PEAK SEASON:
TRAVEL
PEAK SEASON:
A SUMMER ESCAPE IN SOUTH TYROL
THINK DOLOMITES, THINK SKIING? THINK AGAIN. WHEN THE SNOW MELTS FROM SOUTH TYROL’ S LESSER-TRODDEN
CORNERS, A WHOLE OTHER HOLIDAY EMERGES. POLLY HUMPHRIS HEADED TO MERANSEN TO FIND IT.
Boost, it turns out, is a dangerous word to say to me. Halfway through our e-bike briefing in the Altfasstal valley, our guide Thomas- cool, friendly, definitely patient- was calmly talking us through the bike’ s power modes when my ears seized on that single word and abandoned the rest of the sentence. One press of a button later and I was hurtling, first down and then improbably up, a monster of a hill, overtaking leisurely hikers, parents pushing prams and a scattering of wild horses, all watching my unscheduled ascent with shocked amusement. At the top, breathless but triumphant, my reward was a wide green bowl of Alpine pasture with the jagged teeth of the Dolomites stacked along its horizon- well worth every second of the indignity.
That, in one comical nutshell, is Meransen in summer. Say‘ Dolomites’ and most people picture skiing, which is fair enough- come December, this peaceful corner of South Tyrol, perched at 1,500 metres on the region’ s famous‘ sun terrace’, disappears under snow and the Gitschberg-Jochtal lifts fill with skiers. But look beneath that winter skin and you’ ll find a fascinating world that spends half the year buried- wildflower meadows, larch forests, waterfalls, working farms and a network of trails linking them all together, from pram-friendly valley ambles to the region’ s‘ Big Five’ summit hikes. Summer here isn’ t the off-season, it’ s the big reveal, and all that natural tranquillity has a playful, adventurous streak running right through it.
Starting the adventure on the plane, SkyAlps flies direct from London Gatwick to Bolzano in a nifty 78-seat Dash 8 turboprop, serving South Tyrolean wines and Z44, a local gin distilled from hand-picked pine cones that tastes like a walk through a mountain forest- a neat two-hour preview of everything waiting on the ground. The landing, threading between peaks into Bolzano’ s slender valley, is worth the window seat alone. From there, the road north cuts through swathes of deep green forest, past sheer rock faces and chocolate-box houses studding the hillsides in a visual reminder that this was Austria until 1919, and that every town still carries two names. Meransen is also Maranza, so strudel and speck happily share menu space here with pasta and espresso.
At the very top of the village, where the road runs out and the trails begin, sits the Tratterhof Mountain Sky Hotel. In the Gruber family since 1947 and welcoming guests since 1981, three generations of Gruber-Hintereggers now run this member of the Belvita Leading Wellnesshotels Südtirol collection, which calls itself‘ the panoramic specialist’ and doesn’ t oversell- the whole building is angled at the view, from the floor-to-ceiling windows of the light-flooded rooms and suites to the 20-metre infinity pool that appears to spill straight off the mountainside towards the Dolomites. Below, the valley drops away towards the cathedral spires of Brixen; above, the Fundres mountains wait at the end of an endless garden- you genuinely don’ t need a car here, in fact, you barely need shoes.
That infinity pool belongs to the hotel’ s Monte Silva Mountain Spa; 4,000 square metres of pools, relaxation rooms and a three-storey, adults-only sauna making up a world of wellness that quickly became my favourite corner of the hotel. At its heart, a huge Finnish sauna hosts show infusions twice a day- music, swirling towels, panoramic windows facing the peaks- before the sauna master ushers everyone out to an ice-cold plunge pool that instantly resets with its addictive chill. One cultural note for fellow Brits: this floor follows Alpine sauna tradition, which is to say swimwear-free. Opening my eyes in that heat, surrounded by such liberating authenticity, my Britishness quickly melted away though my swimwear remained on, which is considered acceptable, too.
Five courses chosen as you sit down, dinner at Tratterhof is its own ritual, with guests arriving in unison within a civilised two-hour window- the same groups sit at the same tables each night in a way reminiscent of oldschool resorts, but modernised by excellent cookery. South Tyrolean produce leads a varied menu that swings happily between Alpine and Mediterranean, with recommended regional wine pairings to match. Be warned, though, the‘ pre-starter’ is a heaving buffet of charcuterie, mountain cheese, salads, breads and oils, plus a dish of the night- ours, a blistered sourdough pizza so good that the entire table fell foul of eyes bigger than bellies before the actual meal began. Then, there are the characters. One evening, a 93-year-old regular celebrating his birthday serenaded
140 • www. insidekent. co. uk