Give me a holiday in the mountains over a beach holiday. I love the ever-changing landscape in mountainous regions and the landscape of the Dolomites mountain range in South Tirol, Northern Italy was no exception.

The region, although in Italy is has a strong German/Austrian influence so we got the best of both worlds. Pizza and pasta alongside schnitzel and speck, venetian town buildings competing with traditional Austrian mountain huts. It also helps that one of my party speaks fluent German (*Not me!)

We were pretty lucky with the weather and at this time of year the region is host to many festivals and special events such as a WW1 reenactment in the mountains, a late nite ski lift opening and live music events in the local park. Riscone, just outside of Brunico was the perfect location and with the ‘Holiday Pass’ that provided free access to public transport in the South Tirol region as well as our hire car, we were able to explore the area with great freedom.

The Dolomites served as a tactical strongpoint for the Italians during WW1  the reenactment saw dozens of enthusiasts in full WW1 clothing, eating food of the time, modelling weapons and cannons and even doing climbing demonstrations using of the time equipment. When we headed to the Cinque Torre region we hadn’t planned to see this but it was a pleasant surprise, albeit quite busy.

WW1 cemetery,  Brunico

We headed to Lago di Braies – another natural tourist trap and much Instagrammed location in the Dolomites. Thankfully though, we had timed it for near the end of the day so by the time we had walked the circumference of the lake most of the crowds had dissipated.

I went paragliding. It was a bit vomit inducing but gave a really cool perspective of the area.

With so much to do and see in the South Tirol region, this holiday is really competing with my all time favourite location, Norway. I’m sure I’ll revisit in the future.