get to Eilat and if it is worth the effort? Eilat is a town on a small strip of coastline, sandwiched between Jordan and Israel. This blog post will cover if it’s worth the effort to go to Eilat and how to to get there.
Getting to Eilat
Since the opening of the new Ramon Airport, getting to Eilat has never been easier. You can catch an early morning flight from Ben Gurion Airport and be swimming in the Red Sea by lunchtime.
Once you have arrived at Ramon Airport in Eilat you can catch a taxi or a local bus into town from the airport.
You have two bus options; line 50 or line 30. Line 50 continues along the coast all the way to the Egyptian boarder. Line 30 terminates at Eilat Central Bus Station. It will cost no more than 5 shekels.
Once in Eilat, line 15 runs along the coast towards the boarder of Egypt, I used this bus a lot when I was there. Here is a picture of the bus route (excuse the bad quality picture, I was feeling lost when I took the photo).
The cheapest way is to get to Eilat is to catch the public bus. The bus system across Israel is fantastic. It is air conditioned, efficient and reasonably priced.
If you are catching the bus from Jerusalem you can take line 444 from the Central Station, which stops off at Ein Bokek in the Dead Sea on the way. Line 445 comes direct from Jerusalem. If your coming from Tel Aviv you can take Line 394.
Is Eilat worth it – what to expect
I’m a self confessed beach snob. I booked a hotel in Eilat that by the pictures was opposite a beautiful beach. I was looking forward to days lazing by the pool and walking down to the beach to swim in the Red Sea. The hotel was opposite a beautiful beach, but it was a protected marine park, so it was forbidden to swim there. The pool at the hotel was also crazy busy. I was disappointed and my lazy beach trip turned into an explore the area trip.
In the end I realised that as long as your expectations are set correctly you can enjoy Eilat.
What you shouldn’t expect:
– Beach front accommodation
– Empty beaches to yourself
What you should expect:
– Busy beaches with a relaxed vibe
– Beautiful sunsets as the mountains in Jordan glow red and pink
– Israeli mezze on the beach, washed down with Israeli beer
– Pebbly beaches with crazy clear water
– Fences preventing you from entering the water in many places
Did I enjoy it and would I recommend it? Yes, it’s an easy busy ride from the Dead Sea. If you’ve got time to spare, then come and enjoy the beach bars and sunsets.
So what can you do once you’re there?
Hang out at the Beach Bars
There are three bars I recommend, Dekel Beach, which is right next to Moshi Beach and Bar Beach (where the picture below was taken). At these three beaches you can rent sunbeds, swim in the crystal clear Red Sea, munch mezze, watch the sunset and drink anything you fancy. Dekel beach has a little floating platform that you can swim out to. All these bars close at about 8pm, after the sun has set.
Snorkel in the Red Sea at Coral Beach Nature Reserve
This area is open from 9am – 5pm (times may vary for Shabbat) and is about $10 USD to enter. You can rent snorkels, fins, lockers and sun beds in the shade. You can also buy snacks, ice creams and beer (everywhere in Israel sells beer). It can get pretty busy and there are only certain areas that you can enter the water (to protect the little fishies and coral), but the Red Sea is clear and gorgeous and the snorkelling is good.
Take a trip across the boarder to Petra in Jordan
A popular thing to do is take a day trip to Petra from Eilat. I really love Jordan and Petra and I feel a day trip is just not long enough to enjoy the area properly, so maybe you might like to consider staying longer. If you need convincing, check out my Jordan blog post for tips on visiting Petra.
Visit the Underwater Observatory and Observation Tower
The views from the observation tower are spectacular. You can see Egypt, Jordan and Israel from the top. Below the observation tower is an underwater observatory. It’s a glass pod where you can view the coral and fish without getting your feet wet. This part I enjoyed. I visited the observatory, because another tourist told me the fish were not in captivity. This was true for the underwater observatory, because it looks out to the sea, but there were other sea creatures in captivity. I saw some unhappy turtles that were covered in green moss. I’ve swam with turtles in the wild in locations all over the world, but I’ve never seen such dirty turtles.
I felt conflicted when I left. I paid about $20 to enter, which is steep when really I was only paying for the view. The view was stunning, but I felt guilty because I had supported animal tourism by paying the entry fee.
There is also the opportunity to swim with dolphins and ride camels in Eilat, but I don’t recommend riding or swimming with animals in captivity.
Hike in the mountains or desert
In Eilat you have the choice of the beach or desert. Red Canyon and Timna Park are beautiful desert areas to explore. Red Canyon looks like the rock formations you can find in Arizona. I really wanted to visit, but it was 42 degrees when I was there and hiking during the day would have been as hot as hell, so I stuck to the coastline. It’s definitely a good thing to do in the winter or spring months.
Overall I enjoyed Eilat for the crystal clear water, delicious food, beautiful views and relaxed vibe. I spent 2 days here, if the weather had been cooler I would have stayed longer and explored the desert more.
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