Tradition

The Alte Post was first mentioned in the 15th century. During the Maria Theresa era there was a business license for a bakery here, which is why it bore the name Unterbacken Wirtshaus (or Bakery Inn).

In 1920 our great-grandparents, who originally came from St. Lorenzen in Southern Tyrol, bought the guesthouse and surrounding farmland.

Until 1927 the post was brought to St. Johann by stagecoach, and the horses were stabled with us, which is where the name „Alte Post“. (Old Post) comes from. In 1957 our grandparents took over the business, and in 1990 they handed it down to our parents, Toni and Maria Knapp.

The town was established when humans first moved into the valley, and the area has a long history of human settlement. The so-called „Arl-Scharte“ was one of the most important north-south routes through the Pongau mountain range.

Up to the 17th century, the hamlet around the church developed into a sizable market town with shops and a guesthouse. Due to the booming mining industry, the people of the area gradually became rather affluent, leading some of them, mostly tradesmen (shoemakers, blacksmiths, tailors, etc.), to build impressive houses on the village square.

In 1960 transport to the valley began to be developed. The provincial government of Salzburg officially declared Grossarl a market town on May 23, 1962. Grossarl received its coat of arms on the very same day. Beginning in the 1970s, tourism started to grow in the Grossarl Valley, bringing with it general prosperity.

Josef and Anna Knapp, who originally came from South Tyrol, moved to Großarl in 1920. Back then they bought the “Alte Post” and the farmyards that belonged to it. Since then a lot has changed. We are already the 4th generation, who passionately runs the hotel.