If you ever wondered what it’s like visiting a ski destination in summer, let me tell you that the rumours are true: it really is like stepping into a Hans Christian Anderson fairytale. At least, this was my first impression when I visited the Italian Dolomites. I blame Disney but I kept expecting Julie Andrews to come bursting out with “The Hills are Alive…” Or at the very least, a puppet singing “it’s a small world after all!”

I was staying at La Perla, a five-star family hotel in the tiny village of Corvara, surrounded by the towering peaks of the Dolomite mountains. Think stone arches outside and warm wooden furnishings inside. The lady in a dirndl dress at reception did nothing to dispel the sense of nostalgia, nor the white capped and aproned maids who served in the breakfast room.