This same offer was also valid for visitors with wheel chairs and groups over 15 persons. What caught our attention was what they called the family ticket which was € 22.00 for the members of the same family. We thought this would be appreciated by couples with children since so often families avoid doing things because of the high cost.

Actually, MMM consists of six museums based in six different locations: Firmian, Juval, Dolomites, Ortles, Ripa and Corones. MMM Firmian at Sigmundskron Castle near Bozen is the centrepiece of the museum and concentrates on man’s relationship with the mountains. MMM Juval at Juval Castle in the Burggrafenamt in Vinschgau is dedicated to the “magic of the mountains”, with an emphasis on mystical mountains and their religious significance. MMM Dolomites at Monte Rite, housed in an old fort, is dedicated to rocks, particularly the history of the formation of the Dolomites. 

The project, conceived by the Italian mountaineer and extreme climber Reinhold Messner (the first climber to ascend all 14 mountains over 8,000 metres and to reach the summit of Mount Everest without additional oxygen), was created to educate people on “man’s encounter with mountains”. A London-based Iranian architect, Zaha Hadid (31/10/1950-31/03/2016) designed and developed a structure built into the side of the mountain, which emerges only at certain points to offer specific views. 

Three large shapes made of glass-reinforced fibre and concrete appear to burst through the rock face and it is absolutely impressive! One more concrete form emerges from the ground to create the building’s entrance. Zaha Hadid’s firm chose cast concrete to give the appearance of rock and ice shards, referencing the geology of the region. Her idea is that visitors can descend into the mountain to explore its caverns and grottos, before emerging through the mountain wall on the other side, out onto the overhanging terrace with its spectacular panoramic view. 

The walls of the building are between 40 and 50 centimetres thick in order to support the structure from the pressure of the surrounding earth, while the roof has thicknesses of up to 70 centimetres. Inside it is organised over three floors, connected by staircases that the firm describes as being “like waterfalls in a mountain stream”.

Moreover, Messner Mountain Museum Corones offers private visits and you can also have exclusive hire of the museum for private receptions, presentations, or meetings. Wow, what an unforgettable atmosphere it would be having the whole building for ourselves!