The best ideas you've had this year didn't happen at your desk.
The Hills sits above Merano on a slope that catches the light from early morning. The terrace looks directly down to the rooftops and orchards of the Adige valley, with the Texel massif rising behind everything. Arrival is on Friday evening. There is a drink, the view, and no agenda — just the rare stillness of being somewhere that has no opinion about your quarterly targets.
Two sessions anchor the weekend — both led by founders and creative entrepreneurs who have built something real. Between them: a long table breakfast, a thinking walk into the hills, a masterclass in a room of five, a slow dinner at a castle that has stood since the thirteenth century. The structure holds the weekend together without tightening it. The pace is deliberate. The white space is not filler — it is where the thinking actually happens.
What’s included
- Two nights in a private room of a shared apartment at The Hills
- All meals — breakfast, lunch, and dinner prepared by a local cook
- Two speaker sessions & one Masterclass
- A guided hike & morning yoga or pilates
What’s not included
- Flights or travel to the venue
- Travel insurance
- Personal spending & extras
- Additional alcoholic beverages beyond those included
Schedule
Day 1
Arrival
Guests arrive through the afternoon, shed the week, and find the terrace. A welcome drink, the valley below, no slides, no icebreakers. The opening dinner is the first session — a long table, ten people, a single question worth arguing over.
Day 2
Dive In
The heart of it. Optional rooftop movement to start, then a slow breakfast before the morning session — a founder who has built a creative business without losing what made them want to build it in the first place. Followed by a 90-minute thinking hike through the Merano trails: no phones, no answers required. After lunch, the afternoon splits into two masterclasses of five — one on pricing your creative work without apologising for it, one on building a practice that survives contact with growth. Dinner is at Katzenstein Castle. Something unexpected closes the night.
Day 3
Integrate
A quieter morning designed to let the weekend settle rather than accelerate toward departure. Gentle movement, a second session — a creative entrepreneur on the specific loneliness of building something no one has a name for yet. A farewell brunch, unhurried checkouts. Most people linger. The Merano train back to Milan runs late enough that there is no reason to rush.
Individual
1.495 €
per person · all-inclusive
Accommodation in a private room, all meals, all sessions and activities, and a welcome kit. No hidden costs.
Company
2.195 €
per seat · all-inclusive
Same full experience, invoiced directly to your company. Ideal for founders and team leads booking for themselves or a colleague.
Flights and travel insurance not included.
The location
Merano, Italy
A small spa town in South Tyrol, cradled between the Ötztal Alps to the north and the Adige valley spreading south toward Bolzano. The landscape is operatic — vineyard terraces, apple orchards, and medieval towers stacked up the lower slopes, with the Texel massif rising behind everything, snow-held for most of the year. The town itself is elegant without trying: a pedestrian centre, thermal baths, a river promenade lined with palm trees that shouldn't be there but are. Habsburg bones, Italian light. We chose Merano because it does something to people quickly. The combination of mountain, valley, and old town creates a particular kind of clarity that cities work against. Guests arrive carrying the week. By Saturday morning, most of them have put it down.
Applications
Apply for this edition
A short form. We read every application and reply within a few days.