Italy
Hike to Geisler Alm
The 3000 (!) meter high Geisler peaks are one of the many impressive highlights when visiting the Italian Dolomites. This beautiful hike through the Villnöss valley allows you to admire them up close and personal at the iconic Geisler Alm.
Starting point: Zannes parking lot
Drive up to the Zannes parking lot (Parcheggio Malga Zannes), the best place to leave your car for the day and start your hike. If you have a DolomitiMobil Card, be sure to show it at the entrance. This way you will only have to pay €2 instead of €8 for a full-day parking ticket.
Follow trail 6 towards San Zeno
An unpaved, winding path along a babbling stream almost makes you forget that you are hiking quite steeply uphill. Luckily, this is the only "hard" part of this hike. Meanwhile you will see the impressive Geisler peaks coming closer and closer.
Switch to the Adolf Munkel trail
Once you cross a large bridge, you will see another route marked as "Adolf Munkel trail", on which you need to continue. This hiking trail is known as one of the most impressive ones in the Dolomites because of the stark contrast between the barren mountain peaks and the stunning greenery beneath them. Unfortunately, we happened to choose a somewhat rainy day for our hike, but even then it's not hard to see the magical beauty of this landscape.
Admire the Geisler peaks
After a little over two hours of hiking, including several photo breaks since every twist and turn of the trail is photogenic, an even more idyllic scene suddenly reveals itself: the wonderful domain of Geisleralm. Goats happily hopping in the meadow, more Alpine flowers than you can count and a particularly picturesque mountain hut, and all this at 1996 meters altitude. On a sunny day with clear skies, this place becomes even more magical.
Enjoy a well-deserved break at the Geisler Alm
The Geisler Alm itself is the perfect place to enjoy the delicious South Tyrolean cuisine. From homemade dumplings to "Marende", a typical local charcuterie platter, regaining some energy for the downhill walk back to the car has never tasted so good.
Extra photo stop: Santa Magdalena viewpoint
If you want another amazing view of the Geisler peaks, make sure to stop by the Santa Magdalena viewpoint on your drive back from Zannes. The best way to find it is to park your car at the "Parkplatz Bergerplatz" and walk about 20 minutes to the Santa Magdalena viewpoint, which is indicated on Google Maps.
Stay the night at Peterwieshof
Looking to spend some more time in the beautiful Villnös valley near Bolzano? Then you can't go wrong with a stay at Peterwieshof. This authentic South Tyrolean farm was transformed into a modern B&B and is now part of the Roter Hahn network. And the best part is that you get to wake up everyday with another amazing view of the Geisler peaks.
