If you’re going to party in Tel Aviv (and if you’re reading this post, I assume that’s what you want to do) then there are some things you should know about the way things work around here. I’ve collected these into this post.
The Tel Aviv Party Scene
There are plenty of places to go partying in Tel Aviv, including both clubs and dance bars. There are a few big mainstream places, lots of cheesy mainstream bars in the touristy areas like Ben Yehuda and Dizengoff, and a good number of more underground locations. These are mostly located in the south of town, but there are a few surprising ones hidden away in unexpected places.
Tel Aviv is small and the weather is usually nice so you can easily walk or cycle between venues. This means people often end up going to more than one party (or bar, or café) a night, making the whole experience a lot more varied.
People in Tel Aviv tend to have a short attention span too. If a party gets even a little bit boring, they will move somewhere else. Some people (myself included) actually enjoy the journey between parties more than the parties themselves sometimes, especially on big party nights such as Purim, Independence Day, or New Year’s Eve (known locally as Sylvester or Silvester).
Saying that, the fact that the city is so small makes people lazy too. Young people will often go out in their neighbourhood or to the surrounding ones, but not usually to the other side of town, unless there is something very special on. People who drive into Tel Aviv from out of town think nothing of driving for 15 minutes – half an hour to get in, but anything more is still considered a special journey that requires sleeping over in town. Israel is pretty small too.
Finding a party to go to in Tel Aviv
Apart from checking out party listings on this blog and the complete DIY Tel Aviv Guide for info, you can also find fliers and posters around town (see the guide for a list of good places to find fliers).
DJ names and party names are usually in English, though the addresses are often in Hebrew. If you’re lucky, they’ll have an English address too, otherwise the club or bar may well be in the party and club section of my guide.
The problem with Tel Aviv party listings
Information about parties in Tel Aviv usually isn’t released till quite close to the date of the party. People in Tel Aviv (and Israelis in general) don’t like to think ahead too much about their party plans. Even events with big name DJs from abroad that are planned months in advance are not often shared with the public until a month before at most (but usually only a few weeks in advance).
I get a lot of people emailing me to ask for party info for weeks or months ahead and the truth is I just don’t have it. Only major music gigs with big name artists and expensive tickets are advertised months in advance here. Events I know about are updated in the event calendar as soon as promoters release the info.
So basically, if you’re looking for something good to do, keep your options open for as long as you can. Find out about stuff, but don’t commit till a few days before, or even on the night itself.
The music
There’s a little bit of everything in Tel Aviv, though the city tends to change overnight sometimes when a new trend has been found.
Tel Aviv is notorious for modelling itself after bigger (cooler?) cities abroad. One minute everyone’s playing electro, the next someone’s imported dubstep from London and now everywhere is playing dubstep.
At the moment the city Tel Aviv is idolising is Berlin, and there’s a strong connection between the Berlin club scene and the Tel Aviv one. As a result, you’re likely to mostly hear techno in the underground electronic music clubs.
Other scenes that are always popular are trance (psychedelic and progressive), reggae / roots / dub, hip hop / dancehall, and commercial tech and progressive house. You can usually also get more underground tech house, dubstep, drum & bass, world music and, of course, alternative rock (good local bands play every night somewhere).
When to go to a party in Tel Aviv
When looking at the start time of any party in Tel Aviv, ignore it. People who put a start time for a party assume no one will turn up till at least 2 hours after that time.
Parties don’t get going till late here and promoters are always trying to change that by offering reduced or even free entry before a certain time. Sometimes you can even get a free drink. It can be worth it, but get ready for things to be really dead for quite a while.
Sometimes, locals actually go to a party early to get in cheaply and then get a stamp and leave for a while (to a bar, for example), returning when things are more exciting.
You’d think the late arrival time would mean the parties would go on till much later, but people tend to get bored at some point, so most parties start getting emptier around 4:00 or 5:00. If there’s a big name DJ booked in (from abroad) then they’d be starting their set around 2:00 or 3:00 normally, so people would generally be going home after that. Now that Tel Aviv is influenced most heavily by Berlin, you might find headliners going on even later than that.
What are Tel Aviv parties like?
Here are some things that will happen to you in a Tel Aviv party:
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- You can pretty much wear anything you want
- People will smoke, even though there’s officially a smoking ban
- People will try to get cigarettes off you (everyone does it here)
- If you’re a woman, men will hit on you (maybe more so than in other countries)
- People won’t come up to you and try to sell you drugs (so if you’re an evil drug user, you’ll need to get creative)
- You’ll need to tip the bar staff
If it’s a bar you’re in that gives you the receipt and / or the receipt on a little tray then you need to tip 12-15% per drink, 10% if you’re feeling cheap. If you’re a good tipper (or a hot chick) the bar staff will sometimes return the favour by giving you free shots of booze every once in a while.
If you’re at a party where there’s a tip jar on the counter, it’s up to you how much you want to give. Bar staff will be too busy to remember you enough to give you free booze anyway, unless you’re a hot chick.
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- You’ll get shoved and pushed around
Israelis are impatient and often rude. They’re not usually being malicious, it’s just the way things are here. Learn to stand your ground or take it in your stride.
For more information about the Tel Aviv scene, you can check out the nightlife guide. If you want to know more about Tel Aviv in general, check out the FAQ page.
Parties in Tel Aviv this week
Check out the events page for even more upcoming parties I think are cool.
