Where to go for clothes, electronics, furniture and a rainy afternoon with children, and the shopping habits that differ from what you are used to.
Jerusalem is not a mall city the way the coast is, but it has one big one, several medium ones spread around the neighbourhoods, two open-air centres that double as places to eat, and an industrial zone where the furniture and appliance shops cluster. Almost all of it closes for Shabbat and reopens Saturday night. This guide says what each is good for, so you go to the right one the first time.
The big one: Malha
Kanyon Yerushalayim, known to everyone as Malha Mall, sits in the south-west of the city next to the Teddy Stadium and the Malha train station. It is the largest mall in Jerusalem and the one with the full set of Israeli and international chains, a big supermarket, a food court and a cinema. It is the default for clothes shopping, school-uniform season and a rainy afternoon with children. Go by bus or car; parking is paid and the car park fills on Thursday evening and Friday morning.
Mamilla and the First Station: shopping as an outing
Mamilla is the open-air promenade between the city centre and Jaffa Gate: upscale Israeli and international brands, cafés and restaurants, and the best place to walk with visitors. The First Station (HaTachana HaRishona) in the German Colony is the restored railway station turned food-and-market venue, with restaurants, a weekly market, children's activities and events; parts of it operate on Shabbat, which makes it one of the few places open on a Saturday afternoon.
Neighbourhood malls
- Hadar Mall, Talpiot: the south-east's mall, with chains, a supermarket and a cinema, on the edge of the Talpiot industrial zone.
- Cinema City, Givat Ram: cinemas first, shops and restaurants second, next to the government complex and the Supreme Court.
- Ramot Mall and Pisgat Ze'ev Mall: the everyday malls of the northern neighbourhoods, with a supermarket, pharmacy, banks and the basic chains.
- Center One: by the central bus station and the light rail, useful for a quick errand between buses.
- Givat Shaul: not a mall but an industrial zone with discount supermarkets, Judaica, appliance and household shops.
Talpiot: furniture, appliances and everything for the apartment
The Talpiot industrial zone along Pierre Koenig Street and its side streets is where you furnish a home: home-improvement warehouses, furniture showrooms, lighting, kitchen and bathroom suppliers, appliance chains and the discount supermarkets. It is also where most second-hand furniture from Yad2 listings ends up being collected from. The nearest IKEA is outside the city; check the online shopping guide for how delivery works from there.
Shopping streets
The city centre triangle of Ben Yehuda, Jaffa Road and King George has the older chains, souvenir shops, the pedestrian mall and the shuk at the western end. Emek Refaim in the German Colony has boutiques, cafés and the Anglo neighbourhood's services. Geula and Meah Shearim have the modest-clothing, Judaica and household shops that serve the haredi neighbourhoods, at prices that reward a visit whatever your background.
Habits that differ from home
- Hours: most malls open mid-morning and close late on weekday evenings, close early on Friday and reopen after Shabbat on Saturday night; the Shabbat times page tells you when that is this week.
- Returns: Israeli consumer law gives you a window to return most unused goods with the receipt for a refund, and shops post their own policy near the till; ask before you pay if it matters.
- Instalments: the cashier will offer to split the price into interest-free payments on an Israeli credit card. It is normal and not a loan application, but it makes the next months' statements harder to read.
- Sales: end-of-season sales, Black Friday and the pre-holiday weeks are real discounts; "1+1" on clothing usually is too.
- Tax-free shopping is for tourists with a foreign passport, not residents; olim with an Israeli ID do not qualify.
- Sizes: European sizing for clothes and shoes; check the label rather than assuming your size.
Compare electronics prices on Zap before buying in a mall, and read our online shopping guide for when it is cheaper to order. If a mall has changed hands or name, let us know.
