Tel Aviv confirms cruise ship plans for Eurovision

The municipality of Tel Aviv has confirmed that additionnal accomodations will be made available for Eurovision. How? By bringing a cruise ship to the party!

Not enough room(s) for the fans?

The piece of news was originally reported by Channel 12 and 13, and comes as a reassurance for many fans. Indeed, Tel Aviv cannot offer as many rooms as previous host cities did, like Lisbon or Stockholm. This is true even when taking hostels and Airbnbs into account. There are about 11,000 rooms in Tel Aviv and its suburbs, a part of which are already booked by “regular” tourists.

In such a situation, room prices have been rising (with supply being lower than demand), and finding accomodations at a fair price has become a nightmare for many fans.

The municipality’s response: Walking on Water

In response, Tel Aviv has devised a curious plan : bringing more rooms, by using a cruise ship. The idea had already been mentionned by officials defending Eilat’s bid to host Eurovision 2019. The municipality’s spokesperson has confirmed to Wiwibloggs that the plans was “in the works, but that details are still being negotiated”.

According to Channel 12 and 13, the ship would be Italian, and would be able to accomodate up to 2,000 people. This is actually 500 rooms accomodating up to four people. The prices would be incredibly competitive : about 50$ per night, with three meals included.

Practically, this means that staying on the cruise ship for the main Eurovision week would cost about 300€ (350$). In comparison, hotel prices hardly ever go under 1,800€ for the same week. Such a competition, although numerically limited (the ship can accomodate “only” 2,000 people) could also help to lower prices in the city.

The ship would remain by the city’s seashore, and ferries will transport people between the shore and the boat at regular intervals.

What do you think? Would you accept to sleep in this Eurovision ship? Is it a good idea? Tell us more on the comments below or on social media at @ESCXTRA!