Das Central

The spa here works upward rather than outward. The Summit Spa sits high in the building and on the roof, so the views are the point: you look down over Sölden and across to the Ötztal mountains while you swim or sit in the sauna.

At its centre is the 17-metre Summit Infinity Pool, whose edge appears to drop away into the valley. Outside there is a whirlpool on a sun terrace, and on the fourth floor a panorama and event sauna. In total the spa covers 2,000 m² and includes twelve saunas — a depth of choice that few alpine hotels match.

There is also a hot spring bath and a steam room, plus beauty and massage rooms for treatments. Booking.com lists a full menu of body treatments, wraps, facials, manicures, pedicures and waxing, alongside fitness classes and a personal trainer.

For couples who want the spa to themselves, the hotel offers Wellness Suites with a private spa — the wet circuit inside your own suite rather than shared with the hotel.

Room styles run from minimalist design to classic Tyrolean warmth, all with Ötztal mountain views and high-quality materials. The hotel groups them into luxury suites, family suites, wellbeing suites, junior suites, double rooms and single rooms — so there is a genuine range rather than one template.

The wellbeing suites are the ones that matter most for couples: they come with a private spa area. Junior Suites add a panoramic view. At the top of the range the Presidential Suite offers 205 m² across the main building.

Sizes run from 30 m² double rooms to 205 m² suites. The wellbeing suites include a private spa. Panoramic mountain views are standard across most categories. Rooms include a coffee machine, minibar, TV and safe. Family suites sleep up to five.

For two, a wellbeing suite with a private spa gives you the Summit Spa experience without leaving the room. If a wide view matters more than the private wet area, a Junior Suite with a panorama is the sensible middle. Families should look at the Family Suite categories, which run from 63 to 90 m².

The kitchen is the second reason to come here, and it carries real weight: one MICHELIN star, four Gault&Millau toques with 17 points, and 97 points with four forks in the Falstaff Restaurant Guide. The style is modern cooking built on Alpine ingredients, with international influences.

Breakfast is deliberately generous: a wide selection of egg dishes, mueslis and fresh bread, produce from local suppliers, a tea bar with more than twenty teas, a juice bar and a delicacy corner with individual service.

Dinner is a five-course gourmet menu of your choice, alongside a vegetarian menu that changes daily and DAS CENTRAL classics available every evening. There is also a generous salad and antipasti selection, and weekly gala nights with dessert buffets.

Where the hotel genuinely stands apart is wine. The cellar holds around 30,000 bottles and the list runs to 600 positions, guided by maître d'hôtel Martin Sperdin. For something less formal, the wine cellar hosts a fondue dinner — Bourguignonne, Chinoise, cheese or chocolate — and the bar includes a cigar lounge. Summit Bistro & Bar, on the top level, is the most spectacular spot in Sölden for an aperitif.

There are four restaurants on site: Ötztaler Stube, Restaurant Feinspitz, the Fondue Restaurant and Summit Bistro & Bar. The hotel also runs three mountain restaurants, including Restaurant ice Q at 3,048 metres on the Gaislachkogl — Austria's highest two-toque restaurant, and a location familiar to anyone who has seen the James Bond film SPECTRE.

Das Central is at Auweg 3, 6450 Sölden, roughly 300 metres from the centre of the village. It sits in the best-rated area of Sölden — convenient for the village, but high enough in the building that the spa looks out over the rooftops.

Sölden is one of Austria's major ski resorts, with the glacier ski area further up the valley. The hotel runs a private ski shuttle to the gondolas, with a reported journey time of about ten minutes. There is a ski room and ski storage.

Innsbruck Airport is about 78 km away, and the hotel offers an airport shuttle for a fee. By car, Sölden is reached up the Ötztal from the Inntal. Parking is private and available on site — confirm current conditions and any charge with the hotel when you book.

Summer in Sölden is hiking and cycling, with the road up to the glaciers and the Ötztal's high routes on the doorstep. Winter is the classic season, for skiing and for the spa after a day on the mountain. Spring and autumn are quieter and better value.