The Dolomites - A 5 day Itinerary

    If you love trekking, you must know that the Dolomites are a dream come true for any hike lover.

    It may seem cliché, but all the landscapes are simply breathtaking. It was one of my favorite trips, and now I have the opportunity to share  all the details so it can encourage you to go out dare and enjoy this beautiful ride.

   The objective of the itinerary is to share with you the most iconic places to visit and some of the trails that I did. But If you want to do the Alta Via you need to reserve all the refuges with 6 months in advanced.

  For those who doesn't know what is a refuge, Rifugios (or ‘rifugi’ in Italian) are mountain huts or lodges that offer food, drinks, toilets, and sometimes overnight accommodation to hikers. They’re a cherished tradition in the Alps, providing welcome rest stops and local cuisine during your adventure. There are many options where to sleep in the mountains, more or less expensive. I will give you all the best options so you can choose the most suitable ones.

5 Days in the Alps

1st Day

   For the first day we arrived in Milan rented a car and drove all the way to Bolzano. It´s about 3.30/4h by the freeway. We drove towards Val Di Funes, where we slept in a local house. We arrived late, so in that night we went to dinner and just rest for all night. This was our view in the morning.

                                         Our Dinner                                      View in the morning

2nd Day

    We woke up in Val Di Funes very early in the morning and went to our first trail. We started the trail about 7 am and finished it at 10h30 am.

S. Maddalena / Santa Magdalena

Val di Funes, South Tyrol| Santa Maddalena Village

9.5 km circuit | 3:30 hours

    If you want to upload the route, you can do it in All Trails. The trail is easy and you can check the viewpoint that is unbelievable. This picture was taken there.

                  

Val di Funes Panoramic View

    After finishing this trail we went to our next trekking point in that day. A little bit heavy but though our schedule we had to do it this way. Our next trail is The Adolf Munkel Trail. From Val Di Funes to Zanser Alm is a 6 minute drive by car, so it's very close to the first stop.

    Zanser Alm is the spot where you can park the car and start the trail, it is the starting point for a lot of trails in that area and it has a refuge in the beginning of the trail, if you want to drink or eat something. We had to pay 8 euros at the time to park our car in Zanser Alm, and at certain times of the year if you don´t go early in the morning it is most likely to not have space for parking.

Adolf Munkel Trail

 9.2 km circuit | 3:30 hours

     Don't forget, if you want to download the map for use on your phone, go to All Trails.

    We started the trail at about 11 am and stopped for a quick lunch at 1 pm. We grabbed some things from breakfast and ate them for our lunch.

    By this time the trail was already very crowded. But every landscape is so beautiful that you can´t be in a rush to finish, mostly just have fun and enjoy the view. 

        Very closed to the end we stopped in one more refuge and enjoyed a beer that tasted like heaven

    At the end of the day we were very very tired so we took the car and drive to our next sleeping spot.

    This time we went to Rifugio Fedaia, it's about 2h by car and by the time we arrived it was almost night. We left our baggages in the room and went for dinner in the diner of the refuge witch felt amazing. I eat a bolognese and it was magnificent. After dinner we were so tired (once more) that just fell asleep right away.

   

3rd  Day 

    Once again we woke up very early (at least for a normal Portuguese on vacation, don't judge), so we woke up about 6 am, dressed up and went for breakfast. Decided to go see the sunrise in Lago Fedaia, very pretty but very cold. 

Lago Fedaia

    

    After the sunrise, we had breakfast in our refuge and rushed to our first stop of the day - Mont Nuvolau Averau. From our initial place to the starting point of the trail, we took 1h by car. We stopped in Rifugio Col Gallina, where we park the car for starting the trail.

Refugio Cal Galina 

    This trail was the hardest of the trip because it's always climbing, the elevation gain is insane. However, no doubt that was one of the most epic views that I have ever seen. We climb since refugio Col Gallina till Refugio Averau, and It took us all morning and a part of the afternoon because, in the end, you had to do all the trail back to reach the car. 

 

This is me very happy in the trail

                                                                                                      

During the trail we pass this beautiful lake - Lago di Limides

And once more, we took some snacks from the breakfast to eat during the day. 

 There's no restaurant with this view. 

    When we finaly arrive to the car it was about 15h. For the rest of the day, we decided to go to Cortina d'Ampezzo, which is a big village with a lot of stores where you can buy all your presents and gifts. I also bought there my Passport from the Dolomites, which is a passport where you can stamp all the refugios where you stay. I thought it was a very cool gift and nice memory from Dolomites. 

    There are a lot of restaurants and good options to eat in Cortina d'Ampezzo , we enjoyed a really good pizza here. From the place we park our car in Averau to  Cortina it´s about 26 minutes by car.

Cortina d'Ampezzo

   At the end of the afternoon we stopped in Lago Chedina (one more lake I know) and our last stop was in Misurina - where we stayed for the night.

                             

Lago Chedina

    By the time we arrived Misurina the weather was very bad, so we just stayed in the hotel and enjoyed our indoor pool. We stayed in Gran Hotel Misurina, the hotel is right in front of the lake Misurina and it felt really really good to just rest and relax after the long day we had.   We concluded the day by going to a restaurant in town and then resting.

The next day by Misurina lake

Our view for the lake

4th Day

    On this day we planned to do a very popular trail - Cadini di Misurina Trail.

Cadini di Misurina Trail Stats

• Rifugio Auronzo
• Distance | 3.9 km out-and-back
• Time Needed | 1:30 hours

    All the recommendations I read about this trail suggest doing it really early. They suggest starting at night so when you reach the view point, you can see the sunrise there. In addition to that, the trekking trail is very crowded, so if you want to take pictures at the view point, you normally have to wait in a long line to do it.

    When I planned this trip, I planned to wake up at 4 am to start the trail at 5 so I could reach the view point at 6.30 am and see the sunrise. What I didn't count was the very bad weather for that day, which made it impossible to start the trail before 9 am. 

    Waiting in Rifugio for the weather to cool down 

    We waited for hours in Rifugio Auronzo, the starting point of the trail, waiting for the right time to start. When the weather finally cleared out, we were able to begin.

 

Rifugio Auronzo

Views from the trail

 Cadini di Misurina - Point of View   

    The trail itself is very easy to do and is not a very long one. We didn't take long to reach the viewpoint, and because we were one of the first to make it in that day, we didn't have to wait to take some photos and see the view. We finished the trail at the start point- Rifugio Auronzo. By this time we were very hungry, so we enjoyed a nice meal in the refuge.

    There are also other trails that start at Rifugio Auronzo. Tre Cime di Lavaredo Loop Trail is the main one. I will leave you with the information. If you have time, I think it's really worth it.

• Distance: 9.7 km circuit
• Time Needed: 4 hours
• clockwise. 

      Unfortunately, on that day we couldn't do more trails because of our short of time. We left Rifugio Auronzo and drove to Lago di Braies, our next stop. It took us about 1 hour by car to arrive.

Lago di Braies

    This place is just poor magic! It's unbelievably beautiful, and if you're planning a trip to the Dolomites, it's just one of the places you can't miss. Come, grab something to eat, sit down and just relax while enjoying the amazing views. If you can, please try the boat trip. The experience must be unforgettable! Unfortunately, we didn't get the chance, but I hope to have the change to do it next time I visit.

    At the end of the day, we were back in Corvara, the next village where we spent the night. It took us about 1.30 hours to arrive. We stayed at the Hotel Miramonti Corvara and had the most amazing hot chocolate.

5th Day

    This is the last day of the trip. We woke up with an amazing view of the mountains but with a sad feeling of nostalgia. We drove to Ortisei which is a nice village with a lot of stores and restaurants; it is also the point where you can go to Seceda or to Val Gardena by cable car. The initial plan was to go to both places, but we decided we didn't have time, so we chose to visit Val Gardena. 

      

     We took the cable car and enjoyed the trip; it's about 10 minutes to the top. When we arrived, we had a trail and decided to do it. It's really beautiful, and it's the only way to really see the Val. 

Val Gardena

    When we finished the trail, we took the cable car back to Ortisei and enjoyed a quick lunch in the village. The next idea was to head to Lake Sorapis, which is a must-see in the Dolomites. The thing is, to reach Lake Sorapis you have to do a trail that takes 3 hours, and we simply couldn't do it (which is very sad, I know). We finished the day, going to Lago Karersee.

Lago Karersee

    In the end of the day, we left the Dolomites and went to Verona, to enjoy a little of city life and visit the historical places. And that is our itinerary for 5 days in the amazing mountains of northern Italy. 

 I hope you enjoyed the guide, and please comment if you have any questions. I'll write a piece about the best places to sleep in the Dolomites.

With love

Nês 

This is my map with all the best lakes, trails and sleeping spots