Across Israel, a New Crop of Hotels and Resorts are Hitting New Design Heights

Inside, the walls and floors are covered in Israeli plaster using a Moroccan surface technique called tadelakt, whose many layers create the clean, luxurious look of light, cream-colored leather. Fixtures, textiles, and artefacts are sourced from all over the world—the joinery is made from recycled teak from India and Thailand, and furniture and other fabrics have been imported from India, Thailand, Morocco, Turkey, Italy, and more—but there is a distinct emphasis on Israeli-purchased and handcrafted pieces. For example, brass furniture frames and steelwork were made by local artisans, ceramic lighting fixtures, tapestries and looms, and local potters made serving utensils and dishes. Ambiance: Delicious, Bedouin chic.

The 64 guestrooms and sunken villas are equal in luxury. Organic linens and wool rugs lean toward neutral shades with subtle pops of color, and the furniture, including built-in beds and deep, covered sofas, looks like it’s coming out of the ground. Even better, the glass walls and terraces (most with pools), built like protrusions, make you feel like you’re living in the fresh air.

“We wanted to enable a luxury and modern hotel to blend in with nature [without] Plessner explains their biggest challenge. mission accomplished.

Six additional new Israeli hotels worth checking out – and checking in.

Efendi Hotel, Akko

At the 12-room Efendi Hotel in Akko’s old town, old is new again. Composed of conjoined 19^yCentury Ottoman mansions—think hand-painted ceilings and marble floors—the luxury hotel has been restored by Israeli hotelier and restaurateur Uri Jeremias, archaeologists and archaeologists, and renovated this year. The elegant rooms are a mixture of antiques and luxurious modern furniture and fittings. Drink wine in the cozy Byzantine-era cellar wine bar, and relax in the 400-year-old Turkish bath.

Debra Brown, Tel Aviv

Little represents changing Tel Aviv better than the newly opened Debra Brown Hotel, a remodeling of a 1964 luxury kosher hotel that, with 12 floors, was one of the tallest in a city now crowded with skyscrapers. The charming spin of the modern building, complete with a sunken rooftop swimming pool, is from architect Professor Yossi Friedman. The 89 guestrooms have a The great Gatsby Luxurious with emerald velvet, gold and copper fixtures, perfect for a pre-dinner champagne.

Mitzpeh Hayamim, Rosh Pina