DESTINATIONS EUROPE |AUSTRIA
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POST POST HOTEL
Bad Hofgastein
As its name suggests, the lemon-hued Post Post Hotel was once home to Bad
Hofgastein’s post office, and
it’s been delivering a family-run service to travellers since 1421. It blends an Austrian charm, amassed over more than 600 years, with modern rooms and a contemporary take on classic Austrian cuisine, making for an ideal base in this chocolate- box Alpine town. Its central location means clients will find it easy to wander Bad
Hofgastein’s cobbled streets, and it’s less than a 15-minute walk to the cable car station. Post Post Hotel’s ace card, however, is its subterranean Edelweiss Spa (pictured), where thermal waters are
sourced from the local springs. Rooms from €198 per night.
postposthotel.com
CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: A waterfall in Bad Gastein; writer Rhodri Andrews;
the town of Bad Hofgastein; Austrian Mozarttorte PICTURES: Rhodri Andrews
waterfall bouncing down the valley and the steep cliffsides sparkling with flecks of fool’s gold. Just a 45-minute stroll from our base in Bad Hofgastein, this was a good warm-up for the weekend ahead, with Saturday and Sunday providing the meatier walks of the trip. “These weekend adventures are intended to be challenging, and we’ve graded them on the upper tiers of our eight-point grading system to reflect that,” says Wayne Perks, Ramble Worldwide’s managing director. “This isn’t about ticking something off a wish list, but giving people a real sense of achievement from a long weekend.” For now, though, the hard work could wait as we spent the first evening soaking in the balmy pools of the Alpentherme Gastein spa, which are naturally heated by the thermal waters that bubble up from the Hohe Tauern
mountains. I followed that up with a hearty wiener schnitzel at the Post Post Hotel’s in-house restaurant. Safe to say, I went to bed feeling serene and satisfied.
CALL OF THE WILD Saturday started with the twin peaks of Türchlwand (2,577m) and Hirschkarspitze (2,119m) in our sights. The former began gently enough – with a swift ascent on the Gastein cable car to the upper station at Schlossalm – before things got serious. Setting off, we traced gravel paths that snaked through grassy gorges and ravines, which swooped up to serrated peaks. The higher we went, the steeper it became, and I found myself spearing the soil with my walking poles as I went. The Alpine grass
30 30 APRIL 2026
33We couldn’t pass up this view so we paused for lunch – the cheese sandwiches definitely tasted better from on high
gave way to rocky scree and an inquisitive marmot even popped its head out from under its rocky hideout to gaze at us zigzagging up the mountainside. We were within sight of the summit when things got
trickier, as puddles of snow patchworked the upper reaches of Türchlwand. “This is grade seven territory,” said Dick. It turned out the icy terrain meant we weren’t able to go any farther, but as we started to make our descent, the lush Gastein Valley and its forested peaks unfolded majestically before us. We couldn’t pass up this staggering view, so we paused for lunch – the cheese sandwiches definitely tasted better from on high. Refuelled, we retraced our steps down, a little
frustrated after coming so close to toppling Türchlwand. But we were determined to summit one peak for the day, so our attention turned to the neighbouring mountain.
FUEL FOR ADVENTURE Hirschkarspitze posed a completely different challenge. The slow, measured ascent of Türchlwand was replaced by a knee-knocking scramble up an exposed rocky ²
travelweekly.co.uk
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