With Eschenlohe Castle, the small St. Helena Church and the “House on the Stone”, San Pancrazio has some interesting buildings to show
Image gallery: San Pancrazio
The Val d'Ultimo road branches off from Lana and winds its way up the slope towards San Pancrazio, the first village of the valley. The municipality includes all the houses between the hamlet of Gegend, the main village of San Pancrazio and Lake Pancrazio, one of the six reservoirs in the valley. To the left and right of the road, farms stretch along the wooded slopes.
Josef Egger, one of Tyrol's most important historians, was born in San Pancrazio. Today, the small village centre presents itself paved and flanked by two churches. The history of the entire area dates back many centuries and tells of castle lords and priests, of health spas and sanctuaries. A witness of bygone times is Eschenlohe Castle, which is enthroned at the entrance to San Pancrazio: It was already mentioned 800 years ago as Castel d'Ultimo. After the main village is the hamlet of Bagni di Mezzo. Today it is just a few old houses surrounded by meadows, but in former times it was one of the most visited health spas in the German region: Illustrious guests such as the painter Franz von Deferegger, the writer Thomas Mann and the European aristocracy came here.
You will also pass by old buildings and farms on the various hikes that start here. These include the Val d'Ultimo Valley Path, a day hike to Santa Valburga, as well as the ascent to the idyllic small St. Helena Church in Sant'Elena, ideal as a summer tour with a picnic afterwards. These paths are also accessible in winter, surrounded by the silence and tranquillity of the Ultimo Valley. Other winter sports - cross-country skiing, skiing in the Schwemmalm Ultimo Ski Area, ice skating and tobogganing - can be found a few km away in the two next villages, Santa Valburga and Pracupola.
