WaterTurtle: Dolomites / Northern Italy - Part 1 (Venice & Cortina d'Ampezzo / Eastern Dolomites)

For Part 2 (Selva di Val Gardena / Western Dolomites, Lake Garda, & Verona), click here.

Kris and I traveled to northern Italy in late August/early September 2025 with an emphasis on the Dolomites in the Italian Alps. Our itinerary looked like this:

Day 1 - Landed in Venice in the morning after an overnight flight, Walked around Venice that afternoon & evening. Stayed at Hotel Olimpia Venice.

Day 2 - Drove to Cortina d'Ampezzo / eastern Dolomites, where we stayed the next 4 nights. Hiked Cinque Torri + Refugio Averau + Refugio Nuvolau in the afternoon. Stayed at Hotel Des Alpes.

Day 3 - Hiked Tre Cime di Lavaredo + Cadini di Misurina

Day 4 - Had planned to hike (maybe Lago di Sorapis) but scrapped it due to rain out, made it a rest day, walked around Cortina.

Day 5 - Hiked around and rowed on Lago di Braies

Day 6 - Hiked Croda da Lago circuit and then drove on to Selva di Val Gardena / western Dolomites. Stayed at Hotel Bel Vert for 4 nights.

Day 7 - Hiked Puez-Odle Altopiano

Day 8 - Hiked Seceda Ridge, drove to sightsee around Santa Maddalena in the Val di Funes area.

Day 9 - Had planned to hike either Adolf Munkel Weg + Geisler Arm or Alpe di Siusi but forecast called for rain. Pivoted to a shorter & closer hike at Piz Boe that morning but had to turn around before the summit due to foggy & rainy conditions. Spent afternoon walking the lower portion of Selva di Val Gardena's Vallalunga Valley trails in the rain.

Day 10 - Drove to Verona, toured northern & eastern side of Lake Garda on the way. Stayed in Verona for 2 nights (AirBnB booking - long story but there was a big issue with our AirBnB booking here. After 2+ useless hours of wrestling with AirBnB about it, we booked a different unit. Suffice it to say, I don't recommend using AirBnB anymore. Horrible customer service. I know - first world problems)

Day 11 - Sightseeing in Verona

Day 12 - Drove to Venice airport that morning, flew home.

Following is a map of our route (not including the out & backs to various sights and hiking trails from Cortina & Selva each day). We rented a car from Hertz at the Venice Airport. They surprisingly upgraded me to an Oudi Q3, which was a blast to drive on the curvy hairpin-laden mountain roads in the Dolomites:

A few thoughts on some things to consider for this trip...

Bring hiking poles - You'll need them for the epic hiking to save your knees. Blunt tipped hiking poles that fold up or are telescopic are now allowed on carry-on or checked baggage. Here is the official TSA notice about that. However, I'm told that it can still be up to the discretion of a TSA agent to let you through or not with hiking poles in carry-on luggage. Kris and I chose to check one large bag so we opted to place our hiking poles in that checked bag but you should be able to take your poles in carry on luggage now. Perhaps printing the official TSA notice (and insuring your tips have the blunt ends on them) and showing it to an agent if they give you a hard time would be a good idea.

Rent a car - there is public transportation, primarily buses, that can carry you around the Dolomites but we witnessed some long lines of people waiting for these buses. Everything I read said it was worth renting a car and I have to agree. You have more flexibility and ability to get where you need to go with a rental car. Plus, it was fun driving those mountain roads in a rented Oudi Q3. Make sure you reserve a car that has some get up and go. You'll need some engine power to climb those mountain roads.

Driving in Italy - can sometimes be a bit stressful but I found it to be more casual this time around. Use Google Maps as it is your friend and will keep you from getting lost plus alert you to the ever changing speed limits and many speed trap cameras. You will get speeding tickets in the mail many months after a trip to Italy and you will get hounded for years if you don't pay up (which happened to me 6 years ago after a trip to the Tuscany region).

On that note....if you are susceptible to car sickness, you'll want to take precautions. Those curvy and hairpin laden roads in the Dolomites are no joke. But the unreal straight out of a fairy tale views are worth it.

The language - Most of the restaurant menus in the Dolomites were in Italian, German & English. Many people there speak English. Many signs (but not all) were in English. Knowing some key words and phrases in Italian is certainly helpful. Use a language translation app when in doubt. You'll also hear a lot of German being spoken.

The food - It's Italy so of course it's awesome. However, there is a big German and Austrian influence in the Dolomites both in the architecture and cuisine. Most restaurants had an interesting mix of pasta, pizza, polenta, wienerschnitzel, cured meats and cheeses, etc. Expressos, Americano coffee, beer (Italian and German), and Italian wine was readily available. Tipping isn't expected here but is always appreciated. We always paid with a credit card without tipping on the card but left a few extra euros cash or coins after a great meal with service.

The weather - It is the mountains after all so the weather can change in an instant so be sure to pack layers and a good rain jacket. We did have some rainy cloudy days but also some beautiful blue sky days as well. The hiking and peak sightseeing is mostly between 7,000 - 10,000 ft elevation. Thunderstorms can pop up. Plan accordingly and have a backup plan in case rain and fog keep you off the trail.

Cellular / Mobile Phone vs WiFi - You could use your hotel's WiFi to download the Google Maps driving route and AllTrails hiking map before leaving, plus use WhatsApp over WiFi for messaging with friends and family. We have an unlimited mobile plan that charges us $10 per day, per phone for international cellular service. We opted for this so that we could have flexibility with constant mobile service when needed. It was helpful especially when driving and having Google Maps on the fly to keep us from getting lost.

The hiking - We wanted to really immerse ourselves in the Dolomites as that has been on our bucket list for a while. Hiking each day was the main plan. We used this great write-up with excellent detail from Earth Trekkers as our hiking guide. I also used the AllTrails app to download each hike and to keep us on the trail. There were a few hikes on our list that we didn't get to due to a couple of rainy days during our trip. There are refugios along many of the hiking trails where you can purchase food and drinks if you don't want to carry it. There were a couple of cash only refugios so carry some Euros with you.

Here is a quick rundown of the hikes we did:

Cinque Torri + Refugio Averau + Refugio Nuvolau - 5.2 miles, 1550 ft elevation gain

Tre Cime di Lavaredo + Cadini di Misurina - 8.7 miles, 1900 fr elevation gain

Lago di Braies - 2.5 miles rowing + 2.2 miles hike, 365 ft elevation gain

Croda da Lago Circuit - 9 miles, 2,900 ft elevation gain

Puez-Odle Altopiano - 11 miles, 1,950 elevation gain

Seceda Ridge - 2.5 miles, 800 ft elevation gain

Santa Maddalena - 1.7 miles, 400 ft elevation gain

Piz Boe - 2.5 miles, 640 ft elevation gain (hike cut short by fog & clouds)

Vallalunga Valley (lower portion nearer town) - 3.9 miles, 580 ft elevation gain

A good way to think about the Dolomites is there are two distinct sides - the eastern and western Dolomites. We chose Cortina d'Ampezzo and Selva di Val Gardena as our two main base towns to stay in. Cortina was larger and will be hosting some of the 2026 Winter Olympics (womens downhill skiing and the slide sports such as bobsled, luge and skeleton). While Cortina is very nice and I would stay there again, Selva was smaller and more charming in our opinion.

Following are more details with links + photos about each day, each hike, and other sights...

Venice

I had low expectations for Venice based on mixed reviews from people I know who have been there. Some people love it while others said don't waste your time. Accordingly, we only planned one afternoon/evening there upon our arrival before setting off to our real goal of spending time in the Dolomites. However, Venice pleasantly surprised us. I see now why it's often called one of the most beautiful cities in the world and also one of the most romantic cities in the world.

In fact, one of our absolute best meals of the entire trip was that evening after we arrived in Venice at Osteria Fanal del Codega (make a reservation). We stayed at Hotel Olimpia, which was also really nice and I would recommend. It was a short 5-10 minute walk from one of the main parking garages.

On that note and in case you're not aware, cars aren't allowed in the city historic center of Venice so if you're renting a car, you have to park at one of the parking garages on the outside of the city center (common in many Italian towns & villages). I chose the Garage San Marco as it was the closest to our hotel. It was easy making a parking reservation online and also a short easy walk to the hotel with rolling luggage. Otherwise, there is public transportation available from the airport including water taxis.

Somehow we didn't ride in a gondola. We meant to but the afternoon got away from us with all the walking we did around the city center so we decided to do it after dinner but we then found that gondola rides weren't readily available in the evening (water taxis are). Nevertheless, Venice is a great walking city. I didn't see any bicycles in the city center, nor cars, so the alleyways, narrow streets, and plazas are dedicated to walkers only. That is a great way to see the city too and a nice way to stretch the legs after a long overnight flight.

We used suggestions from this EarthTrekkers page as our guide on what to do and what to see.

That snowy peak at the top of the photo is Mont Blanc in France, a nice view from the plane

I was amazed at how most of the buildings came right out of the water. The pilings and dock bases they are built upon are completely hidden underwater.

Campanile di San Marco

St Mark's Square

St Mark's Basilica

Torre dell’Orologio (Clock Tower) - dates back to 15th century

Walking along the Venetian Lagoon on the Riva degli Schiavoni

Bridge of Sighs

An amazing dinner at Osteria Fanal del Codega

After dinner Lemoncello? Yes, please.

Cortina d'Ampezzo / eastern Dolomites

Cortina was our next destination for four nights and was our home base for some amazing day hikes in the eastern Dolomites. It is a good sized mountain town that will host several events for the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympic Games, including womens downhill skiing, bobsled, luge, skeleton, etc. We opted to stay in a hotel just outside of the city center in order to be away from the Olympics construction that was still ongoing. We stayed at Hotel Des Alpes and really enjoyed it there with a friendly staff and onsite bar/restaurant. Our room had a nice view of the Cime Tofana di Mezzo mountain and everything below it leading down to town including the gondola and rolling green meadows.

That mountain in the distance is where Refugio Nuvolau sits on top - the oldest refugio in the Dolomites and also where we hiked earlier that afternoon (see below).

Cinque Torri + Refugio Auverau + Refugio Nuvolau

Our original plan on our drive to Cortina was to just do some sightseeing on the way and start our hiking the next day. But the forecast called for rain in a couple days, so we decided to go ahead and get in some hiking that day while the weather was good. We're glad we did as we stopped to hike Cinque Torri + Refugio Auverau + Refugio Nuvolau (4 - 5 miles with over 1,500 ft elevation gain)

The first jaw dropping view as you step off the cable car at Rifugio Scoiattoli

Cinque Torri - we set off to hike around it - approx 1.5 mile loop

When we got off the chair lift ride up (see here about how to get to Cinque Torri) and walked towards the Cinque Torri formations, we were in complete awe at the 360 degree views of the jagged peaks in every direction. Including the two refugios, we ended up hiking 5.2 miles with over 1,500 ft elevation gain. It would have been one mile less but we didn't realize the chair lift ride back down to the car lot closed at 5pm so we had to hike an extra mile down the mountain to get to our car. We had spent too much time up at Refugio Nuvolau enjoying our drinks. Totally worth it though. Regardless, lesson learned - pay attention to the gondola/lift hours of operation.

Yes, that is a rock climber on top of that formation to the right. You can also see other climbers along other parts of both formations.

There is a lot of World War 1 history in these mountains. This is one of several old WW1 era bunkers built into the rocks.

Getting our hike on

Another WW1 era bunker

Cinque Torri

Constant views of other peaks in every direction

A note about the Dolomites refugios. These are huts or large cabins that have a full bar, serve food and most have shared bunkrooms for hikers to spend the night. They are typically situated high along a ridge or mountain top. Some are accessible by a gondola or lift and some are not. Hut to hut (or refugio to refugio) hiking is big here and there are multiple routes you can do to string along multiple days/nights in a row by hiking from one refugio to another. The most popular established route is called Alta Via 1. Alt Via 2 is more advanced and includes via ferrata (steep inclines with exposure requiring cable assist) routes.

To stay in these huts during the busy summer season requires reservations many months in advance. You can make these reservations yourself (can be a daunting, complex task) or pay outfitters/guide services to reserve them for you. We saw many hut to hut hikers each day. I would love to return to do a refugio to refugio hiking adventure. It's on my bucket list.

The hike up to Refugio Averau and looking back behind us

The view up towards Refugio Nuvolau from Refugio Averau

A couple of panoramic photos

The climb up to Refugio Nuvolau

Looking back down behind us towards Refugio Averau

Refugio Nuvolau - the oldest refugio in the Dolomites, built in 1883

A great view of Cortina d'Ampezzo from Refugio Nuvolau - we can barely see our hotel (Hotel Des Alpes) to the left

The view to the southwest from Refugio Nuvolau

The hike back down - looking back up at Refugio Nuvolau

Tre Cime di Lavaredo + Cadini di Misurina

Cited as one of the most popular hikes and places to see in the Dolomites, getting to this magical place now requires a tollgate reservation/permit to drive and park at Rifugio Auronzo (or use public transportation if you prefer but we saw long lines for the bus and are glad we drove ourselves). This website is where you can schedule your reservation and purchase the permit.

Tre Cime is an UNESCO World Heritage Site and for good reason. Refugio Auronzo is where you begin the hike for both Tre Cime di Lavaredo (approx 6.5 miles) and Cadini di Misurina (approx 2+ miles)...combined elevation gain was 1900 ft.

The view from Refugio Auronzo

The view back at Refugio Auronzo after beginning our hike in a counter clockwise direction around Tre Cime

jagged peaks everywhere

Cappella degli Alpini

Refugio Lavaredo

Had to get some strudel before continuing on

Tre Cime - which we had views of in every direction along our loop hike around it

The view towards Refugio Locatelli - which you can hike to as part of the loop around Tre Cime but we opted for a shorter loop option closer to Tre Cime and directly to the next refugio (Malga Langalm)

open range cows

The view back at Refugio Locatelli

approaching Malga Langalm refugio - we had a nice lunch here

Looking down at the village of Auronzo from Refugio Auronzo - it was here that we completed the loop around Tre Cime and then set off for the approx 2 mile hike to the amazing views of Cadini di Misurina

Cadini di Misurina - this was Kris's favorite Dolomites hike

Tre Cime behind us - clouds starting to set in

That is a cave behind me - we walked through it to the other end

These two photos are probably my favorites from the entire trip - Kris took these and really captured the essence of the Dolomites in these images

Hiking back down to Refugio Auronzo - the clouds were moving in fast at this point (mid afternoon)

Ah! Post hike beers are the best.

The next day was a rainy one as forecasted so we opted to make it a rest day and walked around the city center of Cortina. We saw a break in the clouds and rode the gondola up to the Masi Wine Bar at Druscie. It was a great lunch but the rain and clouds moved back in quickly to obscure otherwise what would have been a great view of Cortina and surrounding mountains.

The gondola ride gave us overhead views of the bobsled/luge/skeleton tracks still under construction. It looked to me they are behind schedule and that it's going to be tough to have it all completed by February especially with winter usually setting in by October. Will be interesting to see the 2026 Winter Olympics on TV now having been here.

The Winter Olympics slide sports tracks still under construction

The bobsled/luge/skeleton starting block house

Views of a rainy day in Cortina's city center - Corso Italia - the main pedestrian street in town lined with restaurants, bars, and shopping.

Lago di Braies

The next day, the weather improved and we had a choice of a few hikes that were on our list. We opted for Lago di Braies. You want to get here early in the morning to beat the crowd and grab a parking spot close to the lake, otherwise if you get there after 9am, you have to park in a nearby town and ride the bus there.

a church in a town on the drive to Lago di Braies

Lago di Braies

Getting there early also enabled us to grab a rowboat without waiting in line and hitting the water without many other rowboats out there. It was a fun thing to do, very scenic, and gave me some good paddling exercise. Afterwards, we did the 2.2 mile scenic hike (365 ft elevation gain) around the lake.

Definitely rent a rowboat, especially if you get there early and if the weather is good.

Cappella Lago di Braies

Hotel Lago di Braies

views from the 2.2 mile hike around Lago Di Braies

On the drive back to Cortina, we stopped and had lunch at Lago di Dobbacio, which wasn't nearly as pretty as Lago di Braies (which also has a restaurant & hotel) but it was a nice lunch regardless.

Lago di Dobbacio

Lots of German architecture & cuisine influence here including German beers readily available

Croda da Lago Circuit

After checking out of our hotel and driving westward toward Selva di Val Gardena, we opted to stop along the way and hike the Croda da Lago Circuit, a scenic 9 mile loop (2,900 ft elevation gain). The trailhead is only a 20 minute drive southwest of Cortina.

The beginning of the Croda da Lago Circuit hike

It was a cloudy morning with some intermittent light rain

Yes, you are hiking up that (er, uh...more like scrambling)

The look back behind us on the hike up

Scrambling up

a litte rain didn't dampen our spirits

Coming back down on the other side after the initial climb up

That is a large herd of sheep on that meadow - we could hear the sheep dogs' barks echo off the rocky peaks around us. It weirdly sounded like the sheep dogs were in the peaks above us.