Vipiteno (Sterzing in German) lies in the Wipptal, about 15 kilometres before the Brenner Pass, and is Italy's northernmost town. Its flourishing period came from the silver mining of the 15th and 16th centuries — hence the grand merchant houses along the Neustadt (New Town) and the Zwölferturm bell tower on the main square. The Augsburg Fugger family owned parts of the mines and left their mark on the town's architecture. The old town is a pedestrian zone, walkable end to end in a quarter of an hour, and among the best-preserved historic centres in the Alps.

Five side valleys open up around it: Val Ridanna (Ridnaun), Val Racines (Ratschings), Val di Vizze (Pfitsch), Val di Fleres (Pflersch) and Val Giovo (Jaufental). All are lightly built up and offer hiking trails to peaks above 3,000 metres in summer, and over 60 kilometres of cross-country trails in winter. In the Val Ridanna sits the Schneeberg (Monteneve) Mining Museum — one of the highest historic mining sites in Europe at over 2,000 metres.

In winter, three ski areas operate: Rosskopf (Monte Cavallo) directly at the edge of town, Racines-Giovo and Ladurns, together 66 kilometres of pistes on a single ski pass. The Monte Cavallo also hosts Italy's longest floodlit and snow-guaranteed toboggan run — around ten kilometres and 900 metres of descent from the mountain station back into the valley.