Despite the comfort of our suites, furnished with healthy, fragrant Swiss stone pine, we get up early, following the call of the mountains. Sunshine and blue skies invite us to get active and enjoy South Tyrol's mountain world to its fullest.
We have a vitality breakfast on the terrace, where the morning sun can fill us with some additional energy, warming our skin and our hearts. The vitality breakfast buffet awaits us with a wide selection of delicious and healthy regional products, including freshly pressed juices, locally produced bread and cheese made on the Schliniger Alm, a shepherds' hut in the mountains. There is no doubt: This is the perfect start for our holiday in South Tyrol, and it's all included in Gerstl's Half-board Package.

Our tour guide and senior host Martin takes us to the valley station Watles by bus. Here, our two-hour hike starts. While we slowly gain height with every step we take, Martin informs us about lots of interesting facts. What a delightful hike! The landscape is breathtaking and varied: Lush green meadows and mountain pastures contrast with majestic mountain peaks. The fresh mountain air fills our lungs. Once we reach the cross on the summit at an altitude of 2,557m above sea level and look out over the mountain panorama surrounding us, we are filled with awe. The Sesvenna group and the valley deep below us are an impressive sight. We have clearly chosen the right Hiking Hotel in South Tyrol.

Our tour guide and senior host Martin accompanies us to the Plantapatsch mountain shelter, where we enjoy a proper South Tyrolean snack. The high-quality products served - some speck (a type of smoked ham), cheese and a glass of local wine - taste even better in the fresh mountain air, with a stunning view on the mountain worlds of the upper Vinschgau valley. After our stay and meal we descend. Martin never fails to make us feel like friends, not mere customers.

Upon our return from the hike, we cannot wait to explore and relax in the vast wellness area of our hotel. Our legs, tired from the hike, find some soothing relief in the new sauna world and the 17-metre-long infinity pool, which invites us on a relaxing swim. The absolute highlight, of course, is the view: The entire wellness area overlooks the valley below. The water world of Alpin & Relax Hotel Das Gerstl is truly versatile with its infinity pool, the outdoor pool, the natural swimming pond, and the super-elegant indoor pool made from the famous local white marble, the so-called Laaser Marmor.

After the morning hike and the quality time spent at Gerstl's water world, we start to feel hungry again. The afternoon snack buffet is just what we need. Savoury sandwiches and delicious cakes - all fresh - have been prepared for us in the hotel's patisserie. We enjoy them on the panoramic terrace, thinking back over the adventurous day, mesmerized by the view over the Vinschgau valley yet again.

Since we love being pampered and looked after, we have chosen the Alpin & Relax Hotel Das Gerstl as our perfect wellness hotel in South Tyrol. The hotel offers a great variety of massages and cosmetic treatments for face and body and exclusively uses regional products for that. Anna and Kristin, who are part of the Sesvenna Spa Team, inform us well. In the end we opt for a fragrant Swiss pine massage, which we book as a couple massage, so both of us get pampered at the same time and we can enjoy the moment of relaxation together.

Having heard sauna experiences in South Tyrolean hotels praised so much, we are now curious to find out for ourselves what is so special about them. We want to try it out! At the Alpin & Relax Hotel Das Gerstl, we enjoy the soothing warmth and the fantastic view in the panoramic sauna, while perfuming clouds of herbal essences evaporating on the hot stones surround us. We enjoy the moment while listening to soft tunes. The so-called "Aufguss" sauna is special because of the herbal preparations used: first Swiss stone pine, then lavender, then Alpine juniper. After 15 minutes of fragrant pleasure, the sweating session is over. We cool off under the shower  and in the cool-down pool and ice fountain.

The grand finale of our fantastic day at the Alpin & Relax Hotel Das Gerstl is the 5-course menu in the evening. A vast choice of delicacies awaits us. The culinary highlights make our taste buds tingle. Here, creative ideas mingle with traditional, regional South Tyrolean cuisine. Rafael, the chef, and his team surprise us daily with new creations and fantastic dishes. Through the large windows, we see the sun setting and soon a sea of lights can be observed, coming from the numerous villages in the valley below, beautiful and romantic to behold. We are happy to have found the perfect gourmet hotel in South Tyrol.

Although we know that a beautiful suite with a soft, cosy bed is waiting for us, we do not want to call it a day just yet - there is too much to enjoy! At the hotel bar we meet some of the people who did the morning hike together with us and we start chatting. Lukas, our host, and his mother join us and ask us about our day, so we tell them how much we had enjoyed breakfast, the hike, the cake buffet, the wellness area, the massage and the great gourmet dinner. Later, Martin, the senior host, also joins us at the open fire and we all sit together, talk and enjoy a good glass of local wine.

Time for bed. At the end of a marvellous day, we are looking forward to spending a relaxing night of healthy sleep in the super-comfortable, fragrant suites furnished with Swiss stone pine. We were looking for - and have found - a room to fall in love with... and in. Tomorrow, we will feel all new and be ready for another day full of adventure at the Alpin & Relax Hotel Das Gerstl. We have already decided to go on another guided hike and we want to attend a wine tasting with Carmen, the sommelier. We are glad that our stay isn't over yet because there is still so much to do and see and try out. We plan on relaxing and deciding each day what we want to do and experience.