Ramat Gan

Ramat Gan (Hebrew: רמת גן) (Translation: Garden heights) is a city in Israel, to the immediate east of Tel Aviv, which almost acts as an extension of it. Ramat Gan is an eclectic town famous for many things totally unrelated to each other, including diamonds, football, malls, chocolates, Iraqi restaurants, a religious university, and an open-space African safari with lions. Small green public gardens are plentiful and all streets are tree-lined.

Understand
Ramat Gan was founded in 1921 as a moshav (a communal farming community). Over time the population grew as Tel Aviv sprawled, and today the population exceeds 135,000.

Northwest Ramat Gan features a cluster of sparkling skyscrapers, which, at night, impresses you with a magnificent Manhattan-style skyline. There, you will find the tallest building in Israel (75 floors), right next to the two skyscrapers comprising of the diamond stock exchange. This area, called the Boursa, turns at night into a sleazy collection of brothels and illegal casinos.

The rest of the city, just like its name, is residential with green gardens here and there. Some embassies (including the EU delegation) are located here, instead of Tel Aviv. A lot of political wheeling and dealing goes on at the Ramat Gan Sheraton City Towers, which is a preferred hang out for Likud Party primaries conferences.

In the northeast, you will find the first successful shopping mall in Israel (Kanyon Ayalon) surrounded by huge outlet stores. Next to it are a shooting range ("mitvach"), the biggest soccer stadium in the country, and the Ramat Gan National Park.

On the southeast side of town is Bar Ilan University, which combines university studies with an orientation towards the religious Jewish community.

Ramat Gan is also associated with chocolates, as those passing by the "Elite" factory on Jabotinski Road would catch sweet whiffs of chocolate in the blending.

Last but not least, Ramat Gan is known as Baghdad Town. Most Jewish refugees from Iraq settled here in the 1950s and made Ramat Gan their home. As a result, many Iraqi restaurants can be found here.

Talk
As Ramat Gan was mainly settled by Iraqi Jews, Arabic is spoken by some elderly residents. However, the younger generation has been completely assimilated into mainstream Israeli culture and largely only speaks Hebrew.

By bus
The easiest way to get to Ramat Gan from Tel Aviv is by bus.


 * From the Tel Aviv central bus station: Lines 21, 31, 51, 52, 53, 54, 60, 68, 70, 160, 525, 531
 * From the Tel Aviv Central (Arlozorov) train station: Lines 1, 42, 51, 53, 55, 60, 61, 65, 68, 69, 70, 82, 142, 138, 160, 161, 238, 240, 524
 * From the Jerusalem central bus station: Line 400 goes directly to Ramat Gan. However, if you are going to the western parts of Ramat Gan, it is more efficient to take line 480 to the Arlozorov train station, which is just outside Ramat Gan.

By train
Trains go from most cities to the, which is walking distance to the Ramat Gan business district (Boursa). To get elsewhere in Ramat Gan, take a local bus from the train station.

Get around
The city center is small enough to walk around. For longer distances, take a bus. Ramat Gan is integrated into the greater Tel Aviv bus network, so there are few routes that serve Ramat Gan specifically. Line 65 goes almost everywhere in Ramat Gan - the stadium, Bursa, city center, and several neighborhoods, finally ending at the Sheba hospital in the southeast.

Eat
Don't miss the best Iraqi-style Shawarma in Israel at Shemesh on Jabotiski Road. There are plenty of fast food joints along Jabotinski. On the edge of Ramat Gan (Next to Bialik Street), practically already in Givatayim, there is the most famous Sabich restaurant in the universe, "Oved".

Drink
Clubs and bars are scarce, just catch a taxi to Tel Aviv (₪30).



Stay safe
When in the Safari, don't get out of your car! The lions or hippos may attack you. That is about the only danger in Ramat Gan.