Slick design and Alpine scenery don’t usually go hand in hand, but in the South Tyrol, a region in the Italian Alps between Verona and Innsbruck, the hills are alive with unexpectedly bold, stylish hotels.
Local design guru Matteo Thun put the region on the map with the Vigilius Mountain Resort (vigilius.it) back in 2003, but in the past two years a further 16 design properties have popped up. The 57-room Bio-Vitalhotel Theinersgarten in Gargazzone (theinersgarten.it, from £94 per night), which opened in March, is the latest addition. Set in an organic orchard and built entirely out of local wood without nails or glue, its cutting-edge design is matched by its green credentials.
Others of note include the wood, stone and glass Hotel Arnaria in Ortisei (arnaria.com, from £69 per night) – swimmers can see the mountain peaks from the glass-ceilinged pool – and the Strata Hotel in Sesto (stratahotel.it, from £73 per night), built as a series of interweaving timber strips designed to mirror the environment.
Then there’s the new Museion Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Bolzano (museion.it). A glass and metal cube-like structure, it’s about as far from Alpine kitsch as you can get.
British Airways flies to Verona from London Gatwick. Book a flight on ba.com now.
For Italy off-the-beaten track, try the mountains near Milan.
