Schnals between Ötzi, Monastic Culture and Mountain Trails

Ötzi and Archaeology in Unser Frau

Unser Frau is home to the archeoParc Schnalstal, an open-air archaeological museum with a visitor centre in South Tyrol’s Schnalstal Valley in Italy. Its exhibitions explain how and where Ötzi was found in 1991 and how Ötzi and his contemporaries lived 5,300 years ago. The visitor programme includes a visitor workshop, an archery range and a dugout canoe landing stage. This means the visit is not aimed only at people who are already deeply interested in prehistory: the story of the discovery and the way of life of people 5,300 years ago each provide a separate way of accessing the valley’s past.

Karthaus and the Path of Silence

Karthaus also has a clear cultural focus. The cloister, grotto, Prior’s House, monastery kitchen, surrounding wall, monastery gate and St Anne’s Church of the “Allerengelsberg” Carthusian monastery can be visited all year round. The Via Monachorum – Path of Silence from Katharinaberg to Unser Frau – leads to Karthaus, the former Carthusian monastery whose monks had taken a vow of silence. In this way, the path combines a hike through the Schnalstal Valley with a specific historical destination, without confusing the monastery’s former function with its present-day use.

Alpine Experiences around Ötzi

The guided Ötzi Glacier Tour leads on foot or by ski from the head of the Schnalstal Valley to the discovery site at Tisenjoch, at an altitude of 3,210 metres, where Ötzi was found. The tour takes place every Tuesday and can be booked as a private tour on other days. For planning your trip, this creates a clear distinction between a museum visit and a guided tour into the high mountains: the tour’s destination is the discovery site itself and, depending on how it is conducted, requires travelling on foot or by ski.

Transhumance and the Ski Season

The annual transhumance is a special event in the yearly cycle. At the end of the summer season, it leads up to 4,000 sheep from their summer pasture in Austria’s Ötztal Valley over the glacier and across the national border back to Vernagt and Kurzras. Visitors can accompany the sheep on the final section of their journey. The experience is therefore part of a seasonal event, while the visitable areas of the former Carthusian monastery are accessible all year round.

The Alpin Arena Schnals is the destination for winter sports. The ski area has slopes reaching up to 3,200 metres above sea level; its long ski season lasts from September to May. Together with the valley’s altitude, this creates a clear profile for travellers who want to plan their stay around alpine activities and a long ski season. The information about culture, trails, tours and the ski area highlights different focuses that you can consider when choosing the time of year and location of your accommodation.

Choose Your Arrival Route and Accommodation Location Based on Your Interests

The Unser Frau Oberdorf bus stop, the Katharinaberg starting point and the slopes of the Alpin Arena Schnals are specific reference points when choosing where to stay. Train line 250 Meran–Mals and bus line 261 Naturno–Schnalstal take visitors to the Unser Frau Oberdorf bus stop; from there, the archeoParc is a three-minute walk away. The Katharinaberg starting point for the Via Monachorum can be reached by the SAD regional bus service no. 261. When choosing a hotel in Schnals for your holiday, you can therefore first compare whether your priorities lie more with Ötzi and the exhibitions in Unser Frau, with Karthaus and the Path of Silence or with the high-altitude slopes of the Alpin Arena Schnals.

For further trip planning, you can also compare Latsch, Graun Im Vinschgau, Kastelbell-Tschars, Taufers Im Münstertal, St. Valentin a.d. Haide, Prad Am Stilfserjoch, Glurns and Laas.

For the overarching travel overview: Vinschgau.