Surroundings, Merano

At the village of Scena (587m/1,937ft) are the castle-like parish church (1914-31; adjoining it the old Gothic church) and next to it the small Neo-Gothic parish church of St John (1869), with the tomb of Archduke John of Austria (1782-1859) and his wife Anna. The building is known as one of the best examples of Neo-Gothic architecture in Alto Adige.

2km/1.25mi northeast of Scena is a cableway up Monte Scena (Taser; 1,460m/7,082ft).

Northeast of Avelengo, now easily accessible by various cableways and lifts, is the extensive skiing area of Merano 2000. From the outlying district of Falzeben (1,610m/5,313ft), to the north- east, reached by a road (6km/3.75mi) from Avelengo or the upper station of the cableway, a chair-lift (lower station at Rosa Alpina inn) runs up to the Malga Pivigna (Pifinger Köpfl, 1,905m/6,287ft), which can also be reached by a cableway from the Val di Nova (Naiftal: lower station 4km/2.5mi east of Merano). From here there is a cableway to Sant'Osvaldo (Kirchsteiger Alm, 1,938m/6,395ft), from which there are chair-lifts northeast to the Kesselwand- Joch (2,265m/7,475ft: ski-lift in winter) and southeast to Monte Catino (Mittager, 2,234m/7,372ft).

The road from Merano runs west from Maia Bassa past the sports ground, crosses the Adige and continues south along the west side of the broad Adige valley. On the hillside to the right is the prettily situated village of Marlengo (Marling, 370m/1,221ft), from which a footpath, the "Waalweg", following the line of an irrigation canal half-way up the slope, runs north to Tel (Töll) or south below Castello Monteleone to Lana di Sopra.

8km/5mi from Marlengo is Lana di Sopra (Oberlana), the most northerly part of the large village of Lana (pop. 7,000), at the mouth of the Val d'Uàltimo (Ultental), which attracts visitors who want a quiet holiday either in summer or in winter (reservoirs).From Lana di Sopra a cableway runs up in 7 minutes to the Hotel Monte San Vigilio (Vigiljoch, 1,486m/4,904ft), from where there are magnificent views of the Adige valley and the Dolomites.From the upper station of the cableway there are two possibilities - either by chair-lift (15minutes) to the Dosso dei Lárici (Larchbühel, 1,824m/6,019ft) or on an easy winding footpath to the Albergo al Giogo. From here it is only a few minutes' climb to the old chapel of San Vigilio on the Giogo di San Vigilio (Vigiljoch, 1,795m/5,924ft), from where there are fine views of the Val Venosta, the Ötztal and the Texel group.

2km/1.25mi south of Lana di Sopra by way of Lana di Mezzo (Mitterlana) is Lana di Sotto (Niederlana), the parish church of which has a richly gilded Gothic altar of carved wood, the largest in Tirol, by the Merano sculptor Hans Schnatterpeck (1503-11). The Romanesque church of Santa Margherita is also of interest.