When talking about the mountain world south of the Brenner one thinks spontaneously of South Tyrol and the Dolomites – on the one hand the warm hillside vineyards up to the permanent ice glaciers, rich in nature and cultural countryside and on the other, the most bizarre and most well known mountains.

Church on the wayside of South Tyrol Enlarge image: Church on the wayside of South Tyrol

In Bolzano the natural Mediterranean and northern lush greenery come together: cypress trees, oleaster bushes and palms growing in the valley floor. On the upward steep slopes there are downy oaks and hop-hornbeam woods; which change to dry grasslands and cliff meadows. Around the basin of the valley, there are promenade paths which are much loved by the Bolzano inhabitants. Rare plants thrive here. Centuries old trees throw their shadows. Not a week goes by without new blossoms opening.

Bolzano was for hundreds of years the city through which every artist must pass if he was travelling to Italy or wanted to conquer the north from Italy. This lively exchange has marked the spiritual life there. Today, Bolzano is a modern European city; it was not chosen without good reasons as the ideal place for Maestro Abbado’s music academy.

Travellers from north, west, east and middle Germany can reach south Tyrol by Autozug via Bolzano. For holiday makers who want to drive through the Alps to this region, the terminals at Innsbruck or Munich can be used.