Little Jerusalem

Experience the city like a local by staying at a small, charming hotel.

NOVEMBER 3, 2013 11:21

The charming little hotel is located in an old house in this (photo credit: Courtesy) — The charming little hotel is located in an old house in this

(photo credit: Courtesy)

There aren’t many good small accommodations in Jerusalem where one can stay for NIS 500 or less.

However, The Little House in Baka is one of the few that offer very good value. The charming little hotel, located in an old house in this historic neighborhood, was recently renovated and upgraded, but the prices were kept low. Visitors tired of the sameness of large international hotels in the city will enjoy the ambience of this Ottoman-style mansion.

When we arrived, we were welcomed by manager Avi Haim, who was available at the reception desk throughout our stay, greeting each guest personally, and patiently providing information and assistance.

The hotel offers a free street-parking area, and although it took some time for Jerusalem drivers behind me to actually stop and give me space to back in, I finally did. I decided to leave the car where it was parked for the duration of our stay in Jerusalem and used the numerous bus routes linking up with the capital’s museums and historical sites.

Each of the 34 rooms of the hotel is air conditioned and has comfortable beds and clean, commodious bathrooms. All standard rooms and family suites are spacious and bright, with large arched windows. If available, ask for a room facing the garden rather than the street, as the street side can get rather noisy. The hotel has no travel elevator and the upstairs rooms are more ambient, but rooms are available on the ground floor, which include economy rooms that are smaller and have no view.

Oded Niv, co-owner of the three Little House hotels – Baka, Rehavia and Colony – says he got the idea to open small hotels with personal and individual service from his previous career in advertising.

“As soon as we opened the first hotel at the Baka site, the intifada started,” he says, describing the difficulties of keeping afloat during those first years. “However, the hotel has become increasingly popular since then, attracting groups and individuals, both local and tourists, as well as many return guests.

Breakfast, which is included in the price of the room, is served in the adjacent kosher le’mehadrin Polly Restaurant.

Although independent, the restaurant is a concession of the hotel, with a separate entrance so that it is accessible to outside patrons as well. Guests eat breakfast in this pretty country-style restaurant or outside patio. The restaurant is open throughout the day and evening.

On Shabbat, while the restaurant is closed, hotel guests have access to a large fridge and hot plates set up on the patio in the garden for those who bring their own food.

Liat Pekker, together with chef Shlomo Kasuto, took over the management of the Polly Restaurant earlier this year. Kasuto had worked there for some years, and their mission was not to make drastic changes in the menu because they already had a regular satisfied clientele, but to create a relaxing environment with a lot of natural wood, plants and checked cotton tablecloths.

Even the breakfast is served at the table, and the menu offers a large choice of healthy and satisfying dishes, fresh coffee, tea and juices. Based on Italian cuisine, Kasuto works with the freshest of vegetables and herbs, pastas and fish.

The restaurant seats up to 120 and is available for special events, as well as private patrons. For the individual diner, prices are very reasonable.

Wi-Fi internet is free throughout the hotel, accessed without codes and cards, and there is a computer in a quiet corner of the upstairs lobby.

But if one is tired after a day of sightseeing and wants to escape computers and telephones, the comfortable sitting area and the leafy garden offer relaxing nooks to read or have a cup of coffee or tea, available day and night in the lobby.