4 Best Hotels in Merano (Meran), The Dolomites

For a taste of old-school Italian glamour just outside of Merano, you can’t do better than this elegant Relais & Chateaux property high up in the mountains, set amid 4 acres of gardens and featuring a Michelin-starred restaurant and spa that both use products sourced from the land. Enormous individually decorated suites boast country-chic decor, sitting rooms, and terraces or balconies; some of the spacious bathrooms include claw-foot tubs and infrared saunas. Guests can choose from the more gourmet Prezioso restaurant for dinner or the lighter-style Orangerie, which offers a large panoramic terrace, for lunch or dinner. Amid the lovely gardens, you’ll find a heated pool, whirlpool, and freestanding fitness center, while the cozy spa includes three saunas and a steam room—as well as treatments from the hotel’s very own “modern alchemist,” who creates bespoke creams and lotions using plants and herbs from the very same gardens.

If you're in Merano to pamper yourself, you can't do much better than the Hotel Terme: as its name suggests, it's connected to the expansive Terme Merano (a stay here includes free, unlimited access via a "bathrobe tunnel"), and it also has the rooftop Sky Spa with indoor and outdoor pools and saunas. Most guest rooms have brightly colored walls and furniture contrasted with hardwood floors; some include balconies with mountain views. Although the Sky Spa can only be used by guests ages 14 and up, the ground-floor indoor and outdoor pool and saunas are accessible to all. The hotel's prime position means a quick walk into town for shopping and dining, or you can eat at the on-site Olivi Restaurant or Bistro La Piazza.

Perched up in the hills 4,035 feet above Merano, this striking Alpine hotel takes full advantage of its superlative views with floor-to-ceiling windows in the guest rooms, a panoramic restaurant, and an infinity pool. Guest rooms have a mountain feel, with wood accents (many with light birch-wood paneling), a muted color palette, and sleek Scandinavian-style furnishings; all come with balconies overlooking the mountains. Some suites also include Finnish saunas or Jacuzzis. There’s a choice of three restaurants: the more formal Panorama, which offers tasting menus; the more traditional Miramonte Stube; and the casual Classic Restaurant. You very well might stay at Miramonti just for the spa, spread out across several levels, which includes two pools (one infinity and one heated onsen pool), a forest sauna, and a gym and activity room—all with those wonderful vistas.

This goal of this hotel, opened in 1924, is to relax the body and the spirit—and it certainly makes a smashing effort by offering year-round outdoor pools, an indoor pool, a delightful spa, and beautiful park surroundings. You can stay in a traditional room, a luxury suite, or even in the unique tree-house room. They also run the nearby San Luis Retreat Hotel & Lodges, with chalets and 16 tree houses.