Gasthof Pension Traube

We spent four nights at Pension Traube in the small farming community of Karres, just a few minutes drive east of Imst on the 171. Karres is typical of the many working villages that dot the valleys of the Tirol. It is not known for skiing or any other tourist attractions; these are the families that tend the fields and livestock. We chose Karres for this reason and because it was perfectly located for day trips up the many valleys that branch off the Inn River From St. Anton and Lech to Solden, Ischgl and the Otztaleralpen, all were within an easy drive from Karres. Pension Traube is the only guesthouse in Karres (so far as we could tell). The Winkler family, which clearly has deep roots in the area as evidenced by their name on various businesses, was as welcoming and gracious as they could have been. Only Frau Winkler, who primarily ran the Pension, spoke English (rather well, though she was reluctant to acknowledge it), but we got along with the other family members running the Pension with little problems. Frau Winkler was a delight and made sure that all her guests and patrons were properly taken care of. We only saw Herr Winkler a couple of times as he was busy with the other family businessses and the fields. We were quite fortunate in that we were staying just long enough to be able to stay in Room #3, which was large and comfortable, but alwyas held for the guests staying the longest. The woodwork in our room and throughout the Pension was beautiful; there are obviously very skilled craftsmen in this area. The bed was typical for the area and as comfortable as any other we experienced. Room #3 was in the corner of the building on the first floor (1 floor up), and had a nice balcony on two sides. We would sit out there in the evening with our glass of wine, overlooking the village and the fields, watching the flow of life in the true Tirol. The village church was next door and the bells marked every quarter of an hour from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. It was a very short walk from the Pension out onto the lanes through the carefully tended fields. Since the main highway runs under Karres through one of its many tunnels, it was very quiet at night. Breakfast was typical for Inns in this region - coffee, juice, breads, cereals, yogurt, cheese and meats. All quite good and filling, and included in the price of the room. We only ate at the Pension two nights, but both dinners were very good and very reasonably priced at around 10 Euros per person - much less than anywhere else we stayed on our trip, probably because many of the villagers ate breakfast or dinner at the Pension since it was the only restaurant in Karres. In retrospect, we probably enjoyed our stay in Karres more than anywhere else during our month in the Tirol. It just seemed authentic to us; not part of the relative glitz of the more famous or popular (and more expensive) resort towns (and we stayed in many of those, too). The Winklers were down to earth, hard-working folks who showed us a lot of warmth and appreciation for our business. If you're thinking about exploring the western Tirol and are looking for a nice, quiet, comfortable home base with nice meals and wonderful hosts, we would recommend that you check into the Pension Traube - especially if you can get Room #3!