Wolfsthurn Castle in Mareit

South Tyrol's only Baroque castle provides unique insight into the lifestyle of the nobility during the Baroque period. Visitors can expect to find wonderful original features here: a splendid inner courtyard with fountains, a Baroque ballroom with extraordinary crystal chandeliers, a hunting room with fantastical decorated walls and much more.

The first historical documentation of a castle above Mareit dates back to the thirteenth century. At that point in time, Wolfsthurn was mentioned for the first time as the seat of the House of Wölfe, ministry officials of the Counts of Tyrol. In the eighteenth century, the castle went to the present owners, the von Sternbach family. Franz Andreas von Sternbach rebuilt the formerly defensive structure into a splendid Baroque castle between1727 and 1741

Since 1996, this Baroque complex has also housed the South Tyrol Museum of Hunting and Fishing, which offers a glimpse into the pastimes of the nobility. The museum illuminates the cultural and historical aspects of hunting and fishing.

Wald und Wasser (Forest and Water) Trail at Wolfsthurn Castle
This educational trail provides children and adults alike with in-depth knowledge about animal and plant life: it illustrates how far wild animals can jump, and a forest telephone allows visitors to “listen” to the forest. Special features along the trail, such as a pond with the main plants, a replica wolf pit, a deer stand, a pavilion built out of local wood, a rest-and-information point and a castle pond with viewing platform lead visitors along a journey into South Tyrol’s flora, fauna and underwater life.