Shirat Hayam Boutique Hotel

Looking at the pictures again, it appears that 10 years ago the owners spent money on nice photography and writing. But that was 10 years ago... I like hotels that aren't chain-standard and a little different, and I know that older hotels have some issues. But there's a fine line between rustic charm and shabby. Unfortunately, this hotel falls on the wrong side of that line. The Good: The balcony room probably has the best view of the Sea of Galilee than any hotel in Tiberias. It's spectacular. Location is right on the boardwalk, close to some decent restaurants. Amir, the night clerk, is very nice and was very helpful. Breakfast was more than I expected. Coffee was decent. We were served two omelets, fresh bread and pastries, two kinds of salad, and a variety of little cheese/yogurt/salad in little condiment containers. Orange juice was from a very bad concentrate, which should be criminal in Israel... The Bad: The room was large but had almost no storage except for a small armoire. The sitting area had a couch with broken down cushions. There was a huge jacuzzi in the sitting area, but the actual bathroom and shower were tiny and dingy, with corroded fixtures that didn't work well. I think it was clean, but the corrosion and rust made everything in the bathroom look gross. I couldn't shower while I was there. For once I was happy with the dim lighting in a bathroom. The towels were thin and rough. The bed was hard and the duvet was very thin. The only parking is in a little shopping center nearby. Waze originally took us down a dead-end street near the hotel, but there was no access from there, and we had to back up in reverse through a curving alley to get out of there. So if you are using navigation to get there, avoid that last dead-end street and just park in the adjacent shopping center. Then we had to take our bags from the shopping center. You will need to buy a day parking pass from the hotel desk if you will be parked there at all during the day (enforcement starts at 8am). The area itself is very noisy and the rooms have no sound proofing. We could hear the cats under our bedroom window. The street cleaner that comes in the morning is very loud. We were lucky that it's still off season, so it was quiet at night. There was working going on in the hallways while we were there. Besides having to tiptoe down the stairs, around hammers and axes, and plaster, the workers were smoking, and we had to walk through that every time - and we are both allergic. The Ugly: The worst part was the leaky ceiling, and if you go through the reviews, you will see this has been a recurring problem. It was raining when we arrived, and we soon noticed puddles of water in the sitting area. We put down towels and closed up our luggage. We were lucky the first night - the room next to us had a worse leak and it was over their bed. The ceiling leaked even more the second night, and we didn't realize it had expanded. My husband had left his luggage o

The hotel is perfectly located in front of the lake. The room was simple but clean. If you do not book a room with a balcony you may enjoy a nice terrace with view on the lake. Recommended for a short stay. Do not forget that in Israel the lodging is costly. This hotel is not an exception.