VII - The Palasthotel Wielandhof, Gossensass, 1910–1912
Exhibition in the foyer "Architecture on tour"
05/10/2026
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08/11/2026
Architecture on tour
Touriseum
From farmhouse to palace hotel.
Guest rooms were a feature of many farmhouses in the Alpine region. Once the farms became too small, they were enlarged and their facilities improved. In the course of several stages of renovation, these were transformed into hotel palaces – a sign of the increasing specialisation then occurring in tourism. The construction of grand hotels in tranquil Alpine villages such as Gossensass was intended to match international trends: architects such as the Ludwig brothers brought the necessary expertise from cities such as Munich.
One example of this is the Palasthotel Wielandhof, which now enjoys protected status. The Gröbner family hosted guests on their farm, which soon became too small and was therefore extended. A few years later, the owners built a separate guesthouse with a restaurant, where they mainly catered to day trippers arriving via the Brenner railway: they subsequently also expanded this building, adding another storey. Finally, the Gröbners decided to completely renovate their establishment, commissioning the Ludwig brothers to design the palace hotel. The older parts of the building disappeared or were incorporated into the new construction.
The palace hotels of the Belle Époque were built at astonishing speed, as there was a large workforce available and wages were low. The Wielandhof took only around 20 months to build.
Bettina Schlorhaufer
Next month we take another look at