The build­ing hous­ing Orso Gri­gio (‘Grey Bear’) dates back to 1303, when it was used by traders pass­ing through the area (the north­ern Ital­ian sec­tion of South Tyrol, bor­der­ing Aus­tria). Lat­er, the hotel had to endure the bru­tal con­flicts of the Thir­ty Years’ War in the 17th cen­tu­ry, before being trans­formed into a mil­i­tary hos­pi­tal for Aus­tro-Hun­­gar­i­an troops in World War One. The hotel’s own­er, Hed­wig Hel­len­stain­er, helped care for the troops and was award­ed a Mil­i­tary Mer­it Medal.