Laghetto di Fie e castelli della zona
A swimming lake at the foot of the Sciliar, among the cleanest in Italy, and the old castles that watch over the valley, above all Castel Presule.
What to see in the Dolomites
Valley by valley, the sights worth the trip in the Dolomites: peaks, lakes, plateaus, waterfalls and viewpoints, with what to see and how to reach each one.
The lakes have their own index, with the swimming rule checked one by one: the lakes of the Dolomites.
Alpe di Siusi (Seiser Alm)
The valleyPanorama sul Sassolungo e il Catinaccio
From the plateau you get some of the best views in the Dolomites: the Sassolungo standing to the west and the long wall of the Catinaccio catching fire at sunset.
Prati e malghe dell'altopiano
The largest high-altitude meadow in Europe: 57 square kilometres of rolling pasture dotted with wooden barns and dairy huts, spread between the Sciliar and the Sassolungo.
Sciliar e Denti di Terrarossa
South Tyrol's signature mountain: the flat-topped Sciliar massif, crowned by the twin towers of Santner and Euringer, with the jagged spires of the Denti di Terrarossa just beyond.
Alta Badia
The valley
Altopiano del Pralongià
The panoramic plateau of Alta Badia between Corvara and San Cassiano: a rolling sea of meadows with the Sella group, the Sassongher and the Marmolada always in view.
Borgo di La Val e prati di Armentara
The rural village of La Val and the well-known Armentara meadows: a sea of wildflowers at the foot of Sasso di Santa Croce, one of the most genuine corners of Alta Badia.
Rifugio Pisciadù e ferrata Tridentina
One of the most popular via ferratas on the Sella, with a Tibetan bridge slung over the void, leading up to Rifugio Pisciadù and its high mountain lake.
Sass Songher
The rock pyramid that stands alone above Corvara and Colfosco: the signature mountain of Alta Badia and a 360-degree viewpoint over the Dolomites.
Arabba e Marmolada
The valley
Ghiacciaio della Marmolada e Punta Rocca in funivia
The Queen of the Dolomites is within reach without being a mountaineer: the cable car leaves Malga Ciapela and climbs in three stages to the Punta Rocca terrace, above 3,250 metres, between the retreating glacier, the Madonna chapel and the Great War museum cut into the front line.
Museo della Grande Guerra in quota
The highest museum in Europe, suspended at 3,000 metres, tells the story of the war fought inside the glacier.
Passo Pordoi e snodo del Sellaronda
The key pass of the Sellaronda, crossroads for skiers and cyclists, with a cable car up to the Dolomites Terrace.
Sentiero del Viel del Pan
The finest panoramic balcony overlooking the Marmolada, the ancient bread route between Pordoi and Fedaia.
Serrai di Sottoguda
A narrow gorge carved by the Pettorina stream, with tall walls and waterfalls, running between the village of Sottoguda and Malga Ciapela at the foot of the Marmolada.
Auronzo e Misurina
The valley
Cadini di Misurina
A forest of sharp spires, towers and pinnacles: dolomite erosion at its most extreme, and one of the most photographed subjects in the Dolomites.
Lago di Misurina
The pearl of the Cadore: an alpine lake at 1,754 metres, known for the purity of its air, ringed by the Cadini peaks and a short drive from the Tre Cime.
Lago di Santa Caterina ad Auronzo
The two-kilometre turquoise lake that runs through Auronzo di Cadore, the centre of summer life in town, with beaches, water sports and easy lakeside walks.
Monte Piana e il museo all'aperto della Grande Guerra
A plateau where around 14,000 soldiers died between 1915 and 1917, now an open-air museum with restored trenches, tunnels and walkways.
Comelico e Sappada
The valley
Borgate antiche di legno di Sappada Vecchia
The old hamlets of Sappada, built in the traditional blockbau timber style, at the heart of a German-speaking enclave that's one of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy.
Cascate di Sappada (Muhlbach)
The waterfalls of the Muhlbach stream, dropping around twenty metres between the rocks, reached on a short, cool, shaded walk.
Gruppo del Popera e Croda Rossa di Sesto
The wild peaks that close the Comelico to the north, from the Croda Rossa di Sesto to Cima Undici: climbing country, via ferratas and First World War memories.
Sorgenti del Piave a Sappada
In the Val Sesis, at the foot of Monte Peralba, the river Italians call sacred to the Fatherland begins. A place that carries real weight, in a quiet alpine valley.
Cortina d'Ampezzo
The valley
Cinque Torri
A cluster of near-perfect rock towers above Cortina, a much-loved climbing spot and one of the finest open-air museums of the First World War.
Lago di Sorapis
One of the most famous lakes in the Dolomites, with a striking turquoise colour, set in a wild amphitheatre below the spire of the Dito di Dio.
Rifugio Lagazuoi
The highest refuge near Cortina, with what many call the finest panoramic terrace in the Dolomites, and tunnels cut through the mountain during the Great War.
Tofane e Ra Valles
The group that stands for Cortina, reached in minutes on the old Freccia nel Cielo cable car up to the bare amphitheatre of Ra Valles and Cima Tofana.
Brenta Dolomites
The valley
Cascate di Vallesinella
The karst waterfalls above Madonna di Campiglio: three sets of falls in a wood of beech and spruce, reached on an easy walk inside the Adamello Brenta Park.
Lago di Molveno
Named Italy's most beautiful lake more than once: turquoise water, grassy beaches and the Brenta Dolomites mirrored on the surface, with an easy loop that goes all the way round.
Lago di Tovel
Lago di Tovel is an alpine lake at 1,178 metres in the Adamello Brenta Nature Park, famous as the red lake until 1964 and emerald green today. In summer car access is restricted, with limited parking and a shuttle bus from the valley floor.
San Martino di Castrozza
The valley
Altopiano delle Pale di San Martino
A vast high-altitude rocky desert, reachable by cable car, said to have inspired Buzzati's The Tartar Steppe.
Baita Segantini
The most iconic viewpoint of the Pale, with a small pond that mirrors the Cimon della Pala.
Cimon della Pala
The Matterhorn of the Dolomites, the symbolic peak of the Pale, first climbed in 1870.
Val Venegia
One of the gentlest valleys in the Dolomites, with the headwaters of the Travignolo torrent and highland farms beneath the Pale.
San Vigilio di Marebbe e Fanes
The valley
Altopiano e laghi di Fanes
A high-altitude plateau dotted with small lakes and pastures, at the heart of the Ladin legends of the Kingdom of Fanes.
Cascate di Fanes
Spectacular waterfalls tucked in a shaded forest gorge on the ascent toward the Fanes plateau.
Le dla Creda e i pascoli del parco
A mountain lake and the flowering pastures of the Fanes-Senes-Braies Park, among waterfalls, marmots, and quiet.
Plan de Corones (Kronplatz)
The Pustertal's panoramic mountain, with two summit museums and a 360-degree view over the Dolomites.
Val Gardena
The valleyAltopiano del Seceda
The most photographed ridge in the Dolomites: the Odle peaks rising over the Seceda plateau, minutes from the cable car arrival above Ortisei.
Centro storico di Ortisei
The pedestrian heart of Val Gardena, where Ladin culture and a centuries-old wood-carving tradition meet under the arcades, in the shops and in the cafés.
Giro del Sassolungo
The classic loop around the Sassolungo and Sassopiatto, starting from Passo Sella and passing a string of historic refuges at the heart of the Dolomites.
Ortisei
The main town of Val Gardena: a pedestrian center, woodcarving workshops, and the lifts that take you up to Seceda and the Alpe di Siusi in minutes.
Vallunga
A broad, near-flat valley behind Selva, the way into the Puez-Odle Park and a perfect walk if you want the Dolomites without the hard slog.
Val Pusteria e Lago di Braies
The valleyLago di Braies e le barche di legno
Lago di Braies, Pragser Wildsee in German, is an alpine lake at 1,496 metres in the Val Pusteria, famous for its emerald-green water, the historic boathouse and the wooden rowing boats at the foot of Croda del Becco. In summer access to the valley is regulated: book online or arrive early.
Parco Naturale Fanes-Senes-Braies
The largest protected area in South Tyrol: karst plateaux, alpine lakes and mountain huts, in a landscape Ladin tradition ties to the mythical kingdom of Fanes.
Pista ciclabile della Val Pusteria
One of the best-loved cycling routes in the Alps: it crosses the whole valley through villages, meadows and Dolomite scenery, and you can ride back on the bike-friendly train.
Plan de Corones e i musei in quota
The landmark mountain of Val Pusteria: a ski resort in winter, a panoramic terrace in summer, and home to two top-tier altitude museums by well-known architects.
Val di Fassa
The valley
Catinaccio e il Giardino delle Rose al tramonto
As the sun goes down, the walls of the Catinaccio turn from rose to fiery red. This is the enrosadira, the effect Ladin legend ties to King Laurino's cursed rose garden.
Rifugio Vajolet e le Torri del Vajolet
Three near-vertical spires at the heart of the Catinaccio, with refuges at their feet that shaped climbing history, in one of the most dramatic rock amphitheatres in Val di Fassa.
Val San Nicolò
The best-loved side valley of Val di Fassa: a wide green basin of meadows, farmhouses and waterfalls behind Pozza, where you leave the car at the entrance and walk in the quiet.
Val di Fiemme
The valley
Alpe Cermis
The mountain above Cavalese, a skiing hub and the legendary stage finish of the Tour de Ski Final Climb.
Catena del Lagorai
The wildest mountain range in Trentino: dark porphyry rock, more than a hundred small lakes, and Great War trenches along the crests.
Foresta dei Violini di Paneveggio
The resonance spruce forest that has supplied luthiers with tonewoods for four centuries.
Lago di Carezza
Lake Carezza (Karersee) is a small lake at 1,534 metres in the upper Val d'Ega, famous for water that shifts from green to turquoise and for the Latemar reflected in it. Access is regulated: paid parking, a pedestrian underpass and fenced banks that protect the shoreline.
Latemar
The Latemar is the Dolomite group that closes the Val di Fiemme to the north, a crown of spires and towers whose ridge marks the boundary between Trento and Bolzano. It peaks at 2,842 metres on the Cimon del Latemar, and at its foot lie Lake Carezza, the boulder labyrinth and the runs of the Ski Center.
Val di Funes
The valleyBelvedere di Santa Maddalena
The viewpoint behind the most famous postcard of Val di Funes: the village and its church in the meadows, with the long arc of the Odle closing the horizon.
Chiesetta di San Giovanni in Ranui
The little baroque church with the Odle peaks rising behind it: one of the most photographed views in the Dolomites.
Malga Glatsch e i pascoli del Puez-Odle
An alpine dairy at almost 1,900 metres at the foot of the Odle, reached on a gentle walk through the forest: a good easy hike and a fine stop for local food.
Sentiero Adolf Munkel ai piedi delle Odle
The signature trail of Val di Funes: an easy loop under the north walls of the Odle, through forests, clearings and farmhouses where you can stop for a meal.
Val di Sesto (Alta Pusteria)
The valley
Lago di Dobbiaco
Lake Dobbiaco (Toblacher See) is a landslide-dammed lake at 1,251 metres, on the road that drops from Dobbiaco towards Landro and Cortina. A flat path loops around it in a little over an hour, rowing boats and pedalos run in summer, and in winter the basin turns into one of the cross-country skiing hubs of the Dolomites.
Meridiana delle Dolomiti di Sesto
Five peaks aligned and named after the hours, marking time like a stone sundial nearly 3,000 metres tall.
Monte Elmo e i suoi sentieri panoramici
Sesto's home mountain, a few minutes up by gondola, with open ridge walks over the Dolomites.
Val Fiscalina
A short, spectacular valley at the foot of the Sesto Dolomites, where flat trails run beneath the peaks of the Meridiana di Sesto.
Versante nord delle Tre Cime di Lavaredo
The most formidable face of the Tre Cime, walls that made the history of mountaineering, reached from the Val Fiscalina.
Val di Zoldo e Civetta
The valleyBorghi e musei del gelato di Zoldo
Timber-framed mountain hamlets and the surprising story of the Zoldo ice-cream makers who took their craft to the world.
Lago di Coldai sull'Alta Via 1
An emerald lake at 2,143 metres beneath the Civetta, one of the most photographed stages of the Alta Via 1.
Monte Pelmo, il Caregon del Padreterno
The throne-shaped massif towering over the Val di Zoldo, complete with dinosaur tracks at its base.
Parete nord-ovest del Monte Civetta
The wall of walls: four kilometres of rock nearly 1,200 metres tall, a myth of Dolomitic mountaineering.