Dolomites - Nature Park Hiking Tour

Villabassa

(Arrival

Check into your accommodation in Villabassa (also known as Niederdorf) and head for the Kneipp-für-mich Outdoor Spa & Adventure Village, a 5-acre park with an array of health and wellness facilities and spots to relax, before starting your walk.

Villabassa to Plätzwiese

Start out from Villabassa and you will soon pass the idyllic turquoise waters of Pragser Wildsee lake. From here you can get your first impression of the imposing Pragser Tal, with its dark-needled coniferous forests and whitewashed rock walls. Follow the well-worn path up to the alpine pasture of Rossalm and admire the vastness of Monte Cristallo, Tofana and the world-famous Drei Zinnen (Three Peaks). Following this route you will then reach Plätzwiese and your accommodation for the night.

Plätzwiese Pasture

Today’s walk, passing the mountains of Hohe Gaisl and Kreuzkofelgruppe, cuts through an area supposedly belonging to the ancient tribes of the fabled Kingdom of Fanes. Once you arrive at Fanes-Sennes-Prags Nature Park, you can choose between two variants on the trail, both 10km in distance but with different destinations and levels of difficulty:

Option 1: This route takes you to Strudelkopf in a walk lasting between 3-4 hours.
Option 2: This route takes you to Durrenstein in a walk lasting between 4-5 hours.

At either destination you will be provided with a list of schedules and free tickets for public transportation which will be used to return to Plätzwiese for a night’s rest.

Plätzwiese to Cortina d’Ampezzo

Head out from Plätzwiese and descend through the Knappenfußtal to Cimabanche (the frontier between the provinces of South Tyrol and Belluno) on a trail that can be tiring but is doable for most walkers. From here, choose between two ways to reach Cortina d’Ampezzo:

Option 1: Catch the public bus from Cimabanche to Cortina d’Ampezzo. It runs every few hours, with the journey lasting around 25 minutes and costing €2-€3.
Option 2: Walk for 20km from Cimabanche to Cortina d’Ampezzo, taking you up to 28km walking for the day. This will take you by typical Dolomite mountain huts and under the Col Rosa climbing route.

At Cortina d’Ampezzo, host city of the 1956 Winter Olympics, you will stop for the night.

Circular Track and Cablecar Faloria around Cortina d’Ampezzo

Today, the distance you travel is all up to you! There are four different walking routes:

Option 1: This route is the longest, running for 12km towards Forcella Faloria.
Option 2: This route runs for 10km in a roundtrip around Cortina d’Ampezzo.
Option 3: This route runs for 8km on the Dolomieu Panoramic Trail.
Option 4: This route is the shortest, running for 7km around the ‘Cinque Torri’ (Five Towers).

You have the option to descend from any of these routes using the Cablecar Faloria (ticket not included) back to Cortina d’Ampezzo, where you will stay for a final night.

Auronzo Hut to Drei Zinnen (Three Peaks)

To start the day you will receive a list of schedules and free tickets for public transportation to Auronzo Hut, in the shadow of the Three Peaks. This area saw fierce fighting between Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire during the First World War and is probably the best-known rock formation in the Dolomites. From here, choose between two route variants:

Option 1: This route heads through the Rienz Valley in 9km, lasting between 3 and 4 hours.
Option 2: This slightly more challenging route circles through the Three Peaks over 11km, also lasting between 3 and 4 hours.

At the end of the day, you will will receive a list of schedules and free tickets for public transportation to Villabassa, where you will find your accommodation for the final evening.

Villabassa (Departure)

After breakfast, we will bid you farewell. However, you can extend your stay to explore more of the famous Dolomites walking trails, or to rest and recover in the Kneipp-für-mich Outdoor Spa & Adventure Village.