The song “The Hills Are Alive,” sung by actress Julie Andrews against a stunning backdrop of the Alps in the classic movie “The Sound of Music,” could be the theme song for the Stanglwirt Bio and Wellness Hotel in Austria’s Tyrolian Alps.
This alpine paradise is tucked away in a tiny village with views of the Wilder Kaiser Mountains and just nine miles from the world-class ski resort, Kitzbühl. The exuberance of the service staff and their Tyrolian hospitality, combined with their Family von Trapp-style uniforms, contributed to an overall memorable and wunderbar vacation, even if sounds a little cliché.
During a weekend visit there recently, I experienced awe-inspiring alpine landscapes, the biggest breakfast buffet I’ve even seen, a daily schedule of sports and leisure activities, wholesome meals prepared with the hotel’s organic farm ingredients, and folksy dinner entertainment. Not only that, the hotel has one of Europe’s largest spa complexes whose services directory is 50 pages long.
Visitors can fly in and out of the revamped and expanded Munich Airport, whose cutting-edge food court and brewery alone are worth a layover. Stanglwirt offers car service to and from the airport, a 90-minute drive. Upon arriving at the hotel I was welcomed with a glass of sparkling rosé, then escorted to my sprawling mountain-view suite in time to see the spectacular sunset from one of my many panoramic windows.
