Many a visitor arriving in Maia Bassa from Sinigo is amazed: Here at the entrance to the town, well-trained racehorses cross the road to get from their stables to the historic racecourse. The area is one of the most famous equestrian facilities in Europe and is the venue of the "Merano South Tyrol Grand Prix" in September and the Haflinger Gallop Races on Easter Monday. At the first, the visitors wear hats worthy a horse race, at the second, the racecourse becomes a big fairground. These experiences have inspired the use of the racecourse as a concert arena as well: Alvaro Soler and Mark Forster have already performed at the Maia Music Festival here.

The district of Maia Bassa (Untermais), which incidentally used to be an independent village, then extends further towards the Passirio River and reaches from Winkelberg to the banks of the Adige River. In summer 2024, on the confluence of the Adige and the Passirio, a new ricreation area - a river park with water access covering 12,000 sqm - has been inaugurated. In contrast to the old town, Maia Bassa is a quiet quarter with schools and sports facilities such as the MeranArena with a climbing wall and the swimming pool, with campsites and its own train station.

The name probably derives from the Roman customs station "Castrum Maiense", which was located here. It was named after the Roman goddess of spring, Maias. In the early 20th century, the poet and writer Christian Morgenstern (1871-1914) spent several years in Maia Bassa, then still part of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, and died in the Villa Helioburg in Maia Bassa on March 31, 1914, while he was still working on the collection "Wir fanden einen Pfad" (We found a path). His most important works include the "Galgenlieder" (Gallows Songs), a collection of poems.