Middle East - Anthony Ham [228]
Theatre & Classical Music
Jerusalem Theatre (Map; 561 7167; jerusalem-theatre.co.il; 20 David Marcus St, Talbiyeh) The theatre offers simultaneous English-language translation headsets for certain performances. It’s also home to the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra.
Khan Theatre (Map; 671 8281; khan.co.il; 2 David Remez Sq, Yemin Moshe; adult/student 150/120NIS) Occasional English-language performances.
Binyanei Ha’Umah Conference Centre (Map; 622 2481; 1 Shezar Rd) The residence of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.
Off Salah ad-Din St in East Jerusalem, Al-Masrah Centre for Palestine Culture & Art and Al-Kasaba Theatre (Map; 628 0957; Abu Obeida St, East Jerusalem) stages plays, musicals, operettas and folk dancing in Arabic, often with an English synopsis.
Sport
The Teddy Kollek Stadium (Map), seating a respectable 20,000, is home to the two Jerusalem football teams, Beitar Jerusalem and Ha’poel Jerusalem, with their rowdy and relatively relaxed fans, respectively. If you’re steeled for the experience, tickets can be bought at the stadium on the day of the match. To get here, take bus 31 from King George St or bus 6 from the central bus station.
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GETTING THERE & AWAY
Air
Jerusalem has no civilian airport. For information on air travel into the country, Click here.
Bus
From the sparkling Egged central bus station (Map; 694 4888; Jaffa Rd), buses connect to all major cities and towns around the country. Popular routes include bus 405 to Tel Aviv (17.70NIS, one hour, every 15 minutes); bus 940 or 947 to Haifa (39NIS, 2½ hours, every 15 mins); bus 962 to Tiberias (42NIS, 2½ hours, hourly); bus 446 or 470 to Be’er Sheva (32NIS, 1½ hours, every 30 mins); and bus 444 to Eilat (65NIS, 4½ hours, six daily). For day trips to the Dead Sea, bus 421, 444 or 486 depart for Ein Gedi (32NIS, two hours) or bus 444 or 486 to Masada (39NIS, 2½ hours); be sure to leave on the first service of the day (8.45am) or you will find yourself pressed to get back the same day. To get to the Palestinian West Bank, it’s best to take a sherut (shared taxi).
For information on buses to Egypt, Click here.
Sherut
Sheruts (service or shared taxis) are much faster than buses, depart more frequently and cost only a few shekels more; they’re also the only way to travel during Shabbat. Sheruts for Tel Aviv (20NIS per person on weekdays, 30NIS on Friday and Saturday) depart from the corner of Harav Kook St and Jaffa Rd (Map).
Sheruts for all West Bank destinations depart from the ranks opposite Damascus Gate in East Jerusalem.
Train
Jerusalem’s train station (Map; israil.org.il.english; 577 4000) is located in the southwest of the city. Trains depart hourly to Tel Aviv (adult/child 19/17NIS, 45 minutes) from 6.10am to 9.10pm, Monday to Thursday. The last train to Tel Aviv leaves at 3pm on Friday. To get to the station, take bus 6 from Jaffa Rd or the central bus station; check the website for up-to-date information on fares and times.
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GETTING AROUND
To/From the Airport
Bus 947 runs the 51km from the central bus station to Ben-Gurion airport (20NIS, 40 minutes, hourly) between 6.30am to 8.30pm Sunday to Thursday, 6am to 4.30pm Friday, and 8.20pm to 10pm Saturday. Allow yourself plenty of time in case you get stuck in traffic, though, since there’s no dedicated bus lane. Alternatively, Nesher service taxis ( 625 3233, 625 5332; 45NIS per person) takes prebooked passengers from their hotel, 24 hours a day.
Bus
Jerusalem is laced with a very good network of city bus routes (5.50NIS per ride). If you need to transfer, ask for a Ma’avar ticket, for 6.40NIS. Pick up a colour-coded route map (in Hebrew) from the Jaffa Gate tourist office (Click here).
Taxi
Plan on spending 25NIS to 35NIS for trips anywhere within the central area of town. Always insist on using the meter, or agree to the price in advance.
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MEDITERRANEAN COAST
The Israeli coast comprises a