Hocheppan Castle, Eppan, Italy

The Hocheppan Castle with its impressive donjon is located high above Missian, a district of Eppan on the wine route (officially Eppan an der Weinstraße). Until today, it ranks among the most important fortresses in Southern South Tyrol and has some surprises in store for art lovers, panorama fans and gourmets preferring proper meals.

The castle in the environs of Eppan was built in 1130 and was, already at that time, one of the mightiest aristocratic houses of the region. After an eventful history, the well-preserved Hocheppan Castle is an impressive witness of the Middle Ages, thanks to its beauty and magnificent panoramic position

Still, from an art-historical perspective, the chapel in the inner courtyard is the heart of the castle, which probably was built in the 12th century. The chapel is called as “Sistine Chapel of the Alps”, because its walls are decorated with well-preserved Romanesque frescos. They are so special, because they do not only show religious scenes. So you cannot only see several biblical motifs, but also the “foolish virgins”, a “dumpling eating woman” and a rare hunting scene.

The chapel and Hocheppan castle are open for visitors (guided tours) daily in summer season. The rustic castle tavern is ideal for a small snack after visiting the castle or during an excursion.

References:

south-tirol.com

User Reviews

Megoid (3 years ago)
a little Castle. Very beautiful but very expensive. We had to pay 5€ for a metric litre of water

Peter Werth (3 years ago)
Tolle Location

Adam G (3 years ago)
Greatest hike experience. Highly recommend. Go walk uphill and earn that beer while enjoying an authentic castle. Absolute gem.

Rusty Rusty (7 years ago)
Kleine, gut gepflegte Ruine. Ein Turm kann zwecks Aussicht bestiegen werden. Gastronomie vorhanden. Kann gut mit der Tour zur Burg Hocheppan verbunden werden. Es existiert ein Rundweg.

Silpa Parmar (7 years ago)
The walk wasn't too bad (it took us 17 minutes but we were sweaty by the time we got to the top!)... meant we burnt off some calories before replenishing them with beer and ribs. The horseradish is spicy but delicious. Amazing views. Definitely worth the trek if you're in the area.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Klearchos Kapoutsis

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The Beckov castle stands on a steep 50 m tall rock in the village Beckov. The dominance of the rock and impression of invincibility it gaves, challenged our ancestors to make use of these assets. The result is a remarkable harmony between the natural setting and architecture.

The castle first mentioned in 1200 was originally owned by the King and later, at the end of the 13th century it fell in hands of Matúš Èák. Its owners alternated - at the end of the 14th century the family of Stibor of Stiborice bought it.

The next owners, the Bánffys who adapted the Gothic castle to the Renaissance residence, improved its fortifications preventing the Turks from conquering it at the end of the 16th century. When Bánffys died out, the castle was owned by several noble families. It fell in decay after fire in 1729.

The history of the castle is the subject of different legends.

Hocheppan Castle

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