The discovery of the oldest glacier mummy in history will not be forgotten. Ötzi, who rested in the ice for over 5,000 years, was found on the Val Senales Glacier and promptly became a world sensation. To this day, the traces of his life can be found on the Giogo Alto glacier. The Iceman Ötzi Peak is a spectacular monument to the glacier man and the place where he was found can also be visited and admired.
A unique experience awaits just a few steps away from the Glacier Hotel Grawand. You climb the steel stairs to the world's most easily conquered three-thousand-metre peak, reach the Iceman Ötzi Peak and stand there spellbound: 126 three-thousand-metre peaks line up and offer a fabulous panorama. You will see Ötzi's home town, the Similaun snowfield, the path of transhumance and, with a bit of luck, even the shimmering blue of the Adriatic. Truly overwhelming!
Ötzi's place of discovery lies beyond the masses of snow and crevasses on the Giogo di Tisa. You should only go there with an experienced mountain guide and ensure you have the necessary fitness and surefootedness. The ArcheoParc Senales organises an "Ötzi Glacier Tour" starting from the hotel. In a safe rope team, you cross the glacier and the main Alpine ridge to the Giogo di Tisa on foot or on touring skis. The ski tour takes place from December to April, the alpine tour from July to October. You can register via the Val Senales tourist office or at our reception.
For 5,300 years, Ötzi's mummy remained hidden as a silent witness of a time gone by. Until the Iceman was discovered by a pair of mountaineers in 1991. The find below the Similaun on the Giogo di Tisa is considered a milestone for research into the Neolithic period. It proves that the alpine passes on the Val Senales Glacier already connected the cultural circles in the Alpine region in early times. Thanks to the eternal ice and lady luck, Ötzi's mortal remains have been preserved for posterity and continue to exert their unbroken fascination to this day.
The glacier wonder Ötzi lives on: At the Active Mueseum ArcheoParc Senales Ötzi's habitat is recreated on a large outdoor area. It is located in the mountain village of Madonna di Senales at the entrance to the Alpin Arena Schnals/Senales. At the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano you can even take a look at the glacier mummy. Did you know that Ötzi almost went down in history not as a South Tyrolean but as an Austrian? Ötzi was found only around 93 metres from the Italian-Austrian border.
