Travel: A tranquil oasis in a hectic city

Hotel Rothschild 22 provides a quiet night’s sleep in the center of bustling Tel Aviv.

By BRIAN BLUM
Updated: DECEMBER 20, 2015 16:04
Hotel Rothschild 22. (photo credit: AYA BEN-EZRI)
Hotel Rothschild 22.
(photo credit: AYA BEN-EZRI)
If you’re going to Tel Aviv, and getting a good night’s sleep in a nearly silent room in a central location is more important than sitting on a balcony taking in the sea breezes, the newly opened Hotel Rothschild 22 boutique business hotel has much to recommend it. This includes a stellar view of the Mediterranean and Old Jaffa from the floor-to-ceiling double- glazed windows in every room.
Hotel Rothschild 22 is located in a hectic part of town, so the care given to soundproofing the rooms from the traffic and hubbub below is just what business travelers need. That and the proximity to the dozens of hi-tech start-ups crowding the western end of leafy Rothschild Boulevard. The hotel is located in the 26-story office tower where Facebook Israel is headquartered, which ranks a big “like” for guests of the social media giant.
Hotel Rothschild 22 occupies the first 10 floors; the hotel’s front desk is essentially a well-appointed corner of the office building’s lobby.
But don’t let the simplicity fool you. This is a proper hotel with extra amenities catering to solo business travelers and small groups (the corner rooms, which have the best views, can be combined into a minisuite).
There are USB charging sockets and Ethernet connections in every room, plus some of the fastest free WiFi I’ve seen in a hotel anywhere (no problem to stream a movie from your iPad – important since, at least when we stayed, the massive 48-inch flat-screen “smart” TV was still buggy).
And there’s a Nespresso machine at the edge of the work desk space which looked shiny and new.
Indeed, the entire hotel, which is part of the Fattal chain, smacks of newness – not surprising, since it opened just two months ago. The chain invested NIS 200 million in the hotel, and it shows. The rooms, which have a soothing brown and beige color scheme, feature touch panel-controlled lights, a waterfall shower that approximates the real thing, luxurious L’Occitane en Provence toiletries, a duo of robes and slippers and a bed that’s comfortable without being too soft, with fluffy down comforters to snuggle in. And blackout curtains keep the room dark if you don’t have an early morning meeting.
Other amenities of the hotel include access to a fitness center in another building and the 10th-floor business lounge, which has a nonstop parade of sweets and a light buffet in the evening.
Plus copies of The Jerusalem Post.
The breakfast room, which after 10:30 a.m. doubles as the overflow seating for the Aroma café on the first floor, has a nice view of Rothschild Boulevard.
However, the food is disappointing, especially since a number of reviewers on TripAdvisor deemed it “amazing.”
Compared to the lavish buffet breakfasts in other exclusive Tel Aviv hotels, there’s nothing remarkable on offer.
While it is unlikely that you’d want to skip the breakfast (this is a hotel all about convenience, after all) and it does include an open cappuccino bar, there’s a Benedict’s a block away with the best pancakes in the Middle East.
Hotel Rothschild 22 calls itself a boutique property, but with 156 rooms, it has already exceeded that designation.
Still, if you fancy the hotel-in-an-officebuilding concept, the location can’t be beat, for both business and sightseeing.
(Independence Hall is just down the street as is trendy Neveh Tzedek, while Rothschild Boulevard is its own attraction.) And, man, is it quiet! The best rooms in the house run upwards of $300 a night. Ask for one facing the ocean, although the views of the city in the opposite direction are not too shabby, either.
The writer was a guest of the hotel.
Hotel Rothschild 22 22 Rothschild Boulevard, Tel Aviv (03) 511-0050 www.fattal.co.il/hotel-22-rothschild-tel-aviv