Rabland: Waal, Churches and Roman Traces

Rabland is a place for travelers who do not want to separate Italian culture from the landscape. The Railway World, the Rabland Waal, churches and Roman traces give a stay several clear themes; around Rablà, castles, museums, a waterfall and mountains add to these attractions. If you are looking for a hotel in Rabland, you can weigh local history, waterscapes, natural areas and destinations in the surrounding area.

Model Railway and Waterscape

The Railway World in Rabland is Italy’s largest digital model railway display. It complements the perception of the village with a clearly defined theme that differs from its churches and historical traces.

The circular route along the Rabland Waal leads from Rabland along the irrigation channel through orchards and green riverside vegetation. The Rabland irrigation channel draws its water from the Zielbach stream in the Zieltal valley and continues to irrigate the orchards of Rabland. This creates a landscape for a walk in which watercourses, cultivated areas and green riverbanks stand closely alongside one another. The route through orchards and green riverside vegetation describes a transition between cultivated land and greenery accompanying the water. When planning a walk, the sequence of these landscape areas is therefore a specific reference point alongside the channel itself.

Pond and Animal Habitats

The Rabland pond is a retreat and irreplaceable habitat for various bird species, amphibians and other batrachians, fish, and aquatic insects. Together with the channel, it makes the different functions of water in Rabland visible: irrigating the orchards on the one hand, and providing a habitat for various animal groups on the other.

Churches and Roman Traces

The small Church of St. James in Rabland is dedicated to Saint James and Saint Margaret of Antioch. Hanns and Gaudenz Guet built the church, which was consecrated in 1521. The New Parish Church of Rabland is also known as the Christ the King Church and was built between 1961 and 1963.

A Roman milestone was discovered in 1552 in Rabland near today’s Hotel Restaurant Hanswirt. The Rabland milestone is considered the oldest Roman written monument from the Alpine region that directly refers to the construction of the Via Claudia Augusta. A replica of the milestone has stood at the entrance to Hotel Restaurant Hanswirt since 1977; next to it, a small section of the original Via Claudia Augusta is displayed under glass. The replica at the entrance and the section of road under glass represent two different forms of connection to the Via Claudia Augusta: reconstruction and an original section.

Destinations Around Rablà

The area around Rablà is also home to Castello Foresta, Castel Tirolo, the Cascate di Parcines waterfall, Brunnenburg Castle Museum, the Passeggiata Lungo Passirio, the Museo Ebraico, the Tschigat summit and the Gfallwand mountain – Croda del Tovale.

More Places in the Italy Overview

More places in the Italy overview: Eisack Valley, Pineta, Kardaun, Weitental, Laag, San Leonardo, Petschied, Rein in Taufers

To the higher-level travel overview: Bolzano.