Visitors
Visiting Ashdod: start here
Ashdod is a planned port city of about 230,000 people with a 6 km beach strip, seven declared beaches and a cultural quarter of museums and a concert hall. The municipal tourism company runs a visitor site in Hebrew, English, French, Russian and Arabic, and most sights are free.
Visitors
Start here
7 steps, in the order most people take them.
- 1
Start with the tourism company
Visit Ashdod, the municipal tourism company, lists sights, beaches, routes and events in five languages and has an office at the Marina (1 Union St).
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Check the beach season
Swimming is allowed only at declared beaches while lifeguards are on duty. The 2026 season ends on 10 October; winter lifeguard stations keep working for about another month.
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See the sea fortress and the museums
The early-Islamic Ashdod-Yam fortress stands on the southern shore; the Philistine Culture Museum and the Ashdod Museum of Art are in the city centre.
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Catch the free Lights of Ashdod show
A sound-and-light trail runs on Thursdays and Saturday nights from City Hall to Ashdod Yam Park; check with hotline 106 that it is on.
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Arrive by train or bus
Ashdod Ad Halom station is on the coastal line, about 35 minutes from Tel Aviv; intercity buses leave from the central bus station in City Mall.
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Plan around Shabbat
There are no city buses on Shabbat and holidays; the BIG Fashion and Star Center malls do open on Saturdays.
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Book a seafront hotel
The city's hotels are along the beach, from the Leonardo Plaza in the south to boutique hotels near Lido beach.
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Guides
Read next
- Where to stay in AshdodThe five hotels listed by the municipal tourism company, which seafront areas suit which visitors, and short-term rentals.
- Getting around AshdodAshdod's single train station, bus terminals and BRT lines, Rav-Kav, parking rules and what runs on Shabbat.
- Holidays in AshdodLocal customs and municipal arrangements for Sukkot, Simchat Torah, Hanukkah and Pesach, plus the 9 May Victory Day parade.
Good to know
Most sights are spread out along the coast, so plan short drives or bus rides between them. Museums open shorter hours on Fridays and Saturdays. The separate (religious) beach is closed on Shabbat and holidays.
Community groups
Where people talk
- Ashdod Municipality Facebook pageFacebook · Ashdod Municipality
- Ashdod Municipality Telegram channelTelegram · Ashdod Municipality
- Ashdod SEA communityOther · Ashdod Municipality
- AshdodCafé WhatsApp groupWhatsApp · AshdodCafé
- Ironit Facebook pageFacebook · Ironit (municipal culture and leisure company)
From our network
Good people I work with
A few organisations from the Consult With Ari network whose work reaches people in Ashdod.
These are not paid listings, and they are separate from the checked directory.
Source
- visit.ashdod.muni.il (opens in a new tab)
- ashdod.muni.il (opens in a new tab)
- visit.ashdod.muni.il (opens in a new tab)
- visit.ashdod.muni.il (opens in a new tab)
- he.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)
- leonardo-hotels.co.il (opens in a new tab)
This page was written for Ashdod from the sources above.
