Bolzano is the capital city of the South Tyrol – it’s a lovely, historic destination that’s worth lingering in. We’ve visited in the winter (major Christmas market), and read it’s an excellent summer destination, with good weather and a wealth of good hotels.

There are several notable museums, in particular:

**The Messner Mountain Museum: this is great! It walks a line between tacky and wonderful; the best of the Messner museums. There are actually 6 museums – the one in Bolzano is the primary one (in a castle), and includes mountaineering art, a lot of hindu/buddhist art, and a history of the region. Clearly a LOT of money was spent here.

The **Museo Archeologico dell’Alto Adige focuses on Ötzi the Iceman, found half-buried in a glacier in 1991. At 5300 years old, he’s Europe’s oldest natural human mummy. The museum is just about him, but it works (get the audio guide). We were surprised by the wealth of things that were discovered along with him.

For food, we haven’t spent a lot of time, just snacks at:

• **Corte – Bar & Bistro is a central, but surprisingly peaceful option, right in the center of Bolanzo. Our pizza and pasta dishes were good.
• **Enovit is one of many cute options to have a drink on Via Dr. Josef Streiter – the popular street for socializing.