Bolzano 2026

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Bolzano, Italy 2026

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Today the trip took me from Corvara back to Brunico then down the Eisack and Rienza river valleys to Bolzano, Italy. The first leg to Brunico was on the 460 bus where I transferred to a train to Fortezza. The region of Corvara has extensive logging operations ongoing. A quick train transfer at the Forezza station brought me to Bolzano; I barely had time to walk between trains. The last train was filled with folks many who exited at Bolzano. My tickets were not checked on either train. The valleys from Brunico appear filled with vineyards on the steep hillsides.

I'd decided to layover in Bolzano because, a) I couldn't find easy transportation options to the ski areas northwest of Bolzano like Alpe di Siusi or Carezza Dolomites, b) traveling all the way to St Moritz would make for a very long day and many transfers, and c) I thought my body might need a rest from skiing.

Bolzano just happened to be a larger city about halfway. Has anybody reading this blog been to Bolzano? So far I'm tickled I stopped here! It's beautiful bustling city squeezed between high mountains with clearly a long history that I hope to learn more about. It has a charming pedestrian section (Boulder mall is 'meh' in comparison) with a left over flavor from the middle ages. Even my room speaks to the long past of this place despite having modern touches I'd enjoy at home.

I wondered a little bit this afternoon. I'm feeling a bit tired so decided to make a quiet evening of it. I'll explore more over the next couple of days.

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Laundry...I located a selfserve 'launderia' close by. There was a discount for using a credit card rather than cash which I thought curious. It was €7 to wash and €2.5 to dry. I had the place to myself this Saturday morning at 7:30AM.

While the clothes were sudsing I walked past the modern art museum and over to one of the two rivers flowing through town - Talfar. Both the Talfar and Eisack that merge in town are treated poorly with lots of trash and no direct access being confined by walls. They look eminently floatable as class II-III rivers for the sections I could see. The water is clear.

I walked around the Victory Monument (Monumento alla Victoria) commemorating Italy's success in WWI. There is a museum housed underneath about the 'two dictators'. Vendors were setting up their tables on a closed street; a Saturday market I presume on the street adjacent to the monument.

After returning my now clean and dry clothes back to the hotel room, I had time before the first museum opened. I walked down near the train station to the Eisack river then back into the pedestrian section of town for a coffee and pastry. The place I picked was very active with locals, but the coffee tasted like 7-11 grade and the pastry just empty calories. I'll have to try elsewhere.

The museum I started at is only open 10-12:30. There were two docents. Neither spoke great English. One had a German accent. The second guided me on my way and as she did so her English got stronger. Me, my Italian remained dorment. Shortly afterward she caught up with me and handed me a set of headphones attached to an old model phone that had explanations of things in English. She said it normally cost €5 but I could have it for free; I later returned the device and insisted on paying the fee. The two were very friendly and gracious. It is a simple museum, but provided a brief history and importance of Bolzano. Perfect! I was hoping for something like this. The place has been key to trade between southern Germany and northern Italy formally since the 13th century. A 'fair' took place four times a year and was tightly regulated. The building housing the museum had once been where disputes were settled and market rules established. The importance of Bolzano as a trading center has died, but the city still retains a vibrant inclusive feel to it. German and Italian are spoken everywhere and place names are in both languages. Signs could be in either language. The museum had placards in both languages (and sometimes English).

By early afternoon I made my way to the second museum of the day, South Tyrol Archeological Museum. It is the resting place of the mummified Neolithic man - better known as the ice man. The 5000 year old corpse was revealed as a result of melting snow and ice high in the Alps on the border of Austria and Italy. The mummy is stored in a state that is supposed to match the conditions that preserved it in nature by keeping it covered in a thin layer of ice in a special room at -6ºC. There are wonderful explanations and displays of his clothing and tools. He had a bronze axe, a flint dagger, sheep/goat skin leggings and coat, and hay/fur shoes. It was definitely worth the visit.

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It's Sunday morning. I stepped out of the hotel at about 8:30AM. The narrow brick walkways are quiet. The vendors of yesterday may still be in bed with the exception of the flower sellers. They are all standing chatting with each other because there is no one else about. A coffee shop is open and there I sit at a sidewalk table enjoying the first reasonable cup of coffee since being in Bolzano. (Maybe I've turned into a coffee snob?) I find myself walking past a vineyard field on a steep mountainside. I slip into a COOP and buy some fresh produce for the day. Mostly the sun fills the sky with only scattered clouds. I make my way to a tram and note it has a schedule like a bus or train servicing the tiny village of Soprabolzano Oberhozen high on a broad mountain ridge above Bolzano.

The Naturmuseum Südtirol is open now. I wouldn't recommend it for English speaking tourists as everything is in Germain or Italian. I did use the Google translation app in connection with the phone camera to translate things of interest. I was hoping for an extensive explanation of the plate techtonics that formed the Alps. Instead the museum focuses on the rock types, fossils, and flora and fauna of the region. A great place for younger minds with some hands on stuff. The dioramas were fun. The place also has several aquariums which I enjoyed: fresh and salt water.

I lingered again in the plaza with the big screen for public viewing of the Olympics watching women's downhill and head-to-head giant slalom snowboarding.

Arriving at the Modern Art Museum, signs out front annouced in English that today was a free day! The first exhibit was fun; a display of the actual Olympic torches stretching back to the 1950's. And then in the next room was the 1939 Olympic torch and the story of Cornelius Johnson. "Corny" and black athlete competed in and won the gold that year in the high jump. He was snubbed by both Hilter and Roosevelt. All gold winners were given a small oak tree which Corny planted in his folks yard in Los Angeles where it survives to this day. The house and tree were almost bulldozed in 2022 but a preservation society purchased the property. The tree has been cloned and some tree samples from that were on display.

Getting to view the Ötzi mummy (Tyrol Iceman), the Olympic torches, and be reminded of Mr. Johnson's story were unexpected and delightful encounters in Bolzano.