The Carmel Market trip
The Carmel market
Tel Aviv is THE city in Israel, although it is not the capital of Israel, it is considered to be the financial center of Israel. It’s holds the biggest banks in Israel, beautiful beaches, ancient port town of Jaffa, excellent restaurants and great nightlife.
With all the mentioned above you should definitely not miss the visit at the Carmel market known in Hebrew as Shuk HaKarmel.
This Market is located in the southern part of the city and just few blocks from the Banana beach. You can easily get there using buses that get to their final destination -Carmelit.
At the Carmel market you can feel the vibe of native Israelis, as its the main market for the local people.
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The origin of the name Carmel is from the bible and its referred to the ever green mountain up north. The name Carmel is mentioned several times in the bible and it related to descriptions of beauty and fertility. One of the interpretations of the word is Kerem-El; meaning the vineyard of god.
This is the place to get adventures and try the local food, don’t be shy, ask for a sample and try the fruits and vegetables, the bread and the delights…in most cases you do not even need to pay if it is just a taste.
In this market you will also find restaurants that will serve you any kind of meal from Falafel in a Pita (consider to be the national dish) to Shakshuka and even great meat and stew.
The market has even a website and you can also buy a tasting ticket that will direct you exactly to the best food in the market.
We also offer organize tours in the market on a daily base, this way you can really get the most out of this market. With an organized tour you can walk in the market with a professional chef that can tell you stories about the origin of the dishes and also some of the anecdotes.
When you walk in the market you can also take this opportunity to visit Neve Zedek, Nachalat binyamin (Fri,Tue) and the Tachana area. All of those area are very nice touristic areas that are close by.
Don’t forget, before leaving the Market buy some fresh fruits that can be a joyful surprise during the next day when you are at the beach, touring other part of the city or just hanging in your room. If you are at the market on Friday, you must taste and buy the special Sabbath bread- Chala. This is a bread that is baked only for Sabbath and it can be sweet or very sweet!
Author: Yariv Hen, licensed tour guide in Israel