By Solomon Wiesen, TLV Beaches. Last reviewed October 2026.
Smoking on the beach in Tel Aviv is legal. Israel bans smoking in a long list of public places, which was widened in 2018 to cover playgrounds, pools and big outdoor events, but beaches are not on that list. Smoking cigarettes, that is.
In case you are asking whether it is legal to smoke cannabis on a beach in Tel Aviv? Well, the answer to that is that it is illegal. Just as it is illegal to smoke weed anywhere else in Tel Aviv, or in Israel. Unless you have a medical license, it is against the law to smoke cannabis in Israel.
Recently however the law was changed to decriminalization. This means that if an officer stops you for smoking weed, you will not be jailed or even receive a lifetime offense on your record. You will, however, be fined. When decriminalization began in 2019 the fine for a first offence was NIS 1,000; the amount has been changed since, so do not rely on that figure.
Generally speaking, weed culture in Israel and Tel Aviv specifically is relaxed. Police don’t seem to chase after potheads or weed smokers, however most are savvy enough not to smoke in front of police.
As for smoking on the beach? Well, cannabis is technically illegal, however police don’t usually search beachgoers. As for smoking tobacco ie cigarettes? It is permissable. However please be mindful of children nearby, and of course littering. Pollution on TLV beaches is bad enough as it is!
Photos from the beach
Sources: Ynet on the 2018 expansion of Israel’s smoke-free places (Hebrew) and Wikipedia on cannabis in Israel. We found no national or Tel Aviv rule banning smoking on beaches. Checked October 2026.
Solomon (Shlomo) Wiesen is the author and photographer behind TLV Beaches. Originally from New York, he moved to Israel in 2011 and lives in Tel Aviv, a short walk from Frishman and Bograshov beaches. Every guide on the site is written from the beach, with more than 200 of his own photos of the Tel Aviv coast. He works in marketing, SEO and startups.
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