Gurgl

The first settlers recognized the advantages of this refuge in high alpine terrain early on in human history, which has been proven by numerous excavations. About 6,500 years ago humans made the region arable by means of slash and burn and began grazing. The high mountain residents have always defied the alpine dangers such as avalanches or mudslides and massive floods due to the emptying of the Gurgler ice lake, which no longer exists.

The inhabitants of the time struggled to wrest their livelihood from the barren pastures until tourism flourished in the valley in the 20th century. The first ski areas were developed and the first accommodations were built.

A milestone in the history of this place is the emergency landing of the Swiss scientist, physicist and inventor Auguste Piccard on Gurgler Ferner in 1931, after the world's first balloon flight into the stratosphere. This event made the region internationally famous and attracted more and more guests. A monument erected in his honor still bears witness to this historic day - as do some pictures and old newspaper clippings in the stairwell of our hotel.

With the completion of the Timmelsjoch High Alpine Road in the early 1950s a transit route between Tyrol and South Tyrol was opened up, which is particularly popular with motorcycles.

With the discovery of the ice man "Ötzi", named after the valley, the Ötztal hit the international headlines again and generated an additional flow of visitors.

Following this upward trend the small, inconspicuous mountain farming village has developed into one of the best mountain sports destinations in the world over the past few decades. The ingenuity of the local population is still unbroken and will continue to provide many exciting innovations in the future!