History
A pioneer four times over
In 1884, the village of Obergurgl consisted of a church and a few farms. It became one of Tyrol’s prime wellness resorts largely thanks to the hard work of the Edelweiss & Gurgl Hotel and the Scheiber family.
Great-grandfather Martin Scheiber built the hotel in 1889. At first he ran a modest inn that prided itself on its “comfortable beds and fresh linens.” Martin Scheiber was a mountain guide and had a reputation for being a revolutionary spirit, who would build castles in the sky on real ground. His first feat was to build the Ramol Hut, the first high-altitude building in the Oetz Valley.
Hotel Edelweiss in Obergurgl, Tyrol: the beginnings
Martin Scheiber built the Hotel Edelweiss in 1889
In 1908, he defied avalanche threats and transported building materials on sleighs and mules to Vent to build another high-altitude hotel.
In 1929, Martin’s son Angelus Scheiber and his wife Anna took over the Edelweiss. Angelus was a pioneer in his own right. He built cable cars and the Timmelsjoch High Alpine Road, founded the Oetz Valley Traffic Association, and added a twin hotel to the Edelweiss and named it the Gurgl. In 1979, the hotel’s official name was changed to Edelweiss-Gurgl.
E&G’ is currently owned by Tanja and Lukas Scheiber. The couple want to preserve what has been handed down to them by their father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. They are real pioneers, too: they want to develop the hotel in a sustainable manner in line with their guests’ and staff’s needs.
