Ever heard of people speaking German in Italy? We take a drive through the fascinating and beautiful mountain region of South Tyrol in Northeast Italy, to find an Italian region unlike any other.
Italy, but not as you know it…
Background
I must confess to having never heard of the South Tyrol (or Süd Tyrol in German). I can say for sure that it wasn’t on my travel radar. That was until it was recommended to us by some Swiss friends of ours who we visited on our way through Switzerland. We hadn’t planned on going but they definitely made it sound worthy of a visit so, we packed up, headed first for Davos in the Swiss Alps, before continuing up and over a high Alpine pass into Italy. After all, plans are only ever there to be broken.
If you plan on seeing more of Switzerland first, check out these great suggestions for some of the top things to do in Switzerland.
The South Tyrol is a semi-autonomous area in the north-east of Italy. Predominantly German speaking and contested for centuries (road signs and place names are in both German and Italian), it bears little resemblance to anywhere else in Italy that we’ve visited. It is home to endless jaw-dropping mountain vistas, surrounding beautifully preserved medieval towns lining the valleys below, making it definitely one of the best regions of Italy to visit.
If you have time to explore the region and want to know more, you should definitely take a look at these reasons to visit South Tyrol, or this collection of things to do in South Tyrol. A drive through the beautiful scenery of the area makes for one of the best Italian road trips.
Whilst the prospect of crossing the high mountains in ‘Hazel’, our beloved 28 year old Hymer motorhome was a slight cause for concern, we needn’t have worried as the old girl never let us down. The views from the drive over the mountains were worthy of the visit alone. That was before we’d even properly arrived.
Glorenza
Arriving into Italy, with mountain sides lined with apple orchards (the principle crop of the area) and vineyards, we descended, meandering our way through a whole series of pretty little towns on our way down the valley. We stopped overnight at Glurns (or Glorenza in Italian), a small, surprising little town, attractively surrounded by well preserved and medieval town walls.
We always love coming across little unexpected treasures like this. We’ve found that away from the crowds, there are lots of hidden gems in Italy, to be discovered all over the country.
Merano
For us though, the real star of the show for the region was the town of Meran (or Merano in Italian). We stayed at the Schneeburghof motorhome site, situated in the hills above the town, complete with its own swimming pool with panoramic views of the valley below.
The site also boasted easy access to Meran’s extensive network of purpose built hillside walking trails, including the famous Tappeinerweg trail. This was built back in the grand days of promenading to allow the visiting Duke (at his request) to have a pleasant walk where he could survey the town below. It is largely flat and was deliberately constructed to allow for a series of impressive viewpoints. It was also planted with a variety of unusual plant species along the trail to create a corridor of botanical gardens. Walking the length of the trail is a great way to spend an afternoon.
Near to the start of the trail at the eastern end is a really cute little hamburger restaurant called Chiosco Pulversturm. It makes for a great lunch stop, serving really tasty homemade burgers with a chance to sit on outside tables amongst flowers.
Various paths lead from the trail down steep stairways to the town below, then through a network of winding streets lined with grand old buildings and residences to the attractive riverfront, all of it a nod to the town’s prominence in days gone by.
Down one small alley, much to the girls’ delight, we even managed an impromptu game of street ‘twister’, where somebody had painted the board onto the cobblestones. We rounded the day off with some tasty pizzas at La Smorfia, a place very popular with locals, before returning back up the hill to our van. Meran was a place we were sad to leave and will remember forever.
Bolzano
From Meran, we headed onto Bozen (or Bolzano in Italian), another jewel of the region, complete with grand palaces and a beautiful cathedral in the central square. All around the town layered vineyards stretch up the surrounding mountain sides.
We happily spent the day losing ourselves around the network of small cobbled streets that make up the old town, before taking a stroll through the surrounding parks and gardens.
The drive out of the region was no less spectacular than the drive we’d experienced on the way in, the road flanked on either side by gravity defying rock faces that seemed to stretch upwards for miles. The next leg of our trip would take us south towards the more familiar and typically Italian surroundings of Lake Garda, with an unscheduled stop along the way at Maso Roveri winery for some great wine and even better hospitality.
Our journey through the South Tyrol had definitely reinforced the idea that the real gems discovered whilst touring often have a habit of showing themselves in the most unexpected of places.
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