There’s a thing called Jerusalem Syndrome.

Some people are so overwhelmed by the City of David they become slightly unhinged and end up being treated in a local psychiatric unit, convinced they are the new Messiah or King David himself.

It happens to around a dozen or so people each year although that’s not a lot when you consider how many millions flock here annually.

Nowhere on earth attracts or inspires so much passion, and perhaps controversy, as Jerusalem.

Indeed, controversy is never far away.

On the day I arrived – Jerusalem Day, which marks the return of the city to Israel after the 1967 war – Prime Minister Netanyahu declared the city would never again be ‘divided and torn’ with barbed wire and snipers on its walls. But this colourful, vibrant, historic and diverse city holds shrines holy to Jews, Christians and Muslims.

In times of peace it has drawn visitors, traders, pilgrims and mere tourists from all religions.

In times of war – and there have been many such times – its political and strategic importance has brought invaders and conquerors by the army load.

The best place to begin exploring is where it all began, the City of David, just a few acres lying immediately to the south of the Temple Mount.

This piece of land was conquered by David 3,000 years ago to create a capital for the 12 tribes of Israel.

To the east lies the Mount of Olives, where Jesus ascended into heaven, so the Bible has it.

The hillside gives a magnificent view of the construction wonder that is the Temple Mount, home to the Dome of the Rock, the Al Aqsa mosque and the Western or Wailing Wall.

On the slopes of the Mount of Olives, amid the huge burial ground, is the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus agonised, perspired blood and was captured.

We walked through underground tunnels built by Herod as a water course, up to the edge of the Temple Mount and the Wailing Wall where celebrations were in full swing for several barmitzvahs.

King Herod played a key role in development of the city.

One of the true hidden gems of the Old City is the Austrian Hospice which sits on, but set back from, the Via Dolorosa.

If you didn’t know it was there, you’d miss the unobtrusive entrance.

Emperor Franz Joseph of the Austro Hungarian Empire was cofounder of the hospice with the Archbishop of Vienna in the 1880s.

His warm relationship with the Ottoman Sultan of the time enabled it to be built.

Its rooftop view of the old city is stunning and its apfel strudel the best in Jerusalem.

Continue the walking tour along the Via Dolorosa for the 14 Stations of the Cross, ending at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which is always rammed with visitors – some of them modern day pilgrims, some just tourists “doing the Holy Land”, as a woman from California told me.

Visit the different quarters – Jewish, Christian, Muslim – for different flavours of the city and stroll to Mount Zion and the supposed site of the last supper.

Then drive out through the middle of the West Bank northwards to the bustling port city of Haifa, the Crusader city of Acre, to Nazareth and Galilee, or east to the lively, cosmopolitan Tel Aviv with its great beaches, shopping centres, galleries and restaurants.

This is just part of what Israel has to offer.

Is Israel safe to visit? Unequivocally yes.

You have more chance of being knocked down crossing the road than getting caught up in trouble here.

Tensions between Israelis and Palestinians flare up from time to time but mostly they are on a low flame, on the back burner.

Nearly 70 years after its birth, some in Israel fear for the future of tourism as younger people are less interested in history and religion these days.

But the Holy Land has a great story to tell.

How much of it you want to believe is clearly up to you.

Getaway

  • Flight time to Tel Aviv Ben Gurion: 4hrs 30m
  • Currency: Shekel
  • Languages: Hebrew and Arabic but English widely spoken
  • Climate: Long, dry warm summers and mild winters
  • Time difference: GMT plus 2
  • For more visit thinkisrael.com