This part of the eastern Italian Alps, which straddles the Italian-Austrian border, is known officially in Italy as Trentino-Alto Adige, but to most people as Südtirol (South Tyrol).  It offers some of the most appealing scenery in Italy combined with some of the best walking in Europe. Castles are a big feature of the area, and walking from castle to castle is a popular activity. There are over 350 of them perched on hilltops and nestling in vineyards. 

The Meraner Land is the gem of this region – here you will find apple orchards and lush wine-growing valleys, snow-capped mountains, flowers in abundance, figs, sweet chestnuts and picture-book villages.  Think the “Secret Garden”, only bigger!

The food here is wonderful.  Try regional specialities like “Speck” (a type of cured ham), or how does light-as-air spinach dumplings with a creamy walnut sauce sound?  Then there is the wine: high altitude, warm days and cold nights make for white wines with intense, fragrant aromas, bursting with flavour.  The region also produces some exciting reds - rich, ruby, full of body and delicious.

The Meraner Land is named after the lovely old spa town of Meran (Merano in Italian), but the area extends well beyond the immediate surroundings of the town. Both the Texelgruppe and the more widely known Dolomites are part of South Tyrol.  However, the Dolomites are located in eastern South Tyrol while the mountains around Meran (Merano), namely the Texelgruppe (Giogáia di Tessa), are in western South Tyrol.  These vibrantly green mountains are backed by distant snow-capped peaks - the highest being Texelspitze at 3,318 m / 10,885 ft - with Mediterranean-style valleys, vineyards tilted towards the sun, and liberally-wooded hillsides; all of which makes for very rewarding walking. 

Scorched by the sun, the land is irrigated by ancient Waalwege.  Dug into the ground and carved out of rock, they are reminders of the constant battle against drought that was waged by the local farmers in the Middle Ages.  Today, easy walking routes follow these narrow channels, and useful amenities are dotted along the way, making it perfect for walkers of all ages.  

People of Austrian and Italian origin live side by side in the Meraner Land, resulting in a fascinating and truly unique combination of cultures, traditions and culinary experiences.  This is the only region in Italy where the majority of the population speaks German as their first language. You’ll notice, perhaps with some surprise, that the road signs are bilingual; in both German and Italian.  Using two languages is the way of life here and, as part of the population also speaks Ladin, an ancient Rhaeto-Romance language, which today is only spoken by about 30,000 people worldwide, hearing three spoken is not uncommon.  

A feast for all senses, the Meraner Land is home to the very finest food.  With a world-renowned reputation for wine, and its blend of Austrian-German, Italian and Ladin dishes, you can expect to sample the most delicious natural fare – all cooked and lovingly prepared from scratch. 

Your base for the week is the delightful village of Naturns (Naturno in Italian).  With its unpretentious rural character and wonderful climate it is perfectly placed for visitors to take advantage of the many walking possibilities all around.  Naturns (Naturno) boasts a staggering 315 days of sunshine a year, and the idyllic landscape is characterised by thickly wooded slopes, chestnut groves and vineyards up to 900 m / 2,952 ft.  The fertile valley floor is covered in extensive apple and apricot orchards, and even figs and kiwis flourish here.  Excellent roads, a cable car station, and a shuttle bus from the village square to the surrounding hamlets and villages, means you can roam, walk and ramble the area to your heart’s content. 

Where you’ll stay…

The friendly, family-run 3* hotel we have chosen for your stay is located in a quiet area on the edge of the village, within a 10 minute walk of the village square and its inns, restaurants, shops and other facilities.  It enjoys an excellent elevated position just beneath Castel Naturno, and from its balconies the views to the wooded hillsides of Monte Tramontana are fabulous. The 20 bedrooms are spacious and equipped with private bathroom, sat-TV, telephone, and all feature a balcony.  There is also an indoor pool and a sizeable lawn for relaxing in the sun.  The guest car park is adjacent to the hotel. 

A generous breakfast is served every morning and there is a friendly residents’ bar where you can unwind on your return from your adventures.  Other hotel facilities include a restaurant where you can enjoy great local cuisine with ingredients grown in the hotelier’s own garden and orchard. 

Hotel availability: in case our partner hotel is booked out will propose alternative dates or the most suitable alternative hotel if one is available.  The alternative will be offered to you at a similar cost via email and you will have 48 hours from the time you made the booking request to accept this alternative, once accepted your credit card will be charged.  If you do not choose the alternative offered your booking request will automatically be cancelled without payment. 

Hotel details: it is not our policy to provide the hotel’s contact details before full payment has been received.  The hotel’s name, telephone number and address will be sent to you as part of your tour pack 3-4 weeks prior to the start of your walking holiday.

Scattered remains of pre-historic civilisation, dating as far back as 6000 BC, have been discovered in the region of current Trentino-Alto Adige.  Since then, the area has had a turbulent history.  In more recent times, in 15 BC, the Romans advanced from the south bringing with them a new culture and new sophistication.  Around the year 400, Rome withdrew its legions from the area and three other tribes moved in to take control: the Lombards, the Alemanni and the Bavarians.  However, an ethnic minority of the dominion of Rome, the Ladini, still survives today in some valleys. During the medieval period the Habsburg broadened their feudal possessions and the area became part of the Habsburg empire. In 1810, it was incorporated into Napoleonic Italy, although, after the defeat of Napoleon, the entire area was returned to Austria.       

At the end of Word War I, Italian troops penetrated deep into Tyrol, Italy annexed the southern part of Tyrol, and the name South Tyrol was born.  This territorial arrangement was confirmed by the Treaty of Saint Germain in 1919.  In a second phase, South Tyrol was settled with “native” Italians from the south in an attempt to adjust the ethnic balance.  Modern Trentino-Alto Adige is divided into two sections: Alto Adige (Südtirol in German) in the north, which has retained much of its Austrian heritage, and Italian-speaking Trentino in the south.   

The mountains of the Texelgruppe shelter the Texelgruppe Nature Reserve (Parco Naturale di Tessa), 33,430 hectares of protected land where flowers and wildlife thrive - most notably the alpine ibex (Steinbock in German). The ibex has, for a long time, been regarded as a mystical animal; almost all its body parts were sought after as an ingredient for “magical” potions.  As a result, the ibex had disappeared from much of the Alps at the beginning of the 19th century.  Thanks to the efforts of a small group of people, the last remaining animals in Italy were protected in 1816.  Today, after extensive and ongoing introduction programmes, the population in the wild is estimated to be about 30,000.        

The range of plants found in the Meraner Land is enormous, as one might expect in an area whose climate and altitude varies from Mediterranean to the eternal ice.  Throughout summer the mountains are full of beautiful colourful alpine flowers and the lower valleys are rich with lush vegetation.  Blessed with an extremely temperate climate, this part of the Alps is also well known for apples, accounting for one tenth of Europe’s total apple production. In springtime, when the snow still lingers picturesquely on the distant mountain peaks, the valleys are thick with pale pink apple blossom.   

Castle Juval is situated high above the entrance to Val di Senales, close to Naturns (Naturno). In 1983, it was bought by the world-famous mountaineer Reinhold Messner, who holds two Mount Everest ‘firsts’: he climbed it solo and he climbed it without additional oxygen.  The 13th century castle now houses a mountaineering and Tibetan art museum, a winery, an organic farm and an immediately charming traditional inn.  Castle Juval can either be reached from Juval carpark (by shuttle bus only) or on foot along a traditional Waalweg from the nearby hamlet of Tschars (Ciardes).    

The Italian spirit of the area shines in the lovely old spa resort of Meran (Merano) on the river Passirio. Meran (Merano) is where glistening glaciers form a majestic background for exotic palm trees and sub-tropical flowers.  The fascinating medieval town centre bustles with everyday life, there are colourful vegetables and fruit markets stacked high with garlic, picturesque historic buildings, beautifully laid-out parks and elegant promenades.  Don’t miss the Gothic Castle Trauttmannsdorff with its most amazing gardens!

Nearest Airport(s):  The only airport in South Tyrol is located in the capital city Bolzano (Bozen in German).  The nearest major airports are Innsbruck and Verona.  Here are the approximate journey times, in good conditions, from the airports to your destination:

• Bolzano (Bozen), Italy – 50 minutes
• Innsbruck, Austria – 2 hours
• Verona di Villafranca (VRN), Italy – 2 hours
• Verona (Brescia), Italy – 2.5 hours

When to go: this great self-guided walking holiday is available from arrival date 1 April to 1 November. The climate around Meran (Merano) is sunny and dry and generally milder than on the northern part of the Alps. Summers in the lower valleys can be hot, but not overpoweringly so, occasionally punctuated by sudden thundery downpours.  Spring and autumn are both, in their different ways, wonderful for walking.

For more information and prices please refer to the relevant page on this website.

We are always happy to answer any queries about our walking holidays, so if you need any help deciding whether a holiday is right for you, please contact one of our friendly team on
telephone +49 8161 549795 or email us at touchingnature@email.de