Anterivo
Anterivo (German: Altrei) is the easternmost German-speaking municipality of South Tyrol, perched at around 1,200 metres on a scen...
Updated 18 July 2026
This season · July · Summer
What to do in Anterivo now
The story
The story of Anterivo
Anterivo on the Plateau, on the Border with the Val di Fiemme
Anterivo occupies a sunny plateau at around 1,200 metres, suspended among the woods that separate South Tyrol from the Val di Fiemme in Trentino. The municipal territory includes the main village and the two hamlets of Guggal and Pramarino, for a total of around 390 inhabitants. Although it belongs to the province of Bolzano, Anterivo does not border the rest of South Tyrolean territory directly: to reach it from the provincial capital one must pass through the San Lugano Pass, crossing a stretch of the Val di Fiemme, a condition that makes it something of a geographical enclave. It is also the only German-speaking municipality in the whole Val di Fiemme, with around 88% of the population native German speakers and the remaining 12% Italian, a linguistic balance that has coexisted for centuries in this mountain corner surrounded by Italian-speaking Trentino municipalities.
The Coffee of Anterivo: Altreier Kaffee
The product that has made Anterivo famous well beyond the valley is the coffee of Anterivo, in German Altreier Kaffee, a substitute obtained from the roasted seeds of a local lupin variety, grown on the sunny terraces around the village since at least the mid-19th century. The seeds, naturally bitter in taste, were traditionally roasted and ground together with barley, wheat or figs to produce a more balanced drink, once an affordable alternative to real coffee during times of scarcity. Cultivation, which had almost disappeared during the 20th century, was revived thanks to an association of local producers founded in 2006, which relaunched artisan production; today the coffee of Anterivo is recognised as a traditional agri-food product of Trentino-Alto Adige and stands as one of the village's strongest identity symbols.
Woods, Pastures and Hiking
The territory of Anterivo largely falls within the Monte Corno Nature Park, in German Naturpark Trudner Horn, one of the smallest nature parks in South Tyrol, characterised by extensive spruce and larch woods, grassy clearings and porphyry outcrops that colour the landscape red in autumn. Around the village winds a dense network of hiking trails, locally promoted as a true hiker's paradise, linking high-altitude pastures, isolated farmsteads and panoramic points over the Val di Fiemme and the surrounding Dolomites. Those who prefer to move by bike can rent one from the village's accommodation facilities, while the Sandegg recreation area features a Kneipp water-therapy path for outdoor wellness, designed for those seeking a slower connection with nature after a walk through the woods.
Farmsteads, Border Culture and Landscape
The landscape of Anterivo is shaped by scattered farmsteads, the typical isolated mountain farms that dot the slopes between terraced fields and patches of woodland, direct evidence of the settlement founded in 1321 by the Duke of Carinthia, who assigned German-speaking colonists ten original farmsteads on which to build their first homes. From that founding nucleus grew a community that has kept a distinct linguistic and cultural identity for seven hundred years, of which the Church of Santa Caterina, the village's patron saint, and the rural wood-and-stone architecture remain tangible signs. Anterivo's bilingualism, with a clear German prevalence within a valley that is otherwise mostly Italian-speaking, makes the village a particular case of border coexistence, where local legends, known as Altreier Sagen, and farming traditions are still passed down alongside everyday life at the farmsteads.
History and Experiences to Live
The administrative history of Anterivo reflects the broader story of the area: after the First World War and the transfer to Italy, the municipality was part of the province of Trento until 1948, when it was assigned to the newly reconstituted province of Bolzano, while remaining geographically embedded within Trentino's Val di Fiemme. The village is also home to an archaeological site and to a museum set up in the birth farmstead of Bishop Johannes Zwerger, a religious figure born in Anterivo, which tells the community's story through objects, documents and testimonies of farmstead life. Today Anterivo offers a slow-tourism experience made of hikes, tastings of Anterivo coffee at local farmsteads, visits to the parish church and stays at small family-run accommodations, in a setting that combines border history, protected nature and a cultural identity that has remained remarkably intact.
Not to be missed
- A walk through the Monte Corno Nature Park among spruce and larch woods
- Tasting the coffee of Anterivo (Altreier Kaffee) at a local farmstead
- The Church of Santa Caterina, patron saint of the village
- The museum at the birth farmstead of Bishop Johannes Zwerger
- A hike toward the San Lugano Pass along the Wanderparadies Altrei trails
To see
What to see in Anterivo
Routes · Trovido Route
