Visit Mitzpe Ramon from Jerusalem/Masada or Eilat?

I'm crossing overland from Sinai to Israel to get to Jordan. I'll be spending a week travelling up Jordan to cross over into the Galilee near Irbid before i'm heading to the West Bank to spend a few days in Jerusalem.

I've decided i'd like to spend a day or two at the Ramon Crator in Mitzpe Ramon and was wondering which way was logistically easier to do this?

1. Drive from Eilat to Mitzpe Ramon (By either hire car or bus) and then return to Eilat so I can cross into Jordan

or

1. Take a bus from Jerusalem or Masada to Mitzpe Ramon and back.

I'm eventually going to be flying out of Tel Aviv. I know the distances are very very similar but was wondering if anybody who has been there has any idea which one makes more sense? Transport/scenery/timewise.

Thank you !

A hire car is always more flexible, it’s obviously much quicker, and the views and the roads are exceptional and of high quality. It's also easier to get to some of the crater's hiking trails, with a car.

1. By bus. Eilat to Mitzpe Ramon the bus fare was 44ILS, it’s a great scenic route and the road (by bus and hire car) goes north through the Negev and partly through the crater.
   Besides Mitzpe, nearby are Avdat and Ein Avdat and Sde Boker.
   Nearby to Paula and David Ben Gurion’s graves, is a backpackers and cycle hire shop. The Ben Gurion’s original house (actually two put together) is on the adjacent kibbutz. The Metropolin buses carry on to Beersheba, from Mitzpe, via Ein Avdat and Sde Boker from Mitzpe Ramon.
   The bus fares are cheap: Sde Boker to Beersheba was 14.70 ILS. Their grave to their house in Sde Boker was 4.70ILS, and finally if you wanted to check out Beer Sheba, Sde Boker into Beer Sheba was 14.70ILS.

2. Take a bus from Jerusalem or Masada to Mitzpe Ramon and back. From Jerusalem to Masada there is a direct route, but from Masada to Mitzpe Ramon, you need to go via Beersheba, and change buses.

Do you know where you will stay in Mitzpe Ramon?

Sandy, that is a good plan. You cna do a great hike from Midreshet Sde Boker to Avdat, via Ein Avdat and take the bus back to Sde Boker

If you're not on a tight budget, a car will really help you see a lot more in the Negev and specifically in the Ramon area.
Getting by bus from Eilat/Tel Aviv/Jerusalem to Mitzpe Ramon is easy (and from Masada involving a transfer at Beer Sheba) but once you're in the area, although buses and hitchhiking can work, with a car you'll see much more and save time by not walking from the main road to where you really want to go.
The drive from Eilat to Mitzpe is very beautiful but if it were me, I'd probably leave Ramon to the end of my trip, rent a car in Jerusalem, do the Dead Sea/Masada, drive to Mitzpe Ramon, spend my time there, and drive the 2 1/4 hour drive to the airport straight from there.
Recommended places to see the crater: the visitor's center in town (A), Har Gamal (Mt. Camel) (B), near the the observatory west of town (C). Don't fall off the cliff...
Read this:
http://www.tiuli.com/track_info.asp?lng=eng&track_id=53

I forgot the link to the map for my suggested lookout points...
http://g.co/maps/hbrs9

That's great - thank you so much for your responses. I think I'm going to hire a car for the three days ( I do like having the flexibility to stop when I like) And you've talked me into travelling from Eilat - I do love beautiful scenery :) I'll make sure I visit all the places that were mentioned - they sound fantastic.

The place i'm looking at staying at is The Green Backpackers - it has some fantastic reviews and looks like a fairly central location.

Thanks for taking the time to answer my post - I really appreciate it!