Palm Trees, Pomegranates and King Laurin's Rose Garden

Palm trees, pomegranates and, behind them, the majestic peaks of the Dolomites – at Pfannenstielhof, Mediterranean flair and the alpine mountain world meet in a particularly striking way. And sometimes, when the evening sun bathes the rocks of the Rosengarten in a glowing red, an ancient magic seems to settle over the mountains.

For the Rosengarten holds a story of legendary proportions.

Legend has it that the dwarf king Laurin once ruled over an underground realm in the Dolomites. His greatest treasure was a beautiful rose garden, which he tended with great love. When Laurin abducted the lovely princess Similde, knights set out to rescue her. In the battle, King Laurin was defeated. Believing that his magnificent rose garden had betrayed him, he furiously placed a curse upon it: no one should ever see his roses, neither by bright day nor by dark night.

But King Laurin had forgotten about twilight!

And so, on certain evenings, his rose garden still blossoms anew today, when the setting sun turns the Dolomite peaks a delicate pink and a glowing red. A natural spectacle known in South Tyrol as Enrosadira.

Standing at Pfannenstielhof among palm and pomegranate trees and gazing across to the Rosengarten, you can easily imagine that a little of King Laurin's magic still lies hidden in these mountains.

A piece of Mediterranean paradise – with a fairy-tale view of the Dolomites.