Beit Midrash
- Shabbat and Holidays
- Laws of Hanukkah
- Peninei Halkha - Hanukkah
- Sections
- Peninei Halakha
It is best to light in one’s hotel room, as this room is set aside for personal use, as opposed to the dining room, which is for communal use. If the hotel room has a window facing the street, one should light there. Someone should remain in the room for at least half an hour after one lights, so the candles are not left unattended and a fire is not caused as a result. If, after half an hour, one wants to leave the room, one should put out any candles that are still lit. If the hotel management does not permit guests to light candles in their rooms, then since there is no alternative one should light in the dining room. 24
^ 24.The preference for lighting in one’s hotel room is recorded in SA 677:1. While Rema maintains that it is generally preferable to light where one eats, in this case the hotel room is much more of a personal space than the dining room, as explained above in n. 21. Nevertheless, some maintain that the dining room is the preferred option.
For those lighting in the dining room, it would seem that even for those who follow Sephardic custom, each family should light separately, as the families are not sharing their food with one another. According to Pri Ĥadash, the families may not join together in the same lighting. This opinion notwithstanding, it would seem that if they do join together in the same lighting, they fulfill their obligation, in accordance with Levush (see BHL 677:1, s.v. "imo").
Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
Rosh Yeshiva of Har Bracha and rabbi of the settlement.
The place of prayer
Chapter three-part one
5775
18. Torah Verses in the Prayers and in the Berakha of She-asa Li Kol Tzorki
Chapter 10: The Laws of Tisha Be-Av
Cheshvan 27 5782
Individual Atonement is Rooted in Communal Atonement
5775
Where we should not pray? (part two)
Chapter three-part three
5775
4. Crises in the Hasmonean Dynasty
Chapter 11: Hanuka
Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | Cheshvan 29 5782
13. Yeshiva Students, Soldiers, and College Students
Chapter 13: When and Where to Light Hanuka Candles
Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | Kislev 12 5782
2. The Greek Empire
Chapter 11: Hanuka
Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | Cheshvan 29 5782
