Trentino Alto Adige is a region in the north-east of Italy, also known as Trentino-South Tyrol. It has borders with Austria and Switzerland and the Italian regions of Lombardy and Veneto, but there is no coastline here. In the Alto Adige province, both German and Italian are spoken and the local cuisine has a distinctly Germanic / Austrian flavour to it, while Trentino in the south is more Italian.

Unsurprisingly, given its name and location, this is a very mountainous region and the scenery is typically alpine and Tyrolean - wooden chalets perched on green slopes amongst stunning mountain peaks and great tracts of forest. It's just unbelievably and breathtakingly pretty. The mountains here are the Alps and the equally spectacular Dolomites. There are glaciers in the west of the region, as well as the northern end of Lake Garda. People come here to ski in the winter and hike in the summer through the glorious valleys.

In terms of towns, both Trento (capital of Trentino) and Bolzano (capital of Alto Adige) are very pleasant and historic. Merano is set in a valley of castles and has spas and thermal waters. There are some truly magical castles elsewhere as well, some of which have been converted into hotels.

Accommodation here is all about the mountains. There are apartments in village houses to rent, plus some apartments in newly built residences or in the towns. Wooden ski lodges and ski chalets are obviously popular places to stay, although ski chalets tend to be known as houses here.