The Place
You have to let this Cortina classic get under your skin – it will. First impressions are good – the exterior is attractively coloured, with a flower-decked veranda, which is large, but welcoming, and a great vantage point, looking over the town square and church. Second impressions are good too – long-serving, characterful staff, including the smiling Paolo. Third impressions – of the downstairs sitting area, the upstairs connecting parts and some of the bedrooms – are a little less so.
De la Poste is a historic hotel (Ernest Hemingway associations, among others), and the Manaigo family, who have run it since 1835, are investing – trouble is, it’s an old building and health and safety regulations are forcing the current owner Gherardo to spend huge sums to make it marginally safer (it is safe already) when he would prefer to have something to show by updating furniture and redesigning. He has our sympathy and travellers should lend support by booking here. The Poste has an honest heart and is reasonably priced. We especially like the timeless panelled bar, the consistently-sourced produce used in the kitchen, the authentic Bellinis, and the smokey spaghetti carbonara, done better here than anywhere.
The perfect base for the eight hour ski tour from Cortina to Bolzano.