I'm doing some research for an upcoming trip and sorting out possible day trips from Sterzing/Vipiteno.

The Mendelbahn, Funicolare della Mendola in Sant'Antonio di Caldaro near Bolzano has caught my eye.

This will be a trip with my 18 year old nephew, and I thought he might enjoy a visit to the museum in Bolzano to see Ötzi the Iceman, followed by the funicular, with the possibility of some hiking at the top.

It looks like getting there from Bolzano will require a couple of buses and a journey of about 50 minutes. We won't have a car.

Just curious if anyone here has thoughts on the funicular and if it's 'worth' making the journey (I hate the 'worth' question, but here I am asking it). I'm curious about the hiking opportunities and the easiest way to get there - Italian buses aren't my strong point, but seems fairly straightforward - bus 131 to Kaltern Bahnhof from Bolzen Bahnhof, then bus 138 towards St Nicholas, getting off St Anton Mendelbahn?

Any thoughts or suggestions appreciated.

Or you could walk about a mile from the museum to the Renon cable car (gondola) station. The gondola goes to the high plateau above Bolzano. There you can take the historic Renon narrow-gauge train with stops in half a dozen small villages. Beautiful views, some interesting sights, hiking, etc. I don't know if this excursion is "worth it" more than the Mendola funicular. Only you can decide how you want to spend the time.

https://www.suedtirolerland.it/en/hi...renon-railway/

Thanks Jean. We did the Renon cable car on our last trip as well as the connecting train and the hike to the Earth Pyramids, so I'm looking for something different. I was also attracted to it being one of the world's steepest funiculars. Sounds like it's right up my alley.

Bus 132 goes directly from Bolzano/Bozen railway station to St. Anton Mendelbahn (every 30 min, 45 min journey)
132_20251214.pdf
Hiking trails in the area:
https://www.kalterersee.com/en/leisu...ns-and-hiking/

The other rope railways in the area are
Val GARDENA Ronda Exxpress
Ortisei - Raschoetz

But don't forget: the most spectacular gondola ride in the area is that from Val Senales to Grawand, in the glacier area, close to the place where Oetzi was found.

Thanks neckervd - I can't get that PDF to open, where did you find it? I found the buses I mentioned above on the sudtirolmobil site.

Looks like the Val Senales to Grawand cable car leaves from Maso Corto, which is 3:49 minutes from Vipiteno by bus one way! Too much for a day trip for me.

If you found bus 131 on sudtirolmobile.info/en, you will find timetable 132 too.
Yes, Kurzras is 1 hr 20 min by bus from Meran and Meran is 1 hr 50 min by train from Sterzing.
But in your other post you told us that you plan to stay at Meran anyway.

Actually, I'm not staying in Merano on this trip. This trip will consist of Munich, Sterzing/Vipiteno and Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

We're considering Merano for an autumn trip however.