My husband and I are even now returning from a trip to Israel, Jordan, and Paris, during which we spent our first 3 nights in Tel Aviv at the Hotel Montefiore. (For comparison purposes, we also stayed 2 nights in the Royal Suite at Taybet Zaman near Petra, Jordan; 3 nights in a Duplex Suite at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem; and our final 3 nights in a junior suite at the Westin Paris--Vendome in Paris.)

We generally prefer smaller boutique hotels, and we did very much enjoy the Montefiore. It was conveniently located in a quiet neighborhood with shops, galleries, and restaurants, and it was a decent walk to some sights of interest in the city (though we did take short cab rides to Jaffa and short drives with friends to the Port areas). It is a small hotel with 12 rooms upstairs and a lively chic restaurant/bar scene on the first floor. The clientele definitely seemed to be more designer chic than the city overall.

We selected the Montefiore largely for the above reasons--and because we live in a seaside location in Newport Beach, so the seaside Tel Aviv hotels were superfluous to us (and also generally more expensive and considerably larger).

Service and design were wonderful. Meals (both breakfasts and a dinner with friends in the downstairs restaurant) were great. I'd never had Turkish eggs until my first breakfast there, and they were delicious and different.

My only complaint is that the room sizes are a bit cramped for 2 tall American guys like us, who are used to junior suites and larger when at all possible when traveling together for holiday. For a single traveler, I'm sure the rooms would be more than sufficient. For us, it was the one drawback of the hotel--but not one that would necessarily make us avoid staying there in the future. I also personally found the air conditioning to be a bit on the minimal side, but to be fair it was December and few Israeli hotels even have the A/C turned on. (I am very sensitive to heat and always prefer sleeping below 68 F, and if our windows were opened we'd have suffered some street noise, so we had to deal with the A/C. For most, this might not be an issue at all.)

Our room was very nice--with a library wall stack of books on one side and a very comfortable queen bed and nightstands. There wasn't much room on one side of the bed, one of the drawbacks of our corner room location, perhaps--but we did have a nice long balcony on the backside of the hotel, overlooking a dull parking lot but still nice for taking in the cool nighttime breezes. The bath was very chic but a little dark, and lighting in the shower was largely non-existent. Sometimes, design comes with a price, but in this case it may just have been a less than stellar lighting design!

Overall, the friendliness and helpfulness of the staff more than made up for these technical shortcomings. EVERYONE--from reception staff, bartenders, restaurant servers, maids, etc.--was lovely, warm, and wanting to help us at any step of the way. One reception staff member even ran down the street for me to pick up a pack of cigarettes, since I'd run out and was dying after my long flight.

In short, the Montefiore may not be for everyone--certainly not the individual or couple looking for a comprehensive luxury hotel experience with spacious rooms, grand facilities, etc. But if you are looking for a boutique property with a real flair for service and Israeli hospitality, the Hotel Montefiore is a sure bet. We most likely would always be pleased to return here on future trips to Tel Aviv, as long as we know the A/C is working properly!