Azrieli Center

The Azrieli Center is Tel Aviv's most distinctive skyscraper complex, a trio of towers beside the Ayalon Highway that has become a defining feature of the city skyline. Designed by the American-Israeli architect Eli Attia and completed in the late 1990s, the three high-rises are known above all for their pure, contrasting geometric forms.

Each tower takes a different shape in plan. One is circular, one triangular and one square, a deliberate exercise in geometry that makes the group instantly recognisable from across the city and from arriving trains and planes. The round tower is the tallest, rising to around 187 metres, and the three share a large shopping mall spread across their linked base.

Its top floor is a rare public viewpoint. The Azrieli Observatory, on the forty-ninth floor of the circular tower, offers a full 360-degree panorama over Tel Aviv, from the Mediterranean coast and the port to the sprawl of the metropolitan area and, on clear days, the distant hills toward Jerusalem. It is one of the very few high observation decks open to visitors anywhere in the country.

For travellers, the centre combines a viewpoint with everyday city life. The mall below holds shops, cinemas and food courts, and the complex sits directly above a train station and major bus routes, making it very easy to reach and fully accessible by lift throughout. Buy a ticket for the observatory, go late in the afternoon to catch both the city by day and the lights coming on at dusk, and pair the visit with the neighbouring Sarona district and its restored templar buildings and food market. A combined ticket for the observatory and a coffee on the top floor makes an inexpensive treat on a clear afternoon.