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Lush encircling nature, mist-swirled peaks, a historical heart, authentic culture and neighbour to spa town Merano, small but perfectly formed Dorf Tirol / Tirolo has a lot going for it.
A place to come and be in nature, Dorf Tirol is set up for outdoor living. Hiking trails criss-cross the mountainside and the Hochmuth cable car glides you smoothly up to the altitudinous heights of Meraner Höhenweg in the Texelgruppe mountain range, meaning you can get straight up into the hills. Lakes glisten in the sunshine, waterfalls thunder and the air is unwaveringly fresh and clean. Well known routes include through the lush botanical gardens and across the Spronser Seen lake plateau, which can also be tackled on a mountain bike.
Strategically placed mountain huts offer an insight into the world of rustic alpine cuisine and show off with confident ease their bountiful traditions. Platters of meats and cheeses, local sparkling wine, grappas, freshly baked bread and cakes make a dangerous diversion from the day’s walking route. Those interested in viticulture might like to follow the Wine Trail in Tirolo which passes through local vineyards above Merano, allowing you to see how wine is produced here, before you try a drop or two; harvest time in October is a fantastic opportunity to join locals in winemaking.
History swirls around the village itself with the focus being the lofty 12th century Tirol Castle, amongst other fortresses and notable churches. Once the ancestral seat of the Counts of Tyrol, today it is home to the South Tyrolean Museum of Culture and Provincial History which spans a historical timeframe from medieval to today. Although many find the atmospheric castle and its marble doorways, early Gothic frescoes and the oldest Tyrolean stained-glass windows quite the sight, plus the views over the Adige Valley and into the Val Venosta. Music festivals take place here too showcasing a wide variety of local and international talent.
If you tire of Dorf Tirol, nearby Merano is close enough to explore with its spa legacy and Habsburg boulevards.
A smooth design den pearled in white with an interior design that is eminently simple: a clean alpine aestheticism that borrows from Italian design, the Danish principles of hygge and a touch of sweet sophistication in the Japonesque detailing.
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With mountain eye-candy stretching out in every direction, this nest egg of casual style is the perfect bolthole for urbanites who love the rural idyll framed by modernity and crowned by its fabulous rooftop infinity pool of sheer wow.
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The vigilius mountain resort was created by architect Matteo Thun, inspired by a fallen tree and the surrounding beauty of San Vigilio’s mountaintop landscapes. This wellness sanctuary rewrites the blueprint for an eco-design hotel, reached appropriately only by cable car.
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A groovy icon from the seventies, Seehotel Ambach, presides over the shores of Lake Caldaro in Italy’s South Tyrol with its perfectly formed, curvaceous marshmallowy walls of laid-back glamour and a canvas of tangerine, vert and oxide red, which drape mid-century furniture pieces.
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Rising up like delicate meringue-whipped peaks, mirroring the Dolomites panorama that surrounds it, the architecture and design of Hotel Milla Montis create an impact.
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Small, delicate and exquisite, this creative residence is fully stocked with vintage family pieces and curatorial heritage and includes a fabulous Orangerie thriving between the greenest of Mediterranean gardens and the whitest snow-capped peaks.
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Birch and smoked oak hug the thick walls and capture the house’s DNA from the days as a farmhouse barn. Once a resplendent Renaissance home to the Bishop and favoured lodgings for the merchant traders heading along the Romanesque Via Claudia Augusta.
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Wrapped by the Dolomites, this modern eco-resort pairs mountain lifestyle with simple elegance and luxury wellness vibes. An authentically pastoral location accented with the local Ladin culture that feels at once both holistic and fun.
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Remodelled over the centuries, 'Cinematic Italian' is the interior design mantra that consummately knits the restored historical elements to the nostalgia, style and flamboyance from the height of Italian film and design of the 1960s.
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Sleep under medieval frescoes, sweep down labyrinthine corridors, lord it up on the lofty ramparts or stroll through the Mediterranean garden, admiring the ivy-clad castle backdrop.
East of Bolzano is the long heralded as Europe’s largest alpine plateau in the Dolomites of South Tyrol | Alto Adige, the pastures and ski region of Alpe di Siusi, or Seiser Alm in German.
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A design refuge for those that like their head in the clouds but feet firmly placed in architectural modernism, set at 1850 metres, the hotel is lofty enough to be able to ski straight out of its door, as well as hiking in summer.
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