As of: February 26, 2024, 3:22 p.m
By: Fabienne Mayer, Sandra Keck
From the spectacular mountain hike to the distinctive alpine lifestyle, these things make a stay in a Tyrolean mountain hut unforgettable.
Tourism in the Tyrolean mountains enjoys continued popularity all year round among travelers who want to experience the breathtaking nature and alpine atmosphere of Austria.
Amidst these majestic landscapes, the mountain huts in Tyrol are an essential part of the experience, offering visitors unique insights and experiences like a classic Kaiserschmarrn.
But how do you actually know that you are actually in one of these traditional mountain huts in Tyrol and can expect a real hut fun?
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To answer this question and to help visitors verify the authenticity of their Alpine stay, Simply Tasty presents a comprehensive list of seven distinctive features that are typical of a Tyrolean mountain hut.
1. This is only possible during a hut fun in the mountains: the climb
It is not easy to tell whether you are in a Tyrolean mountain hut.
© IMAGO / Action Pictures
It may sound surprising, but one clue to staying in a mountain hut is: the way there was mainly uphill.
Surprising, isn't it?
Joking aside.
There are steep and less steep climbs, short or long mountain hikes.
What is undisputed, however, is that at least one of eight bizarre events happened to you while hiking.
2. The surrounding wildlife
You are in nature.
It is therefore only natural that animals rather than cars populate your surroundings.
Here you are the intruder in their habitat, so behave accordingly.
Leave them alone, especially cows.
Even if they seem harmless and friendly, you don't want to meet them when they're upset.
3. The gastronomy
The “Marend” is a hearty Tyrolean break or snack that consists of sausage and cheese specialties from the region.
© imagebroker/IMAGO
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You have mastered the climb and safely passed the animals living in the mountains.
It's only logical to reward yourself with a proper feast.
So you sit down - most likely on a wooden bench - and look at the menu.
Now is the moment when your heart beats faster: ski water, melange, schnitzel, yeast dumplings and many other delicacies of Austrian cuisine are waiting for you!
Who needs pizza or sushi when you can have apple strudel with vanilla sauce and a lemon soda?
4. The dialect
You managed to order what you really wanted – well done!
But you didn't fully understand the operation.
Maybe you were even about to offer the waiter or waitress a cough drop that you happened to have with you.
The pronunciation of the words sounded quite rough.
Don’t worry – it’s just the Tyrolean dialect.
And it's really not easy to understand!
5. The other guests
In contrast to the service staff, you understand all the other guests in the hut very well.
So you're wondering where the locals have gone.
They are probably somewhere else entirely.
Because why should locals who live in the mountains also go on holiday in the mountains and sit down at the same table as tourists?
Especially when it comes to tourists, who are not particularly welcomed by Austrians.
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6. The dress code
During your meal you will probably see exactly two types of clothing: On the one hand we have the people who work at the hut.
Almost certainly at least some of their clothing is traditional, or at least in the style of country house wear.
Especially in very touristy areas, waitresses may even wear a dirndl and waiters may wear lederhosen with a checked shirt.
On the other hand we have the vacationers.
They can be recognized by their brightly colored functional outdoor clothing, which has at least five different functions.
What is also there, albeit rare: tourists who you can tell have come by cable car.
That means: completely unsuitable shoes, clothing that doesn't work, no backpack and far too few layers.
By the way, this group is avoided by everyone.
7. The alpine lifestyle
You can extend your holiday in the mountains with hut fun at home with the quick recipe for yeast dumplings from Simply Tasty.
© Sandra Keck/Einfach Tasty
Lastly and above all, the ultimate sign that you are in a Tyrolean hut: the philosophy of life.
While in Italy you have “dolce far niente” or “dolce vita” and in France you have “la savoir-vivre”, there are two rules on the mountain pasture.
First of all, you always use first names.
If you're going to insult someone, you might as well say an Austrian swear word to that person.
And secondly: There is “koa sin” on the mountain pasture.
However, no one knows what exactly this means and what the limits of this rule are.
The editor wrote this article and then used an AI language model for optimization at her own discretion. All information has been carefully checked. Find out more about our AI principles here.