Tel Aviv Port

Tel Aviv Port, known in Hebrew as the Namal, is a reinvented harbour at the northern end of the city's seafront, now one of its most popular leisure and dining destinations. The old working port has given way to a lively promenade of restaurants, bars, boutiques and markets strung along the water's edge.

It began as an act of defiance. Built hastily in 1936 after Arab unrest closed the nearby port of Jaffa to Jewish trade, it gave the young city its own maritime gateway and operated for several decades before commercial shipping moved elsewhere and the site fell quiet and semi-derelict for years.

Its acclaimed regeneration is celebrated for the design underfoot. A vast undulating wooden deck, its rolling curves evoking dunes and waves, spreads along the shoreline, blurring the line between promenade and public square and drawing skateboarders, joggers and families out to the sea. The boardwalk links smoothly to the beachfront path that runs south along the whole coast toward Jaffa.

For visitors, the port is an easygoing place to eat, stroll and watch the sea. A busy weekly farmers' market and a large indoor food hall draw food lovers, waterfront cafés and bars fill at sunset, and the flat, open deck is fully accessible and pushchair-friendly. It sits at the mouth of the Yarkon River, a short walk or bike ride from the city centre and the northern beaches, and connects to the green riverside park inland. Come for a relaxed meal by the water or a coastal walk; prices are moderate and the atmosphere is best in the cooler evening hours. Bike-share stations at the entrance make it easy to arrive along the seafront path and continue north or south afterwards.