This post is the continuation of a series documenting our times in the Dolomites in Northern Italy in the European summer of 2023. We had started off with a rainy but memorable day in the German city of Munich (A short stay in Munich – The Delightful Dolomites, Part 1 ) before catching a morning train to our next destination, the city of Bolzano which is the gateway to the Dolomites.
Bolzano is very conveniently connected to Munich via direct trains, and so a very comfortable three and a half hour train ride later we were in Bolzano. We had booked what looked like a delightful little place called Goldenstern Townhouse for our three nights in Bolzano (Bozen in German – everything in this region has separate German and Italian names). It was right in the middle of the Old town part of the city and we walked the short walk from the station to our hotel with the help of previously downloaded offline google maps of the region. We travel extremely light so walking to the hotel with our luggage has never been a problem. We reached the hotel which was in a restored townhouse and climbed the stairs to the reception.
The better half waiting at the reception of the Goldenstern townhouse with the entirety of our luggage
After the check in formalities we went to our room which was a flight up. At most of these small restored hotels in Europe there are no elevators and it’s always advisable to travel light if you are staying at such places or risk breaking your back carrying luggage up narrow flights of stairs. I always prefer the atmosphere and vibe of such places to the sterile convenience offered by the chain hotels which are usually never in the Old town.
Our room is up the flight of stairs to the right
The weather which was cloudy and drizzly when we left Munich had turned into a beautiful sunny, warm afternoon in Bolzano. Weather plays a large part in what you can do in the mountains and we were glad at the positive change in the weather. That made us just keep our luggage, freshen up and set off again to enjoy the weather while it lasted.
We had multiple plans for Bolzano depending on what the weather threw at us and since it was a sunny afternoon we decided to take the walk down to Runkelstein castle (Castle Roncolo in Italian) and see the castle till the time it closed in the evening. We went past the Franciscan Monastery and chose the pedestrian path which ran parallel to the Talvera river for part of our walk to the Castle.
In front of the Franciscan Monastery in Bolzano
We chose the riverside path because it passed through beautiful vineyards and orchards with the river roaring through on one side. We stopped frequently to take photos and enjoy the beauty all around. The walk to Runkelstein castle was a 2.6 km long one but we were not in a hurry to get there especially on such a beautiful day.
Vineyards going up the hills in Bolzano, Italy
Beautiful villas and surrounding vineyards on the walk to Runkelstein
Orchards with the river on the other side
We had only seen the vineyards in Tuscany in the late fall when they were all dry and bereft of any greenery. Seeing this in summer made me make a mental note to myself that I need to revisit Tuscany in better weather, hopefully some day!
The pedestrian part of the walk came to an end at the Klebenstein Castle (Castello di Sant’Antonio) which isn’t open to tourists but has a beautiful location overlooking the greenery around. After that the walk was on the sides of a tarred road which hardly had a shoulder wide enough for one person. That made me stop taking so many photos and concentrate on not getting run over, even though the traffic was negligible.
Klebenstein Castle overlooking the vineyards in Bolzano
We reached the turn off to the Runkelstein castle a few minutes later heaved a sigh of relief at not being run over! We started the short but steep climb up a rough cobblestoned path which led to the castle. The steep path up goes through the forest and we huffed and puffed our way up until suddenly out of nowhere you reach the outer gate of the castle.
Runkelstein castle up the hill from the road coming from Bolzano.
Reaching the outer gate of Runkelstein Castle
We went in and reached the main castle and the bridge over the ravine just before the castle that had replaced the original draw bridge. We went to the ticket office and bought tickets to see the interiors of the castle. This includes a free audioguide that you can download using the free wifi offered at the castle. This audioguide turned out to be a great one which had interesting information about the castle and especially the 14th century frescoes ( wall paintings ) that have been painstakingly restored.
At the main structure of Castle Runkelstein
We toured the rooms at our own pace listening to the audioguide describe the lives of the nobles that inhabited the place and more interestingly the frescoes on the walls. While most frescoes you see in Europe have a religious theme, the ones at Runkelstein had frescoes showing the day to day lifestyle of the nobles, nature and even a melee tournament with a tangle of knights fighting each other. There was even a room full of frescoes showing a story from King Arthur’s round table!
A knight’s armour and frescoes lining the walls at Runkelstein
Stars on the ceiling and a painted balcony scene showing animals and people in various poses – some funny!
Frescoes showing the daily life of noble including a tourney of jousting knights at the top
A melee in progress with a tangle of horses and fighters
Wooden arched ceilings and frescoed walls make for an interesting experience
A fresco showing King Arthur and his famous round table on the extreme right
We enjoyed the castle and the frescoes more than we had expected to and spent a great deal of time appreciating the fine details in the paintings brought to our attention by the audioguide. I don’t like guided tours of castles because they throw so many names and years at you that it is too much to retain. This experience of seeing the castle at our own pace where the emphasis was on the art rather than the names and numbers was different and highly appreciated.
For those that don’t care about the paintings the castle provides some sweeping views over the vineyards and orchards and the city of Bolzano beyond. Every level we climbed the view kept getting better. We walked the ramparts and finally reached the castle tower. We have a simple rule with towers -if its open and climbable we go up the tower. This was no different & we climbed the tower to give us the highest vantage point and best views from the castle.
Even the ramparts have frescos !
View from the castle ramparts at Runkelstein
The better half takes a photo of the tower while on the ramparts
The tower windows with the river and sweeping views beyond
The Talvera river flows on with vineyards on both sides
A view of the main castle building that we had visited from the tower
Views of the road we had come from and the city of Bolzano in the distance
The high windows at the tower with beautiful views
When we were satisfied about taking in the views we descended down the tower and went to the small cafe in the castle courtyards to have some refreshments after our exertions.
Happy us at having climbed yet another tower!
The cafe was set in the castle courtyard which is free to visit and a beautiful locale to sit and enjoy a quiet drink. There were no crowds and we chose a table and ordered a beer for myself and a raspberry lemonade for the better half.
Resting our legs at the Castle Cafe after touring the castle
Enjoying our drinks after a wonderful time at the Runkelstein Castle
After resting our legs for some time and enjoying the location and our drinks we set off again to return back to Bolzano.
The Bridge outside the main castle on our way back
The outer gate of the castle at the start of our path down
At a bridge over the Talvera near the castle
We then walked carefully till the pedestrian river side path came and descended the stairs to take this beautiful path again. This time we walked the entire length of the path to the other end of town as we wanted to see the exteriors of the Maretsch castle (Castel Mareccio) which we had missed on our walk to Runkelstein. There were some more grey clouds in the sky by now but it was still dry and it was as good as it gets!
The Pedestrian path along the river at Bolzano
More grey clouds in the sky but still sunny overall !
We crossed the turn which would have taken us closer to our hotel and continued on the riverside path till the Maretsch castle came into view. It is possible to tour the vineyards and the castle on a wine tour but that’s not our sort of thing so we were happy to see the castle and its surrounding vineyards from the path.
Maretsch Castle comes into view
Seeing another castle albeit from the outside – Maretsch castle in Bolzano
The dolomites in the distance and Maretsch Castle and vineyards in the foreground
There were benches on the path to sit and enjoy the view and we found one with a decent view and sat and enjoyed the view in peace.
Enjoying the view on a conveniently located bench in Bolzano
We then walked to the end of the path and returned to the hotel from a different route.
The cobblestone streets of Bolzano
The beautiful pedestrian part of town
We then returned to the hotel but not before making reservations for dinner at a restaurant Franziskanerstuben nearby. It had a great location, close to the hotel, decent reviews and vegetarian options for the better half – so it checked all the boxes ! We returned to the hotel and put our legs up for some time and discussed what we would do the next day.
Soon it was time to go for dinner and the restaurant had a table waiting for us. We ordered Goulash with dumpling for myself (It’s my favourite dish in Central Europe !) and pasta for the better half. I couldn’t resist ordering a small Dunkel (dark beer) for myself while the better half had her lemonade.
Enjoying my Goulash and Dumpling at Franziskanerstuben , Bolzano
It had been a great first evening in Bolzano and the Dolomites. We hoped that the weather cooperated so that we could take the cable car up to Soprabolzano / Oberbozen and hike some of the trails up there.
Whether the weather would stay true or turn against us is the topic for another post, some other time, some other day!
Till then,
Ciao!
Inside the Goldenstern Townhouse
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