Petah Tikva

Petah Tikva  (פתח־תקוה) is an eastern suburb of Tel Aviv, Israel, population 248,000 (2019).

Understand
Founded in 1878, Petah Tikva means "opening of hope", and was one of modern Israel's first agricultural settlements at the beginning of the Zionist movement. The early settlers drained the swamps in the area and planted orange groves in their place. For decades, it was a major exporter of Jaffa oranges. The orange groves have been mostly replaced by apartment buildings and industry, as the city grew into Israel's fifth largest city, and its second largest industrial concentration after Haifa.

For those into early Zionist history, a number of the old buildings have been preserved, though they can be hard to find, and the signs describing them are only in Hebrew.

Young single Israelis commonly make fun of it, saying it's a place nobody would ever want to live. However, when those same people get married and start families, Petah Tikva is one of the top places they choose. The city's population is generally middle to upper-middle class.

Petah Tikva has some of the best medical facilities in the Middle East (including Schneider, the best and biggest children's hospital in the region). Medical tourism to Petah Tikva is popular, especially from the former Soviet Union.

Get in
The road to Tel Aviv is often jammed.

Light Rail
The Red Line of the Tel Aviv Light Rail which travels from Bat Yam via Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan serves the Central and Northern sections of the city. The Red Line has two branch routes in the city. Route R1 serves the central parts of the city along Jabotinsky and Orlov streets and Route R3 has a sole station in the Northern sections of the city which is the terminus station at Kiryat Arye Railway Station.

Bus
Bus routes from Tel Aviv: 1, 50 and 51 from Central Bus Station; 1, 50, 51, 82, 138, 166, 238 from Tel Aviv Center Railway Station; 64, 66, 82, 128, 238 from the Carmel Market Terminal; 20, 49 from Tel Aviv University.

Bus routes from Jerusalem: 426, 950.

Shared taxis run along route 51, enter Petah Tikva along Jabotinsky road (via Ramat Gan and Bnei Brak) on a 24/7 basis.

By bus
Electra Afikim operates 15 internal bus lines within Petah Tikva (lines 10, 16, 22, 23, 25, 31, 44, 55, 62, 63, 88, 91, 97, 98, 99). Buses from the nearby cities such as Bnei Brak, Tel Aviv and Rosh HaAyin also can be used for intracity service within Petah Tikva.

By taxi
Gett, Uber and Yango ridesharing services are available.

Do
For other trails around you can contact the Yarkon Field School (Beit Sefer Sadeh Yarkon, ) which is in charge of the trail marking of this region.

Eat
Like elsewhere in Israel, restaurants that serve kosher food should have a Kashrut certificate issued by the chief Rabbi of the city. If you are seeking authentic Jewish cuisine that has been prepared in accordance with the Kashrut laws, you should seek out an appropriately certified eatery.


 * Paprika, a chain located in more than one place in Petah Tikva, open 24/7. An Israeli improved version of an American diner with international food.
 * Uzbekistan, Slor Street (next to the City's fresh produce market). An authentic folkloristic gastro-experience (non-kosher; menus available in Russian too). Try fillet mignon on a skewer with Kavkaz-mountain spices for ₪15.
 * Pizza USA, in front of the city hall on the Chaim Ozer (חיים עוזר) St. is a modest local pizza place which has become, through the years, a kind of famous local institute, because of the unique and delicious taste and texture of its pizzas.
 * Shawarma There are many great stands at the center of the town, and they are all great tasting, so if you ever visit Petah Tikva, you should visit one of the kiosks and enjoy the taste of Israel.

Drink
Most of the pubs and bars in Petah Tikva are in the Segula and Ramat Siv industrial zones. Petah Tikva has a popular local brewery with an attached pub called Jem's, but it is closed on Shabbat. Other establishments include Infinity (bar) and HaTzrif (club) in Segula. Many bars are open all week at Ramat Siv district, mainly around Hashacham street.

Sleep
There is an HI Hostel & guest house hidden away at Yad Labanim park.