Don’t miss Jerusalem by train! – Far from the careening speedway is a great possibility – quiet, reflective, not crowded – the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem train, which takes almost two hours, double the highway time, to wind its way between the two cities. It covers 50 miles, meandering from the coastal plain to the hills around Jerusalem. But unlike the highway, the train takes the traveler inside the topography.
It is slow, not efficient, has very low frequency, and the central train station in Jerusalem is next to “Malcha Mall” in the far end of the city, but after saying that: this is the most interesting train line in Israel — re-opened in 2005. The management of Israel Railways is preparing the infrastructure and the plans that will meet the public’s high expectations, and sweep the railways into a new era.
Fodor’s says that people take this train trip sometimes just for the fun. The train leaves the Malcha Station (near the big Jerusalem Mall) almost every hour, with a first stop very close by at the Biblical Zoo. It terminates at Tel Aviv Hashalom Station, with connections to Haifa and the north. Service ends midafternoon on Friday (because of the Sabbath), and resumes after dark on Saturday. (A similar schedule applies to Jewish religious holidays.) The fare to or from Tel Aviv is NIS 19 one-way, and NIS 34.50 return, for any passenger over 10 years old.
