The Best Hotel in Eilat is in Jordan

Israel, though commonly thought of as a Mediterranean country, has a small outlet in its far south onto the Red Sea as well, connecting it to the trade and fair weather of the oceans of the southern hemisphere. Despite being constricted for space, wedged as it is into the tip of Israel’s southern triangle, it does dual duty as a major port and as a major tourist destination. It’s actually most interesting for its proximity to Aqaba, a sister city which serves the same role for Jordan, in plain view across the water.

A co-worker and I made the four-hour drive down from Tel Aviv, through the formidable Negev desert which makes up the most of southern Israel. It’s a stunning landscape of red rocks and jagged hills, a more hostile version of New Mexico. It’s unwelcoming character is somewhat underlined by the skull-and-crossbones signs that line the roadway, reminding drivers that beyond BOTH sides of the road lie live-fire military training zones. When the well-maintained two-lane highway meets the Red Sea, the surrounding scenery doesn’t subside, rather the small hills grow into brown mountains that loom over a narrow passage to the water, where lie the ports and hotels.

The tourist industry doesn’t mind the lack of space, rather it seems to thrive on it. It’s impossible to explain the experience of an Israeli tourist hotel to someone who has not been. It’s a thoroughly democratic affair, with packs of extended families making the trip with a full retinue of offspring in tow, content to do nothing more than sit about all day and night, chatting loudly and eating, moving only to go from restaurant to lobby to pool and back to restaurant, with children in constant orbit. These being Israelis, brought up on the virtues of communalism, there is no need nor desire for space. It can be delightfully informal, if you don’t have to stay long.

We stayed in the “best” hotel in Eilat, the Rimonim Neptune, whose recent make-over was already wearing thin under the stomping feet of the masses. The desk staff, mostly Indian and Russian immigrants, seemed only barely able to cope with the chaos. My heart went out to the restaurant staff, mostly Russians, as they fought a running battle against entropy among the many buffet and dining tables. No matter how many the chairs they uprighted or spilled dishes they mopped up, there were always more crashes and squeals. I saw a child gleefully open the spigot of the Coco Puff breakfast cereal dispenser and watch the contents empty onto the counter and out into the floor. An attendant walked by and pretended not to notice.

Outside, on the nearby beach, the hotel beach bars compete for the title of disco with the loudest music… and the longest hours. I believe the current title went to our hotel, which was able to both keep me from falling asleep long past midnight, and wake me up again the next morning altogether too early. In short, I would not recommend a holiday in Eilat.

However, from my hotel window I could plainly see the fast-growing part of Aqaba, on the opposite side of the bay. The Jordanian monarchy, in partnership with the Hariri families Saudi Oger construction company, is transforming Aqaba into a major tourist destination. A planned city is fast rising from the waterfronts old fish docks, in fine Gulf style and scope.

Signs around the town announce an ominous “Promise of Growth”, hinting at the bargain forced upon the citizens of Petra, many of whom have been moved away from the waterfront up into new apartment blocks in the surrounding hills. We passed through on our way to Petra (see next point), and I was struck by the opulence of the first hotel to open, a sparkling Intercontinental, with a promise of attentive, smiling staff you would never dream of finding in Israel. I’m not sure how this will all work out for them, but from a tourist’s perspective, it can’t be much less appealing than Eilat.