Poli House by Afi Hotels

I arrived at Poli House in Tel Aviv at 2:00 AM after a two-hour drive from the south, only to be met with one of the worst hospitality experiences I’ve ever encountered. From the moment I walked in with a friend to check in, the receptionist spoke to me as if he was doing me a favor. Nowhere in the booking process was it stated that a physical credit card was required for check-in. Upon arrival, the receptionist demanded the card and refused to offer any alternative, despite my willingness to leave a cash deposit or authorize a charge on my card. His attitude was dismissive and unhelpful, treating us as if we were an inconvenience rather than guests. When my friend provided his credit card instead, the receptionist sarcastically remarked, "This is just the beginning of the check-in, and you're already off to a bad start." I was shocked—as someone who has stayed in high-end hotels worldwide, I have never been spoken to so rudely by an employee. When I told him he should be ashamed of the way he treated us, it clearly bruised his ego. Despite us meeting his demand for a credit card, he still refused to check us in, saying we were "not the kind of guests he would like to accept." Mind you, this was not a manager—just a power-tripping employee deciding on his own that we didn’t "deserve" to stay. He then refused to provide any manager’s contact information, leaving us stranded on the street at 2:00 AM with no accommodation. If you’re considering this hotel, think twice—this is the level of treatment you can expect. There are plenty of hotels in Tel Aviv where professionalism and respect are actually practiced. Do yourself a favor and book elsewhere.

Very not worth the money. the location is the only good thing about it. the sheets were dirty, the shower was filthy (including hair on the floor) i asked for additional pillows 3 times before i got them - and also after that the woman at the front desk was rude. Really disappointing.

Great area to stay in. Hotel is clean. Room is nice. The pool is lovely but usually too crowded to swim in. You can just sit and lounge. The sunbeds are nice but on the minus side people put their stuff on them and then leave so they are often taken. I like that for breakfast you get coupons to nearby cafes. I’d probably stay here again.

First off, religious Jews should make sure not to stay here! When I checked in on Friday I asked the front desk for a metal key to use on Shabbat. It took her a while to find it, but she gave it to me. Before Shabbat began I ran an errand and when I returned to the hotel, I noticed that I needed to use my key card to swipe in. (This is presumably for security, as the front desk is located on the rooftop and there is really nothing going on on the entrance level.) I returned to the front desk and asked the woman there how to enter the hotel on Shabbat and she said that since I couldn't swipe, I could ring the bell. As a Shabbat-observant Jew I can't use either the electric key card or the electric doorbell on Shabbat, and I told her that. She told me "well then you'll just have to find someone to ring for you." Shabbat-observant Jews also won't ask someone to do something on Shabbat that they can't do themselves, so I had to wait outside the hotel for a very long time upon returning on Friday night and Saturday afternoon, until someone else came along who was going inside. More generally, there were a couple of gross cleanliness moments. I found a huge cockroach in my shower one morning. I also came back one evening to find the bathmat neatly folded, but sitting in the sink, which was odd and kind of gross. Additionally, the water coming out of the shower smelled persistently sulfuric, which is weird given that Israel has great tap water. Finally, the blackout curtains in my room were stuck closed on one side, obstructing my view from the window and restricting the amount of light that comes into the room. Mid way through my stay, while I was trying to close the curtains on the other side, the dangling handle you use to move the curtain fell off. Rather than fixing it, the housekeeping staff just pushed it under the curtains, where it remained until the end of my stay. All in all, it wasn't a nightmare stay or anything like that. The location is good (though *loud*), and the rooftop pool/lounge is nice. Still, I will never stay here again, certainly not over Shabbat, and if you are a Shabbat observant Jew, you won't want to stay here either.

What a wonderful place! We felt extremely comfortable the moment we entered the Poli House. Olga was more than helpful and lovely - the rooftop a signature place with unbelievable people! Definitely didn’t want to leave, and will be coming back!