Israel Stay Budget Stays

The 7 Best Budget Hotels in Israel (2026)

Updated August 2026 · 7 picks

The best budget accommodation in Israel is the kibbutz guesthouse network, the SPNI field schools next to the national parks, the church-run pilgrim hospices in Jerusalem, and the hostel chains with private rooms. Expect ₪250–₪500 for a double. Book far ahead for Jewish holidays. Seven options, below.

1. The kibbutz guesthouses — Galilee, Golan, Negev and the coast

The best value in Israel — a pool, gardens and a vast breakfast, in the countryside.

₪₪ Mid-rangeBest for Families · Couples · Groups

Kibbutzim across the country run guesthouses on their own land, ranging from simple rooms to proper hotels, and collectively they are the best-value accommodation in Israel.

The formula is consistent: quiet grounds, a pool, an enormous included Israeli breakfast made largely from what the kibbutz produces, and a location in the countryside rather than a town centre.

They are concentrated in the Galilee, the Golan, around the Sea of Galilee and in the Negev, which is exactly where a car-based trip wants to be based.

Good to know: The included breakfast is enormous and often replaces lunch. Factor that into the real cost.

Google Maps Website

2. The SPNI field schools — Ein Gedi, the Golan and the Negev

Basic rooms in extraordinary locations, right at the trailheads.

₪ BudgetBest for Families · Groups · Couples

The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel runs field schools attached to nature reserves and national parks — simple guesthouses whose value is entirely in where they are.

The Ein Gedi field school sits above the Dead Sea beside the nature reserve; others are in the Golan, the Negev and the Galilee. You wake up at the trailhead rather than an hour's drive from it.

Rooms are basic and functional, groups and school trips use them heavily, and they book out well ahead. Reserve directly and early.

Good to know: The Ein Gedi field school puts you at the reserve gate for opening — a real advantage in summer.

Google Maps Website

3. The Jerusalem pilgrim hospices — Old City and Mount of Olives, Jerusalem

Church-run, spotless, quiet and cheap — and often with the best views in the city.

₪ BudgetBest for Solo · Couples · Families

Jerusalem's church-run pilgrim guesthouses and convent hospices, in and around the Old City and on the Mount of Olives, are open to anyone regardless of faith and are among the best-value rooms in the country.

They are typically clean, calm, inexpensive and set in historic buildings with gardens or terraces, and several have views over the Old City that no hotel at any price can match.

The trade-offs are simple rooms, no bar and, at some, an early curfew. Ask about that before booking if you plan late nights.

Good to know: Ask about the curfew. Several lock the doors well before Jerusalem's evening is finished.

Google Maps Website

4. The Abraham Hostels network — Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Nazareth and Eilat

Dorms and private rooms, plus the country's main budget tour operation.

₪₪ Mid-rangeBest for Solo · Groups · Couples

Abraham Hostels operate the largest properties in the Israeli hostel scene, with locations in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Nazareth and Eilat, offering both dorm beds and private rooms with en-suites.

The attached tour operation is the practical reason to use them: it is the easiest way to reach Masada, the Dead Sea, the Negev, the Galilee and Petra without a car, and non-guests can book the trips too.

Private rooms here compete with budget hotels on price while giving you the common areas, bar and tour desk that a hotel does not.

Good to know: Book the Masada sunrise trip through them even if you sleep elsewhere — the tours are open to non-guests.

Google Maps Website

5. The desert khans and Bedouin-style camps — Negev and the Arava

Sleeping in the desert for the price of a meal in Tel Aviv.

₪ BudgetBest for Groups · Solo · Families

The Negev and Arava hold a network of desert khans and Bedouin-style camps offering mattresses in large communal tents, and increasingly private huts, usually with dinner and breakfast included.

It is the cheapest interesting accommodation in Israel and the setting does the work: open desert, silence, and skies among the darkest in the region.

Communal tents are exactly that — shared, basic and not private. Several camps now offer individual huts for a modest step up if that matters.

Good to know: Desert nights are cold year-round. The bedding provided is often thinner than you will want.

Google Maps Website

6. The Haifa and northern city hotels — Haifa, Akko and Nahariya

The north's cities cost a fraction of Tel Aviv and are a good base.

₪₪ Mid-rangeBest for Couples · Families · Solo

Haifa is substantially cheaper than Tel Aviv or Jerusalem for a comparable room, and it works well as a base — the Baha'i Gardens, Wadi Nisnas and the German Colony are in the city, and Akko, Rosh Hanikra and the Galilee are short drives away.

Akko and Nahariya are cheaper still, with small hotels and guesthouses in the old city and along the coast.

The train down the coast to Tel Aviv takes about an hour, so this is a legitimate way to see the centre of the country without paying Tel Aviv rates.

Good to know: Haifa plus the coastal train is a real strategy — an hour to Tel Aviv at a fraction of the room rate.

Google Maps Website

7. The zimmerim — Galilee, Golan and the Judean Hills

Israel's guesthouse cabins — better value midweek than anything else on offer.

₪₪ Mid-rangeBest for Couples · Families

The zimmer — from the German for room — is the Israeli countryside cabin: a self-contained unit on a moshav or a private plot, usually with a kitchenette, sometimes with a hot tub, rented by the night.

They are the standard domestic weekend accommodation and the market is enormous, particularly in the Galilee, the Golan and the Judean Hills.

The critical detail is pricing: Israeli weekend rates on Friday and Saturday can be close to double the midweek rate. A Tuesday zimmer is a genuine bargain and a Friday one rarely is.

Good to know: Book midweek. Friday and Saturday rates are often close to double for the same cabin.

Google Maps Website

Frequently asked questions

What counts as budget in Israel?

Israel is expensive. A budget double room runs roughly ₪250–₪500 a night, a hostel dorm bed ₪90–₪180, and a mid-range hotel ₪600–₪900. Anything much under ₪250 for a private room is either a field school, a hospice or well outside a city centre.

What is a kibbutz guesthouse?

Many kibbutzim run guesthouses on their land — simple hotel rooms or cabins, usually with a pool, gardens and an enormous included breakfast. They are excellent value, particularly in the Galilee, Golan and Negev, and they put you next to the countryside rather than in a town.

What are the SPNI field schools?

The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel runs field schools — basic guesthouses attached to nature reserves and national parks, including at Ein Gedi and in the Golan. Rooms are simple and the locations are outstanding, right at the trailheads. Book directly and early.

When do prices spike?

Jewish holidays — Pesach, Rosh Hashanah and Sukkot — plus Christmas and Easter in Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and the whole of July and August. Prices can double and availability disappears months ahead. Midweek outside those periods is dramatically cheaper than the Friday-Saturday weekend.

Do budget rooms include breakfast?

Usually, and in Israel that matters — the included breakfast is often a full Israeli spread of eggs, salads, cheeses, breads and coffee that will genuinely replace lunch. Kibbutz guesthouses and field schools are particularly generous. Hostels vary.

What about Shabbat?

Check-in and reception hours often shorten on Friday afternoon, and public transport stops entirely until Saturday night. Kosher hotels serve a cold Shabbat menu and some lifts run on an automatic setting. Tell the property your arrival time if you land on a Friday.

1. The kibbutz guesthouses — Galilee, Golan, Negev and the coast

2. The SPNI field schools — Ein Gedi, the Golan and the Negev

3. The Jerusalem pilgrim hospices — Old City and Mount of Olives, Jerusalem

4. The Abraham Hostels network — Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Nazareth and Eilat

5. The desert khans and Bedouin-style camps — Negev and the Arava

6. The Haifa and northern city hotels — Haifa, Akko and Nahariya

7. The zimmerim — Galilee, Golan and the Judean Hills

Frequently asked questions

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