The incomparable city of Jerusalem contains many charming neighborhoods, perhaps none so quaint as the Greek Colony, with its share of lovely buildings from the early 20th century. Following an award-winning restoration project, one such historic building is now the home of Villa Ba’Moshava (Villa in the Colony), a boutique hotel on a tranquil, leafy street across from the small Greek Orthodox church that gave the neighborhood its name.
Villa Ba’Moshava — formerly the Arcadia Ba’Moshava — is part of Brown Hotels, a growing chain of boutique properties with 11 distinctive hotels in Tel Aviv and two in Jerusalem. (Its sister property in the capital, Villa Brown, was also reviewed by Hotel-Scoop.) It celebrates its presence in this picturesque neighborhood by offering guests free guided tours of the Greek and adjoining German Colony every Saturday.
The hotel in the elegant building comprises three categories of guest rooms: Superior, Superior with balcony, and Family. Nine rooms have small balconies with table, chairs and wrought iron railings, while two rooms also contain sofa beds, thus accommodating up to three adults, or parents with two children.
Superior rooms are not large, but they contain comfortable queen-sized beds, mini-refrigerators, electric kettles for making coffee and tea, and smart flat-screen LCD televisions that identify you by name and whose multi-lingual menu guides viewers through radio and satellite TV programming (also in a variety of languages), as well as Internet access and pay-per-view movies. Of course, there is free Wi-Fi for laptops and personal devices throughout the hotel. There are room safes for valuables, although they will not accommodate laptops.
Room temperatures can be set exactly with the digital thermostats that control the central air-conditioning and heating. En suite bathrooms are equipped with raindrop shower heads, and some have bathtubs. The toiletry amenities are the Sea & Spa brand of Dead Sea products.
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It is hard to go hungry at Villa Ba”Moshava. The rooms contain complimentary mineral water and chocolates; there is a daily generous happy hour with wine and refreshments; the breakfast buffet, included in the room charge, comprises both cold and warm dishes; and snacks — fruit and cookies — are available, along with hot beverages, in the lobby 24/7. Breakfast may be enjoyed at tables in the lobby with a complimentary daily newspaper, or ordered to take away.
The hotel also provides ancillary services, such as massage treatments in the on-site therapy room, and fax and scanning services. There are even bicycles that can be borrowed free of charge; the bilingual staff will be happy to acquaint guests with nearby attractions.
The hotel is conveniently located just a a block off a main throoughfare boasting excellent restaurants, and downtown is easily accessible with frequent public transportation. In fact, there is no need to rent a car for exploring Jerusalem when staying at the Villa Ba”Moshava — which is just as well, since the hotel has no parking lot. There is paid street parking adjacent to the property, however, and free street parking just two blocks away.
There are 23 rooms total, with rates running $80 to $300. You can book directly at Villa Ba’Moshava or check prices at Hotelopia or Hotels.com.
Text by Buzzy Gordon, who was a guest of the hotel for purposes of review. Photos courtesy of Arcadia Hotels. Featured photo: Shai Neiburg.
