The Best Cheap Hotels in Eilat, Israel

With a small pool for cooling off on sweltering days, trendy macramé throw pillows on the beds and beach towels to borrow, Motel Tsabar doesn’t feel like a budget hotel. However, this spot in downtown Eilat has prices low enough that you can save your money for exploring. Free parking and a daily breakfast are other perks, as is a 24-hour front desk to help book diving excursions and tours to the Negev Desert or give local restaurant recommendations.

While Eilat is a popular beach resort, you might think you’re in a tropical rainforest if you sit in the garden at the Sunset Inn. Lush trees, blooms and shrubs coddle a seating area, perfect for escaping the heat, while a hanging chair is the perfect cosy place to snuggle up with a book. An al fresco drinks station and a bar further ensure you needn’t budge until necessary. Finally, single rooms make it a thrifty pick for solo travellers.

A stay in a kibbutz – a collective community based on agriculture – is one of the unique experiences you can have during a holiday in Israel. Here, you have the chance to combine it with a beach break; Eilot Country Lodging, with its large family-friendly rooms, is only a short hop outside Eilat’s centre. The kibbutz offers tours, teaching you more about how it works, and if you visit on a Friday morning, you can check out the Eilot farmers’ market.

If you’re an aspiring diver, Eilat is a great place to visit – you can learn the ropes before exploring the magnificent Eilat Coral Beach Nature Reserve. And where better to stay than at a diving school? By day, you’ll work towards your PADI-accredited diving certification (there are loads of different levels available), and by evening, you’ll unwind in an unfussy, whitewashed villa room. There are two villas, and each one has a pool to beat the heat. Need a break from studying? You’re moments from the beach too.

Along the western banks of the Gulf of Aqaba, near the Eilat Coral Beach Nature Reserve, the Prima Music Hotel is all about the tunes; each floor is dedicated to a different genre of music. That’s not to say rooms are over the top, though; striped bedspreads and crowd-pleasing pictures on the wall keep things relatively neutral. Unusual for a budget hotel, there’s an on-site spa, where you can indulge in a body scrub or an aromatherapy massage.