The San Luis spa is a spa like no other. Set over two floors, the glass room (there are floor-to- ceiling windows on three sides) is lit by candlelight and plush daybeds flank a central pool. At the end of the pool an enormous open fire glows and crackles.

It is insanely warm and having just finished a massage, I am dozing before I’ve had a chance to even open my book. A fast 40 minutes later, I head to the pool to wake myself up. Cautiously dipping a toe in I discover it’s like stepping into a hot bath so I move towards the sliding doors (sliding doors!  In a pool!) and swim outdoors, alongside the snow.

At the end of the pool a long wooden jetty cuts through the ice with an illuminated jacuzzi on it sitting  in the middle of the lake. A quick barefoot dash and I find myself in neon glowing waters – fire and ice everywhere.

It’s fair to say, the Italian Alps don’t get as much press as other Alpine destinations (eight countries crisscross the Alps  in total) but South Tyrol is more than a match for its show-off neighbours. One of the many appealing factors is the influence of its border countries (they  are so close that I accidentally walk into Austria on the top of  a mountain while out exploring) and, despite Italian status, 70% of locals speak German as a first language. Nowhere is this fusion more evident than in the food. And San Luis goes big on food.

Visit the world’s cosiest spa in the Italian Alps