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City Guide - Tel Aviv - Air | ||
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Air Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV) Tel: (03) 971 0111. Fax: (03) 971 1908. Web site: www.ben-gurion-airport.com Ben Gurion International Airport is located at Lod, near the Mediterranean coast, 22km (13.7 miles) southeast of Tel Aviv. It is Israel's principal hub for international and domestic air traffic, with two terminals designed to handle up to 12 million passengers a year. Major airlines: El Al (tel: (03) 971 6854; web site: www.elal.co.il) is Israel's national carrier. Daily scheduled flights are also provided by British Airways (web site: www.british-airways.com); while other major carriers include Air Canada, British Airways, KLM - Royal Dutch Airlines and SAS Scandinavian Airlines. For understandable reasons, El Al's airline security is the tightest in the world, so, whether flying in or out of Israel, the check-in period is always at least three hours prior to departure. Approximate flight times to Tel Aviv: From London is 4 hours 30 minutes; from New York is 11 hours; from Los Angeles is 16 hours; from Toronto is 10 hours 30 minutes and from Sydney is 14 hours. Airport facilities: Facilities include banks (24 hour), restaurants, duty-free shops, general shops and tourist information (24 hour). Avis, Budget, Eldan, Hertz, Eurodollar, Europcar and Thrifty all provide car hire services. Business facilities: The Solan Lounge (tel: (03) 979 2323) is available for general users of the airport, with fax facilities for hire. Passengers with Israel's El Al airline can use the King David Lounge (tel: (03) 971 6892), while passengers with all other airlines have access to the Jet Set Club lounge (tel: (03) 971 6892). Arrival/departure tax: NIS195 (included in the airfare). Transport to the city: United Tours (tel: (800) 876 787) bus 222 goes to Tel Aviv (via the railway station and along the seafront, terminating at the Dan Panorama Hotel) hourly (0400-2400 Sunday-Thursday, 0400-2000 Friday, 1300-2400 Saturday). It costs NIS20. Bus 475 runs every 30 minutes (0530-2300 Sunday-Thursday, 0530-1545 Friday, 1815-2300 Saturday) to Tel Aviv's Central Bus Station (journey time - 25 minutes; cost - NIS12). From the Central Bus Station, buses 4 and 5 then pass most of the hostels. Sheruts are available 24 hours a day, from outside the arrivals hall, to Tel Aviv (journey time - 30 minutes), and cost NIS26. Taxis are also available 24 hours a day. |