Messner Mountain Museum Firmian

Reinhold Messner, the first person to climb all fourteen eight-thousand-metre peaks and the first to reach Everest's summit without supplementary oxygen, built a group of six museums across South Tyrol, each on a different theme. Firmian, in the partly ruined Sigmundskron castle above Bolzano, is the central one and deals with the relationship between people and mountains: sacred peaks, religion, art and myth rather than equipment and records. The route runs up and down through towers, ramparts and open courtyards, so the castle ruin and the view of the Dolomites are part of the exhibition rather than a container for it.

What you actually see

• The castle route - a path through towers, ramparts and open courts.
• The theme - mountains in religion, art and myth rather than technique.
• The Messner objects - pieces from his expeditions among the displays.
• The views - the Dolomites and the Bolzano basin from the walls.

When to go

April to October; the museum closes for winter, roughly late November to March, and on Thursdays in some seasons. It is largely outdoors, so weather matters.

Honest expectations

Much of the route is open to the sky and unpleasant in rain. It closes for several winter months. Those expecting climbing gear and records may find it abstract.

Nearby

Bolzano lies northeast; the Iceman museum is in the city.