Jerusalem area

Mevaseret Zion

A hilltop town 10 km west of Jerusalem on Route 1, formed in 1963 from Maoz Zion and Mevaseret Yerushalayim, with 15 neighbourhoods. It is the wealthiest municipality per head in the Jerusalem District and has state and state-religious schools, a Reform congregation and many Orthodox shuls. The Mevaseret Local site also covers the nearby Harel-area villages, including Abu Ghosh and Har Adar.

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What draws people

About 11 minutes to Jerusalem by bus, and 54 minutes to Tel Aviv on bus 484. source ((opens in a new tab))
State and state-religious primary schools, a middle school and Har'el High School; a yeshiva gap-year programme for English speakers. source ((opens in a new tab))
Green hill setting at about 750 m, next to the Castel National Park. source ((opens in a new tab))

What to weigh

A small town of about 24,000, so most hospitals, ministries and bigger services are in Jerusalem. source ((opens in a new tab))
Wealthiest municipality per head in the Jerusalem District, which usually means higher housing costs. source ((opens in a new tab))

The facts

Region: Jerusalem area
Population: 24,409 (2024 estimate)source ((opens in a new tab))
English-speaking community: Small (2 out of 5)· judgment call
French-speaking community: Unknown
Russian-speaking community: Unknown
Religious mix: MixedMixed: numerous Orthodox congregations, a Reform congregation (founded 1993), state and state-religious schools; in 2022 the vote split 50% right-wing coalition, 48% centre-left.source ((opens in a new tab))
Rent (family-size apartment): No reliable figure found
To Tel Aviv: About 54 min to Tel Aviv by busAbout 54 min by bus 484 (Rome2rio estimate).source 1 ((opens in a new tab))source 2 ((opens in a new tab))
To Jerusalem: About 11 min to Jerusalem by busAbout 11 min by bus, or 12 min by car (Rome2rio estimates).source 1 ((opens in a new tab))source 2 ((opens in a new tab))
Train station: No
Light rail: No
For families: Very high (5 out of 5)· judgment call
Quiet: High (4 out of 5)· judgment call

Why these scores

English-speaking community: Yeshivat Sha'arei Mevasseret runs a gap-year programme for English-speaking students, but no source opened gives the size of an Anglo community. Judgment call (low evidence). source ((opens in a new tab))
French-speaking community: No source opened mentions French speakers. Left blank. source ((opens in a new tab))
Russian-speaking community: No source opened mentions Russian speakers. Left blank. source ((opens in a new tab))
For families: Judgment: seven schools for a town of 24,000, and 23 registered day-care centres (Ministry of Education list). source ((opens in a new tab))
Quiet: Judgment: a small hilltop town, though it straddles Route 1. source ((opens in a new tab))

Some spellings of this name in other languages aren't confirmed by a source yet.

Sources

Checked 11 November 2026

Mevaseret Zion Local

Listings, guides, neighborhoods and Shabbat times for Mevaseret Zion, on the city's own site.

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