Staudacherhof

The idea of a Bavarian mountain lodge might feel a bit old-fashioned, but it really shouldn’t. With winter sports — and adventure travel in general — more popular than ever, it’s a type of hospitality that’s correspondingly more relevant than ever. The fact that this part of the world’s been at it longer than most means their expertise is worth trusting. And hotels like Staudacherhof, in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, prove that the form is open to stylistic evolution and even innovation.

It opened as a bed and breakfast some 100 years ago, and Staudacherhof is still in the family. Were Franz-Josef Staudacher here to see it now, however, he’d marvel at how things have changed. The rooms and suites take three distinct styles: some delicately traditional, others modern-rustic in bare knotted wood, and still others decidedly modernist in style, though made from materials that the family patriarch knew well. And all of them are spacious and more than comfortable — in these mountains it’s a hardy kind of luxury, but it’s luxury all the same.

In that vein, there’s a pronounced emphasis on wellness, from spa and beauty treatments to Ayurveda to all manner of active sports, including hiking, biking, and (obviously) skiing. And, in classic Bavarian-lodge style, you’ll be in no danger of going underfed — the restaurant serves everything from schnitzel to health-conscious, Eastern-influenced “Bayurvedic” cuisine.