Cable Cars and Gondolas in the Dolomites: Which to Take, What They Cost, When They Run

Val Gardena: Seceda, Col Raiser, Ciampinoi

You reach the Seceda from Ortisei with two lifts in a row: the Ortisei-Furnes gondola, 2,500 metres long with 450 metres of climb, and then the Furnes-Seceda cable car, 2,050 metres and 700 metres of climb. In summer 2026 they run from 22 May to 2 November, 8.30am to 5.30pm. A return ticket covering both costs 74 euros for adults and 37 for juniors aged 8 to 15.99; one way is 49 and 25. Children under 8 travel free with a paying adult. Dogs 7 euros, bikes 7 euros.

There is a catch the operator prints at the top of its own page and that almost no guide repeats: on the Ortisei-Furnes, Furnes-Seceda and Fermeda lifts the Dolomiti Super Summer cards are not accepted. If you turn up with that card you still pay the full fare. At the bottom station there is a covered garage and an open car park, more than 250 spaces in all, but the operator itself warns that parking in Ortisei is limited and recommends the bus to Piazza Sant'Antonio, from which the escalators in the "La Curta" tunnel bring you to the lift in five or six minutes.

The Col Raiser gondola leaves from Santa Cristina and runs from 22 May to 1 November 2026: 8.30am to 5pm until 13 June, to 5.30pm from 14 June to 13 September, then back to 5pm and from 12 October only to 4.30pm. One way costs 23 euros, return 34; juniors aged 6 to 13 pay 14 and 18, CAI members 22 and 32, dogs 5 euros. The operator states that these prices apply in summer and in winter alike. There are three car parks at the station, and every day from 8.30am to noon a free shuttle runs to the bottom station from the roundabout at the Maciaconi stop. This is where the path to the Rifugio Firenze begins.

The Ciampinoi gondola leaves from the centre of Selva and runs from 6 June to 11 October 2026; from 22 June to 13 September it operates 8.30am to 5.30pm. The price list here works differently: up costs 21 euros, down costs 21, return 29; children pay 13, 13 and 18. The operator publishes neither rates nor capacity for parking at the bottom station and points to Selva's public car parks: we have listed them in our Val Gardena parking guide.

Alpe di Siusi: two gondolas, two different prices

Two lifts climb to the Alpe di Siusi, and they do not cost the same. The gap on a return ticket is eleven euros.

The gondola from Siusi allo Sciliar, at via Sciliar 39, takes 15 minutes. In summer 2026 it runs from 22 May to 2 November: 8am to 6pm until 6 June, 8am to 7pm from 7 June to 6 September, then back to 6pm. Winter 2026/27 is already published: 4 December 2026 to 4 April 2027, daily 8am to 6pm. A single ride costs 21 euros, up and down 30; juniors born between 2008 and 2017 pay 13 and 18, seniors born in 1960 or earlier 18 and 26, children born from 2018 travel free. A family of two adults with children pays 65 euros return. Dogs 3 and 6 euros, bikes 6 and 12.

The car park at the Siusi bottom station is the only one in the Dolomites for which the operator publishes a full tariff: the open car park is free, with no overnight parking between 10pm and 6.30am; the covered Walderer car park costs 2 euros an hour and 8 a day; the new covered one under the station 2.50 an hour and 12 a day, with a flat rate from the fourth hour. There are three fast charging points.

From Ortisei the Mont Sëuc double-rope gondola, opened in 1999, climbs instead: 35 cabins of 15 people, 2,200 people an hour, about 5 minutes to the plateau at 2,000 metres. It has the longest season in the valley, 1 May to 2 November 2026: 8.30am to 5pm until 5 June, to 6pm from 6 June to 16 October, then back to 5pm. One way up costs 29 euros, one way down 29, return 41; juniors aged 8 to 14 pay 20.30 and 28.70; children under 8 travel free with paying parents. Bikes and pets 7 euros. Under the station there is an underground garage with 240 spaces, which the operator calls the cheapest in Ortisei, with free-space indicators and a footbridge two minutes from the village centre; the rate is not published.

Driving up to Compaccio is a different matter, with a road closed to private traffic from 9am to 5pm and parking that must be booked online: the rules are in our guide to reaching the Alpe di Siusi.

Passo Sella and Val di Fassa: the Sassolungo two-seater, the Sass Pordoi, Canazei and Vigo

From the Passo Sella runs the Forcella del Sassolungo lift, the oddest in the Dolomites: cabins for two people, standing. It is open from 30 May to 11 October 2026, 8.15am to 5pm. One way costs 30 euros, return 45; juniors born after 1 January 2008 pay 21 and 31.50; dogs 5 euros. You start from the car park at the pass, which in summer fills up almost every day between 9 and 11am: the figures and the alternatives are in our Val Gardena parking guide. From the top station you join the Sassolungo circuit.

The Passo Pordoi cable car climbs from the 2,240 metres of the pass to the 2,948 of the Sass Pordoi, with a capacity of 820 people an hour and no bike carriage. It has the longest season of them all: 14 May to 18 October 2026 from 9am to 5pm, then 19 October to 1 November from 9am to 4.30pm. One way costs 18 euros, return 32; youngsters born after 1 January 2008 pay 10.50 and 19. The operator publishes neither the ride time nor any information about parking at the pass.

From Canazei you climb towards the Belvedere in two stages: the Canazei-Pecol gondola, 1,452 to 1,933 metres, and the Pecol-Col dei Rossi cable car, 1,932 to 2,382. Both run from 13 June to 27 September 2026, the first 8.30am to 5.30pm and the second to 5.20pm. Taken separately they cost 16 and 16.50 euros return; the combined Canazei-Col dei Rossi ticket costs 28 euros return and 15.50 one way. The Viel del Pan path starts up there.

From Vigo di Fassa the Catinaccio cable car climbs to Ciampedìe, 1,322 to 2,000 metres. The season runs from 30 May to 4 October 2026, with one detail that matters: outside high season it closes for lunch. From 30 May to 30 June it runs 8am to 1pm and 2pm to 6pm; in July and August it stays open 8am to 6.30pm; from 1 to 13 September 8am to 6pm; and from 14 September to 4 October the break is back, 8.30am to 1pm and 2pm to 6pm. One way costs 16 euros, return 28; youngsters 11 and 20. Here too there is nothing published about parking at the bottom station.

The Val di Fassa winter price list is still the 2025/2026 one: for the Sass Pordoi it gave 17 euros up and 30 return. The 2026/27 prices are not out.

Marmolada: three stages up to 3,265 metres

The Marmolada cable car climbs from Malga Ciapela, 1,450 metres, to Punta Rocca, 3,265, in twelve minutes, with intermediate stations at Coston d'Antermoja, 2,350, and Serauta, 2,950. It is the highest lift in the Dolomites and the one with the shortest summer season: in 2026 it opened on Friday 12 June and closed on Sunday 27 September.

The hours are tight: first ride up at 9am from Malga Ciapela, last ride down at 4.30pm from Punta Rocca. If you reach Serauta at four in the afternoon, you have half an hour to decide.

A return ticket from Malga Ciapela to Punta Rocca costs 40 euros, one way 28. Under-16s pay 22 and 15, children under 6 travel free, groups of at least 20 people pay 33 euros. Stopping at Serauta, where the Great War museum is, the return drops to 34 euros and the single ride to 25; the Serauta-Punta Rocca section alone costs 20 euros return and 14 single.

The operator warns that the Arabba/Marmolada Summerpass cannot be used on the Marmolada. At the bottom there is a car park for cars and coaches a few steps from the lift, open in summer and in winter and fitted with charging points; the rate is not published. For winter 2026/27 the site gives neither dates nor prices: it only says see you then.

Cortina: Freccia nel Cielo and Lagazuoi

The Freccia nel Cielo is made of three lifts: a gondola from Cortina to Col Drusciè, 1,778 metres, and two cable cars, Col Drusciè-Ra Valles at 2,475 and Ra Valles-Cima Tofana at 3,244. From the centre of Cortina to the top it is 30 minutes of travel and 2,000 metres of climb. Summer 2026 ran from 13 June to 27 September.

You set off at 9am from Cortina and come back early: last ride at 4.50pm from Cima Tofana, 5pm from Ra Valles, 5.10pm from Col Drusciè. A return to the top costs 45 euros, one way 32; juniors aged 7 to 14 pay 23 and 16. Stopping at Col Drusciè the return costs 25 euros, at Ra Valles 35. Dogs of any size travel free, on a lead and muzzled; a muzzle can be bought at the ticket office for 7 euros.

Parking at the bottom station is paid, and the tariff is published: the first 30 minutes are free, then cars under 2.20 metres pay 10 euros from 7.30am to 6pm, 2 euros an hour from 6pm to midnight and 10 euros an hour overnight. Campervans and coaches over 2.20 metres pay 40 euros from 8am to 6pm. You pay at the machine in the middle of the car park and leave within fifteen minutes.

The Lagazuoi cable car leaves from the Passo Falzarego with two 50-person cabins and covers 630 metres of climb in under three minutes: the ride takes 2 minutes 50 seconds over a single 1,150-metre span with no pylons. There is a departure every fifteen minutes: first ride 9am, last ride up 4.40pm, last ride down 5pm.

On the rest, the operator does not agree with itself. The website gives a summer season of "6 June - 18 October" and altitudes of 2,105 and 2,732 metres; its own price list PDF says "30.05.2026 - 18.10.2026" and "Falzarego m. 2110 - Lagazuoi m. 2782". The price list, at least, is clear: outside August a single ride costs 21 euros and the return 29.50, under-16s 14.50 and 19.50; in August it rises to 24 and 34 for adults, 17 and 21.50 for youngsters. Paying by credit card gives a 5 per cent discount, which brings the August return to 32.30. A dog costs 14 euros single and 20.50 return, luggage 10 euros. Children under 8 with a paying adult travel free. And parking at the pass, the operator writes, is free for the whole of the 2026 summer season.

Return or one way: when it pays off

The sum is always the same: what the second ride costs. The difference between the return ticket and the one-way ticket is the price of coming down by lift, and that is what you are choosing not to walk.

Where the difference is small, a one-way ticket makes little sense: you will ride down anyway if it rains or you are tired. Where it is large, walking down is an economic decision as much as a sporting one.

Watch out for two lifts where this reasoning does not apply. At the Ciampinoi the downhill ride costs the same as the uphill one, 21 euros: the 29-euro return is a discount, not a surcharge. And from Cima Tofana walking down is no stroll: there, the return ticket is almost always the only sensible choice.

• Seceda, Ortisei to the top: 49 euros one way, 74 return. The ride down costs 25 euros
• Ortisei-Alpe di Siusi: 29 one way, 41 return. The ride down costs 12 euros
• Siusi-Alpe di Siusi: 21 single, 30 up and down. The ride down costs 9 euros
• Col Raiser: 23 up, 34 up and down. The ride down costs 11 euros
• Forcella Sassolungo: 30 up, 45 return. The ride down costs 15 euros
• Sass Pordoi: 18 one way, 32 return. The ride down costs 14 euros
• Marmolada, Punta Rocca: 28 one way, 40 return. The ride down costs 12 euros
• Tofana, Cortina to Cima Tofana: 32 single, 45 return. The ride down costs 13 euros
• Lagazuoi, outside August: 21 single, 29.50 return. The ride down costs 8.50 euros
• Ciampinoi: 21 up, 21 down, 29 return. Here the return ticket costs less than two singles

The passes, and the two places where they are not valid

Every valley has its own card, and the cards do not talk to each other. These are the ones the operators publish for summer 2026.

Two exceptions are worth knowing before you buy. On the Seceda lifts the Dolomiti Super Summer is not accepted, and the operator says so at the top of its page. On the Marmolada the Arabba/Marmolada Summerpass cannot be used. In both cases you pay the full fare.

In winter the picture changes completely, because nearly all these lifts are covered by the ski pass: we cover that in our Dolomiti Superski pass guide and in the 2026/27 opening calendar. On the Alpe di Siusi gondola, for instance, the ride is already included in the Alpe di Siusi/Val Gardena ski pass, in the Dolomiti Superski pass, in the Nordic Pass and in the Combi Card.

• Dolomiti Supersummer Card, around 100 lifts: day ticket 67 euros adults and 47 juniors, 3 days out of 4 at 145 and 102, 5 days out of 7 at 185 and 130, season 415 and 290
• Gardena Card, participating Val Gardena lifts, valid 6 June to 11 October 2026: 6 consecutive days 160 euros adults and 112 juniors, 3 days 124 and 87, children 5 euros, bikes 5 euros
• Panorama Pass Val di Fassa 2026, 31 lifts: 3 days out of 6 at 83 euros adults and 47 youngsters, 6 out of 6 at 116 and 75, 7 out of 13 at 137 and 87, season 350 and 230
• Combi Card Alpe di Siusi, gondola plus buses: 3 return rides within 7 days 73 euros, 7 days unlimited 94, 14 days 143; juniors born 2008-2017 half price
• Alpe di Siusi Card Gold 7, valid 1 June to 11 October 2026, the gondola plus the other lifts on the plateau and the buses: 136 euros
• Alpe di Siusi gondola: season pass 171 euros, annual pass 258; Friends Card of 20 rides 243 euros and of 40 rides 409
• Cortina: at the Lagazuoi ticket office you can buy the Cortina Vertical Pass for 1, 3, 5 or 7 days and the Cortina Bike Pass for 1 or 3 days; the operator does not publish their prices on that page

In summer they close early: the time of the last ride

This is the mistake that ruins the most days out. High up, the light lasts until eight in the evening, but the lifts shut long before that, and in autumn earlier still. These are the times the operators give for summer 2026.

The Marmolada runs its last ride down from Punta Rocca at 4.30pm. The Freccia nel Cielo comes back from Cima Tofana at 4.50pm, from Ra Valles at 5pm, from Col Drusciè at 5.10pm. The Lagazuoi runs its last ride up at 4.40pm and its last ride down at 5pm. Which means that on these three lifts a long lunch at altitude is paid for with a missed ride.

In October the hours shrink further: the Sass Pordoi goes to 9am-4.30pm from 19 October, the Col Raiser to 8.30am-4.30pm from 12 October, the Seceda closes on 2 November and the Ciampinoi on 11 October.

And there is the lunch break, which almost nobody expects. In Val di Fassa several lifts stop between noon and two outside high season: the Vigo cable car closes from 1pm to 2pm in May, June and from mid-September, and the Pian Pecei-Ciampedìe chairlift from 12.45pm to 2pm for most of the season. If you go up at eleven expecting to come down at half past one, you find the cabin standing still.

If you want to plan the day without a car, bus times and connections are in our Dolomites without a car guide.