Having stayed at other other hotels in Jerusalem, we decided to try the Har Zion, on Hebron Road. Far enough from the bustle of the city centre but near enough to the Old City, about 20 minutes walk to the Jaffa Gate. All the staff were excellent and made us feel very welcome. Comfortable clean room, with minimal noise. Food excellent and good price. When choosing a room, bear in mind that some basic rooms do not have a direct view across the valley to the Old City. If you want that view, you must specify in advance and pay a little more. Getting around is easy for those willing to walk. Wireless internet facility available but would not work with our laptop due to technical reasons. Reception offered ADSL modem as alternative.

This hotel is directly opposite the St Andrew's Church and hotel, which has a Scottish flag flying from it - most appropriate for this visitor, who had a single room (which could easily take two) in the Citadel section of the hotel. The room had a view of Mount Zion, the Mount of Olives, and the Old City, and it was worth paying extra just for the view. The room itself was no more than adequate but you'll not be in there long enough to be concerned. It was cleaned every day. There was constant hot water and the shower pressure was very strong. Breakfast was excellent, and you can eat enough then to keep you going till dinner. The steam room, fitness centre and swimming pool are just fine, and you can have a massage if you feel like it. The hotel itself is worth an investigation, made up as it is of different architectures. The hotel's location made walking to the main sites of Jerusalem possible, but beware of the taxi drivers outside - make sure you agree a price before you get in the taxi! Hotel staff were very helpful, but you'll have to get used to the different culture(s) in the country, and different ways of behaving. All in all, a fine hotel, and not one of the chains where you could be anywhere in the world. With this hotel you know that you're in the Near East, and Jerusalem in particular.

We stayed at Mount Zion for the Succot holidays it having been recommended by our travel agent. On previous visits to Jerusalem we have stayed at the Inbal or David Citadel and we were sceptical about the Mount Zion but we had left it rather late to book for Succot so we accepted our travel agent's assurance that we would love it. She was right. We had an executive suite which consists of a bedroom separate sitting room and two bathrooms. The style is middle eastern and charming - with modern flat screen tvs cable etc. There was a small fridge and tea and coffee making facilities too. Also we were plied with free water,wine, petits fours fruit and cake on the festival and Shabbat.

The place is full of charm- the lobby lounge is a peaceful and lovely place to sit.

The hotel has stunning views and beautiful grounds which makes sitting by the pool a pleasure. The succah was probably the nicest hotel succah we have ever used and a real effort was made by the hotel to make the holiday special- contrary to some previous reviews we thought that the waiting staff were among the best we have encountered in Israel- and that is saying something when you have a full hotel and everyone wanting their festival or Shabbat meals at the same time.

Breakfasts were particularly nice and there was never that desparate feeling that waiters are avoiding you when you want tea or coffee.

All in all our only minor complaint is that the bathrooms could do with renovating .

We will definitely return to the Mount Zion in future rather than one of the glitzy but characterless hotels which we were previously used to.

We stayed in a family room (a slightly larger than normal room with 2 extra beds) for 3 nights. This hotel is in a wonderful location as a base for your exploration of the Old City, and costs a fraction of the 'high-end' Inbals and David Citadels. The entire hotel, which is over a hundred years old, oozes middle eastern charm instead of hard marble wall to ceiling ultra modern locations. The building is tiered along the slope of the hill, with wonderful views of the old city, a lovely pool area surrounded by lush greenery. Breakfast was a wonderful buffet served in a charming dining room with attentive staff. We had dinner every night on Emek Refaim, a nice street with dozens of trendy restaurants and kebob joints - approximately a 10 minute walk each way, or you can take a very short cab ride.