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Hiking in the Dolomites

Name: Hiking in the Dolomites
Brand: Elife Travel
Price: 2820 USD
Availability: InStock

Country:

Italie

Flight:

Not included

Favorite

Tour id:

124517

Operator:

Explore!
Length:

8 days
Group size:

16 pax
Age:

16 to 85
Difficulty:
Difficulty levels:
- Relaxing
- Easy
- Moderate
- Serious
- Heart-pumping

12.07-19.07.25 guaranteed
23.08-30.08.25 guaranteed
30.08-06.09.25 guaranteed
20.09-27.09.25 guaranteed
27.09-04.10.25 guaranteed
27.06-04.07.26 guaranteed
04.07-11.07.26 guaranteed
18.07-25.07.26 guaranteed
22.08-29.08.26 guaranteed
29.08-05.09.26 guaranteed
05.09-12.09.26 guaranteed
19.09-26.09.26 guaranteed
03.10-10.10.26 guaranteed

Itinerary

Discover the dramatic scenery of the Dolomites, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, on this week-long walking holiday. Enjoy treks through alpine meadows and pine forests, straddle the border of Italy and Austria, and explore relics left behind from World War One, as you traverse Italy's famous peaks. At the end of the day, unwind in our comfortable family-run hotel in the small town of Dobbiaco, gateway to the mountains.

Tre Cime - Trek with breathtaking views of these three iconic limestone peaks.
Local food and drink - Enjoy the traditional Austrian-influenced cuisine typical of the region.
Cortina, Leinz and Bolzano - Free day to explore further afield in the South Tyrol.

Tour program

Day 1

Join trip in Venice; drive to Dobbiaco (1,200 metres)

Our tour begins today at Venice Marco Polo Airport (VCE), where we'll transfer as a group to Dobbiaco. Our tour leader will meet you by the red-fronted 'RELAY' shop in the airport's Arrivals Hall at 3.45pm. If you'd like to join the group transfer, the latest your flight can arrive is 3.15pm. Please note, that it can be extremely busy by the main exit from the luggage area, please do not leave the building. After we've gathered our group, we'll travel to our hotel in Dobbiaco, around a three-hour drive away. Located in the far north of Italy, Dobbiaco is close to the border with Austria - you might be surprised to find the food this week is Austrian-influenced, rather than typically Italian! We'll stay at the Hotel Tschurtschenthaler, a family-run, traditional Alpine-style, 3-star hotel, located in the centre of the Old Town, surrounded by pretty shops and cafes and with far-reaching views of the stunning Dolomites mountains. On arrival, our tour leader will give us a short briefing on the week ahead.

Start point

Viale Galileo Galilei, 30/1, 30173 Venezia VE, Italy

15:45

Day 2

Walk to the shores of emerald green Lake Braies

Taking the public bus, this morning we'll travel to Ferrara to begin our walk to Lake Braies (1,494 metres). We'll make our way through the fields and forest paths to arrive at the grandeur of the hotel at the head of Lake Braies - a justifiably popular lake spot with high-sided cliffs and deep green emerald waters. We'll have lunch and explore further around the lake before taking the public bus back to our hotel. Today's 14-kilometre/8.7-mile walk is expected to take around five hours with a total ascent and descent of 450 metres/1,476 feet.

Day 3

Trek through forest and alpine meadows to the Putzalm hut

We'll take a local bus to the old spa town of Altprags this morning, from where we'll climb up through beautiful flower meadows and on through forests to reach the lovely Putzalm hut for a well-earned coffee break. We'll then continue climbing to reach the tree line and shortly after, the pass of Suisridl, a little over 2,000 metres and a beautiful picnic spot. We'll descend on paths and tracks through the forests and the cross-country ski area to return to our hotel. Today's 12.5 kilometres/7.8-mile walk is expected to take around six hours with a total ascent and descent of 750 metres/2,461 feet.

Day 4

Ridge walk along the Austria/Italian border

We'll take a bus to Sesto and then a cable car to the top station (approximately 2,000 metres) and then ascend Mt Elmo (2,434 metres). Our walk takes us along a ridge that marks the border between Austria and Italy and has several bunkers and look-out posts from WWI. There is also a great and unusual photo opportunity - a foot in both countries! After walking the ridge and possibly bagging another summit, we'll descend into quiet valleys echoing with the shrill whistle of the elusive marmot, the eagle-eyed may well spot one sat sentry on a rock. We'll return to a different cable car for a descent to the valley floor and a public bus back to Dobbiaco. Today's 11-kilometre/6.8-mile walk is expected to take around six hours with a total ascent of 680 metres/2,231 feet and a descent of 700 metres/2,297 feet.

Day 5

Free day

Today is an opportunity to either rest your legs and explore the cultural side of the region or keep up the activity levels and try some biking. A popular cycling day is the 50-kilometre/31.1-mile cycle ride to the Austrian town of Lienz. This gentle descent follows a well-made cycle track which is traffic-free and pretty much all downhill. Taking between two-and-a-half to three-and-a-half hours, most people will arrive in time for lunch. The train will take the strain for the return trip and the local rental company will collect the rental bikes from Lienz. A pair of cycling shorts and cycling gloves are recommended for this trip. The town of Brunico hosts one of Reinhold Messner's mountain museums and is a short 30-minute train journey away. The pedestrianised main street leads to the castle atop the hill overlooking the town, the old castle's rooms contain interesting exhibitions celebrating the mountain peoples of the world as well as displaying some of the expedition equipment used on his epic oxygen-free ascents of the world's 148,000-metre peaks. A longer journey to Bolzano allows you to visit the museum of the 'Iceman' discovered in the Schnalstal Glacier in the Otztal Alps in 1991. At over 5,000 years old, he is Europe's oldest natural human mummy and the discovery of his body, along with the remnants of his weapons and clothing has helped to throw some light on the life and times of the region's Chalcolithic (Copper Age) Europeans. For those interested in the battlefields of the 'White War,' as the conflict of 1915-17 in these mountains was known, a visit to Monte Piano via a bus journey and 4x4 shuttle can be arranged. This open-air museum commemorates the 14,000 soldiers who lost their lives to enemy action and the environment with well-preserved battlefield trenches, look-out posts and troop shelters. The nearby town of San Candido, barely five minutes by train, is another popular destination for a spot of shopping on a slightly larger scale than Dobbiaco. Pedestrianised streets, street cafés and restaurants invite you to linger for a lazy lunch as the world passes by. Perfect for a relaxing day off. Less than an hour by public bus, Cortina is a world-renowned glamourous spot. The streets ooze high-class shopping experiences, and the cafes invite you to stay and people-watch. With the 2026 Winter Olympics being part-hosted here, there's a buzz and flurry of activity that is infectious and exciting. Alternatively, you can take further walks or stay at the hotel and make use of the indoor pool and spa.

Day 6

Trek around the three iconic limestone peaks of Tre Cime

We'll take the bus to the Auronzo hut at 2,320 metres, just below the famed UNESCO site of the Tre Cime de Lavaredo. From here, we'll take a quieter path to the most impressive north faces of the Tre Cime and pass the Langalm hut before following another less well-known path to reach the Locatelli hut and a picnic spot near the lake. After lunch, we'll take a small path, looping around Torre di Toblin and have some time to explore various Austrian WWI defences. We'll return to the Auronzo hut via the south faces of the Tre Cime and a complete loop of the most iconic mountains in the Dolomites. From here, we'll return to Dobbiaco via the shuttle bus service. Today's 13-kilometre/8.1-mile walk is expected to take around seven hours with a total ascent and descent of 500 metres/1,641 feet.

Day 7

Trek from Pratopiazza to Strudelkopf summit

We'll take the public bus to Pratopiazza (1,991 metres) - approximately 50 minutes - and walk a high-level track to the Durrenstein hut (2,040 metres). From here, we'll make a climb to the summit of Strudelkopf - a fabulous summit at 2,307 metres. The panoramic views are superb and we'll see the Tre Cime in the near distance. We'll descend via a military road and a choice of either a return on the same outward bus or an additional 4-kilometre/2.5-mile descent through the forests and along the riverside to Brukele and a bus back to Dobbiaco. Today's 11-kilometre/6.8-mile walk is expected to take around six hours with a total ascent of 480 metres/1,575 feet and a descent of 1,000 metres/3,281 feet.

Day 8

Trip ends at Venice Airport

Our trip ends today. Departing Dobbiaco this morning, we'll drive to Venice Marco Polo Airport (VCE) where we'll arrive at around 1.30pm. The earliest your flight can depart today is 3.30pm.

End point

Viale Galileo Galilei, 30/1, 30173 Venezia VE, Italy

14:00

Tour Details

accommodation

7 nights standard hotel

Our comfortable, mid- range accommodation offers a good level of service, often with amenities such as, restaurant, bar, garden or swimming pool. Rooms generally have en-suite facilities.

flights

International flights not included in the tour cost

guide

Tour Leaders are quite simply the glue that holds our tours together. They are chosen for their travel experience and people skills and are thoroughly trained by Explore, widely acknowledged as some of the best training in the industry. A Tour Leader's ultimate aim is to ensure everyone is well looked after and have a fantastic trip. They are there to ensure that the tour logistics run smoothly, that health and safety is adhered to and provide comprehensive briefings at the beginning and throughout the tour.

insurance

Insurance is not included. Travel insurance is required for this tour. Please make sure you are adequately covered.

meals

A key facet of our responsible approach to tourism is that we encourage our groups to eat in local restaurants that prepare locally grown food. We give customers choice as to their meals and do not use rather bland and impersonal hotel restaurants or all- inclusive options

7 Breakfasts

5 Lunches

5 Dinners

optional

The following excursions and/or activities are usually available and may be arranged locally. Estimated costs are provided below for guidance only, are on a per person basis unless shown otherwise, and may depend on the number of participants. Prices quoted are correct as of the date these tour notes were originally issued but may change at any time due to currency fluctuations. Please note: These activities are booked and paid for direct with the supplier and do not form part of your Explore holiday contract.

Cortina: one of Italy's premier ski resorts: public transport, 1 hour each way, €8 return journey.

Lienz: charming medieval town in Austria with churches & museums: public transport, 1 hour each way, €10 return journey.

Bolzano: 5000 year old ice man: public transport, 2 hours each way (covered by your free weekly travelpass), 9 euros ice man museum entrance.

Monte Piana - WWI remains. Jeep from Misurina €12 both ways

Brunico - Messner's museum €9.00

others

All accommodation, activities and meals that are shown in the itinerary are included in the total cost of your trip You will also receive a complimentary transfer to and from the airport if you arrive on day 1 of the trip and depart on the last day and have provided your international flight information.

Any visa costs, spending money and tips are not included in the trip price.

You can also book extra nights’ accommodation at the beginning and end of the trip and the cost of this accommodation along with any transfers would be quoted separately.

transport

Bus, Public Bus, Train

Good to know

Currency

€

Euro

Italie

Plugs and adapters

Plug type L

Customer reviews

Overall

4.7

Itinerary

4.9

Guide

Transport

4.6

Accommodation

4.4

Food

4.1

Operator

4.5

Faq Tour

How can I book a tour?

You can order a tour on our website by selecting the desired dates and clicking the “Confirm dates” button. You can also contact our sales department by phone or email.

Which payment options are available?

We accept credit cards, bank transfers and other popular payment methods.

Can I change or cancel my reservation?

Yes, changes or cancellations are possible, however penalties may apply depending on the time before the tour starts.

What documents are required to participate in the tour?

You will need a passport with a valid visa (if required) to visit countries along the tour route.