Bursa Club, in Ramat Gan, is...

Bursa Club, in Ramat Gan, is and has been one of my favorite clubs for quite a while now. The location is quite convenient, near the Tel Aviv Diamond Exchange and just down the street from Sheraton City Tower. Parking on the street is usually pretty easy, and there's two 24-hour parking garages within a block. The club opens for an "early" at 5p 6 days a week (excepting Friday), and then closes at 10p. They then open at 11p 7 days a week, and are open until about 5a. It is largely the same ladies for both times. Cover for the early shift is NIS50, and NIS100 for the late shift. Hebrew, Russian, and English are all spoken although to varying degrees in some cases.

The interior of the club is comfortable, although a bit crowded at times. Especially between midnight and about 2a it is often standing room only. The lighting is actually surprisingly bright for a strip club, somewhere around the level of a sports bar perhaps. The music is loud of course, but turned down a couple notches during the break songs between dances - you can easily maintain a conversation during these times. There is a DJ, who does a good deal of crowd interaction. In the early hours they have a raffle - first prize being a "peep show" with one of the dancers, second prize a bottle of Smirnoff.

Bursa goes to a good deal of trouble to maintain a fair level of theatricality in their stage dances. The ladies all have a few set dance routines that they work on, often with special costumes or props. The stage dances usually end up topless earlier in the evening, with full nudity coming a bit later. The dancers do not expect nor ask for tips after dancing. Lap dances are topless, with all the above-the-waist touching you want and most of the ladies will let you touch their ass and legs as well. Price is NIS20 (that's only about $5!) for what is officially 2 minutes, but usually ends up a bit longer. The ladies do not hustle. Some will on occasion walk up and ask if you want a dance, but will not push it. Generally, if you see someone you like just wave them over. Many will sit and talk with you if you want, but unlike in the US there are no over-priced "dancer's drinks" for doing this. It is completely up to the lady. If you do buy her a drink, you're paying the same price as for your own - you are not paying for her time.