During a trip prepared by Hand Crafted Travel® you can ride the cable car from Bolzano/Bozen, Italy to Soprabolzano/Oberbozen. Glide silently above vineyards, farmhouses, and tiny villages, then at the top you can pop into a local restaurant for lunch, continue your journey among the mountains on a narrow gauge train, or choose among dozens of hiking trails with views of the Dolomites.

Tags: Bolzano, Bozen, Dolomites

Soprabolzano, a little village in the mountains above the city of Bolzano, Italy is easy to reach by cable car from the center of Bolzano. Dozens of trailheads, gorgeous views, and relaxing cafes.

Tags: Alto Adige, Bolzano, Bozen, Dolomites, South Tyrol

Twenty years ago a couple of honeymooners hiking in the Alps along the Italian-Austrian border discovered a body frozen in ice. At first they thought it was the corpse of a mountain climber who had fallen to his death and disappeared, a fairly regular occurrence (and one reason I don't plan to go mountain climbing any time soon). Retrieval crews soon noticed that the man was wearing a fur coat -- wait a minute! Turns out Ötzi, as he is now known, died more than 5000 years ago.

Ötzi is the centerpiece of the South Tyrol Archaeology Museum in Bolzano, Italy, a world-class museum -- worth a detour if you're traveling anywhere through northern Italy. As part of the 20th anniversary celebration the museum has given a make over to the life-like model of Ötzi featured in the exhibit. To me, the new Ötzi looks a lot more realistic, and very reminiscent of some of the farmers I've come across in out of the way corners of the Alps. Check out Ötzi's new look.

Tags: Archaeology, Bolzano, Ötzi