Fortezza, the main village of the homonymous municipality, is located at an altitude of 750 m and has got some 620 inhabitants. Already from afar a mighty fortress attracts the attention. This fort was built 1833 under the Austrian Emperor Franz I within 5 years only. Today this historic building with its two fortresses - the upper and the lower fortress are connected by 451 stairs - is under monumental protection. In 2008 it was venue for the European Biennale for Contemporary Arts called “Manifesta”. A stone’s throw from the fortress, there is one of the first neo-Gothic chapels of Europe.

Another building that deserves a visit is the Sacro Cuore parish church, inaugurated in 1899.

The recently established outdoor climbing gym Forte Alta/Hohe Festung is ideal for spending an afternoon under the open sky. Other worthwhile destinations are the alpine pastures Zirmaidalm and the lake of Pontelletto. And finally you should not miss a cycling tour on the cycling trail, e.g. to the swimming pond of Varna or to the city of Vipiteno.

Our tip: since 1889 there is a little obelisk, marking a geodatically fixed point. This is where a longitude and a latitude cross.

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