Matteo Thun’s New Nest on the Ortler

Between timber structure, high-alpine panorama and alpine hospitality, an extraordinary architectural hideaway opens in Trafoi, South Tyrol. When Matteo Thun speaks about the new Bella Vista Hideaway, he does not talk about architecture. He talks about eagles, childhood memories and the silence of the mountains.

It was precisely from this that an extension was created at the foot of the Ortler, in the heart of the Stelvio National Park — a building that sees itself less as a hotel than as part of the landscape. For the tradition-rich Bella Vista in Trafoi, the South Tyrolean architect and his team designed an organically shaped timber structure that wraps around the building like a protective nest. The architecture lives from its lightness. A delicate wooden lattice envelops the façade, generous glazing opens the rooms to the mountain world and blurs the boundaries between inside and outside. The true leading role is played not by the building itself, but by the panorama of the Ortler massif.

With the opening of the new hideaway, the family-run hotel expands its offering with 24 suites, consistently designed around views and retreat. Large window surfaces frame the peaks like landscape paintings, while natural materials create a calm, timeless atmosphere. The close connection to nature continues in the interior as well. The interiors were designed by Christina Biasi von Berg of Studio Biquadra, a long-time companion of Matteo Thun. The result is a series of spaces that do not seek to impress, but to soothe.

The new building also includes an adults-only spa with an infinity pool above the Trafoi gorge, a panoramic sauna, yoga and relaxation rooms, as well as the ​“Nature Arena”, an open-air retreat with views of the surrounding three-thousand-metre peaks. The new ​“Home of Gold” tells a special story: the lounge with fireplace is dedicated to the career of ski legend Gustav Thöni, who runs the hotel together with his family. The long-standing friendship between Thöni and Matteo Thun was ultimately also the starting point for the entire project.

What has emerged on the Ortler, then, is not a spectacular solitaire, but an architecture that deliberately holds back. A house that lets the mountains take centre stage — and remains memorable precisely because of that.

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