Upper Val Pusteria Museum of Tourism

Holidays 150 years ago - those were the days! As early as 1760, Princess Isabella of Parma and her entourage stayed at the House Wassermann (Casa, or Haus, Wassermann). Its origins date back to the 15th century when it was the seat of the Lords von Kurz. From 1892 to 1977, it housed the Wassermann family's coffee house, who amassed an extensive collection of folk artefacts.

The municipality renovated the historic building in 1989 with the support of the Province of South Tyrol and now runs the Upper Val Pusteria Museum of Tourism (Fremdenverkehrs­museum Hochpustertal) here. On the ground and first floors, old inns and baths are exhibited. A key theme is the construction of the Val Pusteria Railway, which significantly shaped the history of tourism.

When this section of the Southern Railway connected Fortezza with Vienna in the second half of the 19th century - the Austrian capital was only a day's journey away. The Upper Val Pusteria became easily accessible to the inhabitants of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Soon after, guests from Northern Italy also began to arrive. The landscape inspired painters and musicians, and as early as the 19th century, alpinists were drawn to the Sesto and Braies Dolomites.

The second floor is dedicated to the social tourism of the turn of the century. The museum visit is rounded off by some 18,000 memorial cards and an archive about famous Tyrolean personalities. How to get there: You'll find it on the main road in Villabassa, about 25 kilometres from Brunico. The number 402 bus from Brunico to San Candido stops near the church.