Gardens of Trauttmansdorff Castle

The Gardens of Trauttmansdorff Castle rise in a vast natural amphitheatre on the warm southern edge of Merano, where the Mediterranean climate of the Adige valley meets the alpine world above. Around the castle, which once hosted the Austrian Empress Elisabeth, more than eighty distinct garden landscapes spread across some twelve hectares and a height difference of around a hundred metres, arranged in four themed worlds: the Forests of the World, the Sun Gardens, the Water and Terraced Gardens, and the Landscapes of South Tyrol. Visitors wander past groves of olive, cypress, and citrus, rice and tea terraces, Japanese and English-style plantings, ponds and water features, and beds that bloom in succession from the first spring bulbs to late-season grasses, with thousands of species drawn from every continent. Throughout the grounds, artist-designed pavilions and viewing stations frame the planting, the most striking being the cantilevered 'Matteo Thun' platform that juts out over the gardens with sweeping views toward Merano and the surrounding peaks. Inside the castle itself, the Touriseum tells the lively, sometimes humorous two-hundred-year story of tourism in the Alps, and the single ticket admits visitors to both garden and museum. The gardens open daily from the start of April to early November and are closed in winter; a relaxed visit takes anywhere from two and a half to four hours, longer on a fine day with a meal at one of the on-site cafés. The terraced layout involves a good deal of gentle climbing on paved and gravel paths, so comfortable shoes help. Reached by a short bus ride or drive from central Merano, with parking on site, Trauttmansdorff rewards a leisurely pace and pairs naturally with a stroll along Merano's famous riverside promenades.