Tel Aviv Airport is about a bit over 5 years old now. You a get a great modern feel as soon as you get out of the plane. With clean, modern styles and of course shopping available everywhere.
The first thing to know is of course that security is tight there. So you can expect to be checked and checked and checked again. However I find that to stay calm, friendly, open and honest makes the whole experience a lot better for everyone.
Here are a few things to help you be better prepared: Have your details ready: where you are staying, the address, telephone of the hotel or your friends. Know when you leave and where you will be going to.
There are many philippino caretakers these days in Israel. Many are ;egal and many are not. So often asian looking people (like me) travelling will be set aside and asked many questions. Try not to get too much on the defensive here as it just makes thing worse. Have the details above ready and you will be on your way much faster. Israeli's are very warm people - so talking nice, friendly and throw in a joke often breaks the ice really quickly.
Once you are out of the all the formalities. If you don't have someone picking you up, travelling out of the airport is easy. You can of course take a taxi or you can catch a train. The trains are the cheapest and the fastest way to get in and out of the airport. The trains run till around midnight (maybe even all night now I heard) to many a city. Especially Tel Aviv. You can get tickets at the counter or thru a automachine.
Most Israeli's will speak very good English so you can easily get directions for the train station. Train ticket is from 30 ILS depending on where you want to go to.
Alternatively you can hire a car. Which I would recommend since the easiest way to travel Israel is via car anyway. The road rules are fairly standard to the rest of the western world, so driving is not really a hassle. Although many a local has told me that Israeli's have a tendancy to drive fast and not signal... so just keep your eyes open for any sudden surprises!
Leaving the airport to catch a flight out can be long and annoying. ALL security checks take long time so be there 3-4 hours before your flight. Longer if you want time to do a bit of last minute shopping in the duty free (which is pretty nice).
Again when leaving just be open, honest, friendly. Have ready documents like where you stayed, photos, friends or family telephone numbers. Don't get frasseled and take anything personally, everyone is checked.
Due to the Israeli accent, it may initially seem that they are talking harshly with you. They aren't really. If you reply nice with a smile, it will loosen up the tension and you will then see the smile behind their words.
Israel is not without its issues. So be understanding that the airport security has a job to do and that you cannot take it things personally. If you do that you will enter and leave the airport smiling and ready for your next adventure.
Ciao for now!
