The Walled Off Hotel
It’s easy to guess how the Walled Off hotel came by its name. As you pull up the blinds in almost every one of its 10 hotel rooms, you will find yourself looking at a towering graffiti-strewn concrete wall topped with barbed wire. So this is it – what some tag; ‘The worst view in the world’. The art-laden Walled Off Hotel lies besides the controversial 400-mile barrier wall that has separated the Palestinians from the Israelis since 2002. And as you can tell from its location – it’s not a run-of-the-mill hotel. Rather, it’s a work of art conceived by the most popular street artist of our generation.
The hotel also stands as a museum, a gallery, and a political protest – all rolled into one. All scenic rooms (if you call it that), are air-conditioned, and equipped with wifi, fridge, radio, personal safe. There’s a budget dorm room designed to look like an Israeli military bunker. Outfitted with surplus items from an Israeli military barracks, this room offers a bed from $ 60 a night. No frills include locker, personal safe, shared bathroom and complimentary earplugs. Then there is the palatial Presidential Suite that on the top floor that sleeps upto four persons. It includes a plunge bath able to accommodate up to four and comes with a complete set of Dead Sea bath minerals, a library, home cinema, tiki bar and a bullet-riddled water feature, with in-room dining service available upon request.
Apart from being a live-art project, the primary aim of the Walled Off Hotel is to continuously draw attention on the Israeli occupation. The hotel’s museum, open to non-resident guest at $ 5 for admission, outlines the tragic history of the Israeli – Palestinian conflict. At their Wall Mart (not Wal Mart), visitors can buy stencils that state ‘make hummus not war’ – to spray paint on the separation wall. Engaging and activating methods, not without some humour…one might add.
Guests need have no fear about their security in the hotel. Staying within range of the army watchtower is one good reason. It is this same reason that prevents the hotel from having a rooftop swimming pool. The proximity of the wall also forbids any one going on to the roof without prior permission from the Israeli military. Guests are warned that aggressive drunkenness is not encouraged and under no circumstances to shine laser pens at the army watchtowers. Hm…with all this and CCTV and alarms installed throughout, access to the hotel and rooms has to be secure.
The hotel contains valuable works of art, some of which you are permitted to lock yourself alone with overnight. Consequently, a $ 1000 deposit is taken on your credit/debit card on check-in. You are advised to allow for at least 15 minutes for check out – to give time for staff to fully inspect all rooms prior to departure. Fortunately, there are no minibars in the rooms.
Walled Off celebrated its first anniversary early this year with over 50,000 visitors. It has become one of the trendiest hotspots in Bethlehem, bringing the Palestinian cause to an international platform. According to the minister of tourism and antiquities Rula Maay’a, what makes the hotel special is that it hosts international politicians, parliamentarians, ambassadors and religious men alike. Furthermore, the hotel has become a major factor in bringing awareness to the Palestinian cause.
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