I visited two stunning Italian mountain resorts that are heaven for kids
The arrow shoots through the air, past the trunks of the towering pines and straight into the wild boar’s bottom.
My son Raffy, four, spins around with a gleeful shriek.
The animals may be made of foam, but scrambling up the mountainside to search out our prey before taking aim is proving thrilling, and both Raffy and his seven-year-old sister Poppy have hit the target within minutes of picking up their crossbow and arrows.
Soon, even I’m becoming a half-decent Katniss Everdeen. 3D archery costs from £15 per adult, £7 for under-10s (Riarco.eu).
We’re in the Dolomites in South Tyrol, an autonomous German/Italian-speaking province of northern Italy, staying at family-owned Parkhotel Holzner.
And both archery and rock climbing are the kind of things children will try on excursions with the kids’ club, alongside tennis lessons on the clay courts.
There’s even a mini farm with alpacas and rabbits.
With its fairy-tale-like architecture and art nouveau decor, it feels as if we’re stepping into a story book, but there’s also a sleek extension built into the mountain, which is home to contemporary suites and the Liberty spa.
One afternoon, I find myself joining a naked sauna ritual, which involves a half-nude man whipping a towel at each participant to disperse the scent of oils he’s poured over the hot coals.
It certainly leaves my skin glowing. There are also classes, such as morning yoga on the lush lawn, to join, plus guided hikes and bike rides.
Stays also include RittenCards – guest passes that give you free public transport and admission to numerous museums and cultural sights.
One morning, we take a gentle hour’s hike along Route 26. Following the remains of an old Roman road, we cross streams and amble through woodland and alpine meadows to Beekeeping Museum Plattner Bienenhof, a house dating back more than 600 years.
Downstairs, the walls are black with soot and the rooms filled with rustic furniture, showing how families once lived. It’s now also a place to buy local honey and, after tasting several, we settle on a jar of the cherry blossom variety, £8 (Museo-plattner.com).
We hop on the historic Ritten Railway, opened in 1907, which trundles us back to the gates of Parkhotel Holzner, where its glorious outdoor pool with views of the majestic surrounding peaks awaits, alongside a family sauna and numerous arcade games, an indoor hockey pitch and a foam tenpin bowling alley.
Also on our doorstep is the cable car to the historic city of Bolzano, just a 12-minute ride away.
We grab an alfresco Aperol spritz, £6, at buzzing Fischbänke, then feast on perfectly cooked beef tagliata, £25, at chic Bogen opposite (Bogen.bz), before snapping pictures of the Waltherplatz fountain and gothic 14th-century cathedral. Scoops of stracciatella gelato, £1.75, from Mary’s Ice Cream truck in Piazza del Grano are a win, too.
Back in Oberbozen, the Bauern pizza topped with local speck and pickled red garlic, £14, on Antigo’s terrace also scores top marks (@Antigoritten), while breakfast and dinner on the hotel’s flower-laden terrace are plentiful.
Evening meals are a la carte, but with a bonus salad bar and cheese buffet, while a huge ornate teapot with an eye-popping range of teas greets us at brekky.
Also on site is Restaurant 1908, which has been awarded a green Michelin star for its delicate, locally sourced creations – kids are welcome, too, and can eat from the hotel’s bistro menu.
Just over an hour’s drive away, past vineyards, apple orchards and baroque churches – and around hairpin turns on roads carved into the mountainous landscape – is Falkensteiner Family Resort Lido.
Walking into the family spa here, you’d think it was an adults’ one, with its plush double day beds, if it wasn’t for the mini cocoon swings, a baby pool and two indoor water slides, including South Tyrol’s longest, which gives you the illusion of gliding through flames.
This place is set around a lake, so errant dragonflies visit the outdoor pool, and the view from the family sauna is gorgeous, too.
On the roof, we find a trampoline park, where our bouncing selves become players on-screen competing for jewels in tombs and in slam-dunk contests.
We also battle for the highest reaction scores by jumping to hit lit-up discs.
I’m thrilled to beat a super-toned French lady in a game of the latter – though she undoubtedly leaps with a lot more grace! Finally, we toboggan down the artificial ski slope and hit the sports court for games of basketball and footie.
Despite enjoying the serenity of the adults’ spa tucked into the hillside, we book a family spa experience, £24 per person, where for 90 minutes we indulge with a private steam room, whirlpool bath, massage beds and dishes of natural scrub, clay and lotion to smother over ourselves.
Chocolates, cookies, prosecco and juices, plus various pirate and princess toys, make it both decadent and fun.
At the classy buffet-style restaurant, chefs serve beautifully crafted mains.
The memory of a truffle, parmesan and lime linguine will make my mouth water for months to come, and home-made bakes, including apple strudel, are served at afternoon tea. Soft drinks are included at meals, but the hotel also has an impressive prosecco spritz menu – our fave being the Marlene, with its delicious apricot twist, £6.50.
The resort sits on the 110km Val Pusteria Cycleway, so we hop on ebikes with kids’ trailers, £60 for four hours, and cruise alongside the Rienza river to Rio di Pusteria.
At first, the village seems deserted – it is a Sunday, after all – but, once we roll into the market square, we find Olivia Dean’s Man I Need blasting out and crowds of fellow cyclists soaking up the sunshine.
We join them with bottles of Sanbittèr, £3.50, and speck and gorgonzola pizzettes, £6.50, from Weisse Lilie cafe, and it feels like stumbling across a secret party.
South Tyrol may have only become part of Italy in 1919, but it is very much la dolce vita.
GO: South Tyrol
Family stays at Parkhotel Holzner cost from £260 a night half-board (Parkhotel-holzner.com).
Family stays at Falkensteiner Family Resort Lido cost from £224 a night full-board (Falkensteiner.com).
Get the best-value car hire from trusted providers and with free cancellation by booking with Holiday Extras. Car hire from Venice Airport starts from £35 a day (Holidayextras.com).
Fly to Venice from £48 return.
