Tesimo/Tisens and Prissiano/Prissian is set in a unique location on the sunny hill south of the spa town of Merano is part of a historic cultural landscape that was already inhabited in prehistoric times. The widely visible hill of Hippolyt is even
one of the oldest populated places in the country.
In the past, the villages of Tesimo/Tisens, Caprile/Gfrill, Narano/Naraun, Plazzoles/Platzers, Grissiano/Grissian and the castle village of Prissiano/Prissian were
popular holiday destinations for the aristocracy and landowners. As a result, the area displays plenty of
castles and noble villas surrounded by vineyards and chestnut groves. Many castles are still actively used today, such as Katzenzungen Castle, the home of the famous Versoaln vine.
Around Tesimo - Prissiano there are also several
impressive churches, mountain churches and chapels, including St. Christoph and St. Hippolyt, St. Jakob in Grissiano and St. Apollonia in nearby Sirmiano/Sirmian, but also museums and historic cultural sites. The
South Tyrol Classic vintage car rallye runs through the narrow historic centres of Tesimo/Tisens and Prissiano/Prissian.
However,
tradition is not only felt in the buildings, it is also actively maintained: the members of the bands and the church choir wear their
historical costumes, and at the many celebrations and church festivals, one can see the lived tradition with the smallest ones. A particularly beautiful tradition are the
Sacred Heart Fires, which are lit every year on Sacred Heart Sunday in Tesimo-Prissiano.