Recommended places to visit in Jaffa Israel

The Yaffo Clock tower was erected to commemorate the reign of the Ottoman Sultan Abd al Hamid II. The tower was built with contributions of the residents of the city. The tower was completed by 1906.

It is one of seven similar towers built in the Holy Land during the Ottoman occupation. The others are located in Tsfat, Akko, Nazareth, Haifa, Shechem and Jerusalem. The latter does not exist any more

 

The Saraya House was the residence of the Turkish Governor and also served as the Turkish Government building. It was inaugurated in 1897 as part of the new government complex constructed just outside the ancient city walls of Yaffo. The building was destroyed during the 1948 independence war. Only the facade remained and was renovated lately to its’ former grandeur

Mahmoudiya Mosque built in 1812 by Abu Nabbut, the governor of Yaffo. It is by far the largest and most significant mosque in Yaffo. It is a complex of buildings arranged around two large courtyards including a third smaller courtyard.

The sabil (fountain), embedded in the southern wall of the mosque, is attributed to Suleiman Pasha, governor of Acre from the late 18th to early 19th centuries

 

Yaffo Museum of Antiquities, located in an 18th-century Ottoman building constructed on the remains of a Crusader fortress.

Abu-Nabout, the local governor of Yaffo, turned the building in 1811 into the governmental house. Beside the governmental quarters, there was a big gate, a well, prison, post office, hamam (bath-house), mosque, open court, surrounded with a patio, halls for animals, goods & for lodgers.

The museum contains archaeological findings from the Neolithic age to the Roman-Byzantine era

 

Yaffo Hill is a center for archaeological finds, including restored Egyptian gates, about 3,500 years old.

 

The Zodiac alleys are a maze of restored alleys leading to the harbor. In between these renovated alleys there are many galleries, jewelry workshops, museums, theatres, some of the best art shops in Israel, restaurants and coffee shops. In 1799 Napoleon succeeded to penetrate the city though one of these alleys right next to the Frank Meisler art gallery

 

St. Peter’s Church, a Franciscan basilica and hospice built in 1654 on the remains of a Crusader fortress, and commemorating the miracle of Petros (Simon bar Yonah) bringing Tabitha back from the dead.

The church was constructed in Yaffo due to it’s significance to Christianity as mentioned in Acts 9:36-43 and 10:1-4.

The church with its large bell tower is located on a hill near the sea and is the icon of Yaffo. The building has historically dominated the view of Yaffo from the sea serving as a beacon to pilgrims.

It is one of the only two churches facing westward in the Holy Land. This one towards Rome.

The interior of the church is similar to cathedrals in Europe with a high vaulted ceiling, colored windows and marble walls.

 

Yaffo Lighthouse, an inactive lighthouse located in the old port over “Simon the tanner’s” house as mentioned in the New Testament (Acts 10:4-7)

 

The Greek Orthodox Monastery of Archangel Michael (Patriarchate of Jerusalem) built in 1894. Usually open for services on Sundays.

There is a beautiful view of the port from the church

 

The St. Nicholas Armenian Monastery was built in the 17th C.

The monastery is located near the harbor and consists of a large multi-story complex that includes an Armenian church and living quarters. The monastery is under the jurisdiction of the Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem who rents out parts of the complex for residential and commercial purposes.

Al-Bahr Mosque, (The Sea Mosque), overlooking the harbor, probably Yaffo’s oldest existing mosque. Built sometime in the 16th C during the Ottoman occupation of the Holy Land

 

The Flea Market: right outside the old city walls of Yaffo there are a maze of alleyways, covered walkways and outdoor verandas full of shops open six days a week, from Sunday through Friday. This is the place to visit if you are looking for unique, old, one-of-a-kind items.

Recently a number of restaurants and coffee shops were opened for weary shoppers to refresh and watch the crowds go by

 

Immanuel Church built 1904 is a Protestant church in the American – German Colony of Yaffo. In 1955, the Lutheran World Federation transferred control of the church to the Norwegian Church Ministry of Israel.

The first construction works of a combined Evangelical church, community center and school started with the cornerstone having been laid in 1898, Jerusalem’s Association were a partner and financier of the church commissioned by Paul Ferdinand Groth the architect of Jerusalem’s Evangelical Church of the Redeemer

 

The Church of St. Petros and St. Tabitha (Moscovia) serves the Russian Orthodox Christian community, with services in Russian and Hebrew; underneath the chapel nearby there is a graveyard from the 2nd Temple era believed to be the tomb of St Tabitha.

The church is a pilgrimage center for Russian pilgrims landing in Yaffo on the journey to Jerusalem

 

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