Dolomites Comfy Grand Traverse

We’ll pick you up at 8:30 a.m. from the Porta Altinia Suites Hotel in Treviso. Be sure to dress for hiking! A a 2-hour and 15-minute private van ride brings you to “Spiaggia Verde,” a small lakeside restaurant where you can enjoy a snack and a WC break before setting out on your hike to Rifugio Ra Stua. Your bags will be delivered directly to the rifugio. Today’s hike leads you into a breathtaking landscape of canyons, cascades, and sparkling mountain streams. The trail follows the Rio Fanes as it tumbles through wild rhododendron thickets, its waters a brilliant sapphire blue. Along the way, you’ll stop at thundering waterfalls—including one you can slip behind for the magical view of water streaming all around you. The trail loops back down before bringing you to Rifugio Ra Stua, nestled in a peaceful, forested valley. Here you’ll have a private room with ensuite facilities, and a hearty mountain dinner to round out a spectacular first day on the trail. The Hike:  Shortest option: distance: 5.7 km/4 mi 408 m/1290 ft elevation gain and 70 m/220 ft elevation loss. Duration 2 hrs 10 minutes. Full option: 13.3 km/8.3 mi, elevation gain 838 m/2681 ft. elevation loss 500 m/1600 ft  Duration. 5 to 5.5 hours moving time. Transfer from Treviso, picnic lunch, bag transfer, dinner and overnight at Ra Stua Rifugio included. 

From Rifugio Ra Stua we follow an easy track through the lovely upper Boite Valley before a steep 400 m vertical meters, eventually emerging from the forest onto the wonderfully open Foses plateau. The landscape now changes completely. You walk through rolling alpine meadows beneath the imposing cliffs of Croda Rossa d'Ampezzo. You will reach a beautiful small lake which sits in a broad, wonderfully lonely mountain basin. Marmots are frequently seen in this area, and the views stretch across a wild landscape of grass, pale limestone, and soaring Dolomite peaks. Beyond the lake, another climb carries you into increasingly stark, almost lunar terrain before reaching Rifugio Biella, dramatically positioned beneath the great tilted slabs of the Croda del Becco. We will have lunch here. After lunch, the hiking is easier, as we eventually descend through the Val Salatan through an increasingly green landscape of alpine meadows and larch forest to return to Rifugio Ra Stua. The Hike: 15.1 km/8.3 mi, elevation gain and loss 760 m/2400 ft. Moving time: 5.5 hours. Breakfast, dinner, and overnight at Ra Stua Rifugio included. Not included: Lunch at Rif. Biela.

After breakfast, you depart from Ra Stua to hike to Rifugio Fodara Vedla. After a little over an hour and a half, you will arrive in time for a mid-morning coffee and strudel break before embarking on a spectacular loop hike. Hike quietly here—you may spot wild chamois grazing among the rocks and high meadows. The reward is a superb panorama encompassing Cortina far below and dozens of Dolomite peaks stretching across the horizon. We return to Fodara Vedla in the afternoon. It is surrounded by lush green meadows, stunted pines, and charming alpine huts still used by local farmers when they bring their animals up for summer grazing. The rifugio's rich history goes back a century to 1923 when Hans Mutschlechner transformed an abandoned WWI barracks into a “Malga”/summer farmhouse and barn. Hans’s descendants still run this rifugio. Arthur and Frieda man the bar; their daughter, Lorena, serves the meal, while her husband, David, is the chef. The grandchildren also help wait at the tables. Dinner is in the lovely wood-paneled dining room. David produces excellent local cuisine from his state-of-the-art kitchen. The Hike: 10 kms/6.2 mi Elevation gain 835 m/2,900ft. Moving time: 4.5 hours. Overnight: Rifugio Fodara Vedla. Breakfast, picnic lunch,  dinner, and hotel/rifugio included.

Today we have a wonderful high-level loop across the Sennes plateau, combining broad alpine pastures, stark Dolomite scenery, and a very civilized lunch stop. You start by climbing through open alpine meadows toward the tiny Munt de Sennes hut before continuing to Passo Sennes. From here, the trail crosses a remote landscape of rolling grasslands and pale limestone, with tremendous views toward the surrounding Dolomite peaks. You continue over Forcella de Riciogogn and descend toward Cianpo Ros before looping back across the plateau to Rifugio Sennes. You will descend through alpine meadows awash with wildflowers to Rifugio Sennes where we stop for a well-earned lunch on the terrace before an easy final hike down to walk across Fodara Vedla to relax on the sunny terrace. Overnight: Rifugio Fodara Vedla. The Hike: 15.1 kms Elevation gain and loss: 709m/2350ft. Moving time. 5.5 hours. Breakfast,  dinner, and hotel/rifugio included. Not included: Lunch at Rif. Sennes. 

A gentle start this morning as you follow a trail made soft by a mat of pine needles. Then it is downhill to Rifugio Pederu for a mid-morning coffee and strudel break. Now this is civilized hiking!  The strudel will power you up the climb to the Fanes Plateau, a unique karst limestone expanse veined by babbling brooks. We have lunch at Lavarella Rifugio, where the antics of local marmots usually entertain us. Then, it is a 15-minute hike to Rifugio Fanes, where we spend the night at 6,725 ft/2,050 m. Today’s hike is relatively short, but you have earned a light day after big hikes in the preceding days. However, you can do an optional 2-3 hour afternoon hike to Passo di Sant'Antonio for gorgeous views towards Monte Antelau or simply relax on the canvas deck chairs and take in the serenity of this place. Fanes boasts an ample menu for food and wine this evening so we will dine a la carte. Try the “cajinci,” or “Schlutzkrapfen'' in German, a local dish that’s a kind of ravioli with ricotta and spinach. The Hike: 10.5kms/6.5 mi  Terrain: hard-packed dirt with one long, steep descent; Elevation gain 2,300 ft (700 m) and loss 1,475 ft (450 m).Duration: 3.5 hours. Overnight: Rifugio Fanes. Breakfast, dinner, and hotel/rifugio included.

Today we are searching for the rare mountain ibex, a wild goat species that has only recently recovered from the brink of extinction. They have been reintroduced into this part of the Fanes National Park. The males have impressive curved horns that can grow to five feet long. Our hike takes us into a remote area where a herd of ibex ranges. The hike is spectacular as we climb high above the Fanes plateau, and if we see the Ibex, it is an even more glorious day out. The turnaround point and our lunch spot is a high ridgeline linking several high peaks and offering a huge view towards the eastern ranges. We enjoy a picnic lunch our friends provide at Fanes hut and soak up the quiet and solitude. Not surprisingly, as we turn west and descend, the views are completely different from those on our morning hike! After our return to the rifugio, we have an informal tasting of some of the many excellent regional wines of Alto Adige and the Sud Tyrol. We purposely avoid the usual suspects, so you can try Teroldego, Lagrein, and Blaugburgunder. Another delicious dinner in the stube. The Hike: 11.6 kms/7mi, Elevation gain and loss, 760m/2,400ft. Duration: 4.5 hours. Overnight: Rifugio Fanes. Breakfast, picnic lunch, dinner, and hotel/rifugio included.

You have a gentle start this morning. After a short initial climb, the trail begins a beautiful two-hour descent into a broad alpine valley framed by soaring peaks. From here, the character of the hike changes as you climb steeply along the flanks of Monte Cavallo, weaving among dramatic rock spires before plunging down an extraordinary series of switchbacks to rejoin the main trail toward Lagazuoi. You’ll stop for a picnic lunch beside the lovely Lago Lagazuoi before beginning the day’s second major climb. The ascent starts gradually before steepening for the final push to Rifugio Lagazuoi, spectacularly perched on a rocky ledge high above Passo Falzarego. The stark beauty of this landscape is made all the more powerful by reminders of the fierce fighting that took place here during the First World War. Trenches, bunkers, and twisted strands of century-old barbed wire still punctuate the mountainside, silent remnants of the battles fought between Italian and Austro-Hungarian troops from 1915 to 1917. At 2,752 meters (9,029'), Rifugio Lagazuoi is one of the highest mountain huts in the Dolomites, and the reward for your climb is an extraordinary 360-degree panorama of jagged peaks and deep green valleys. Celebrate with a well-earned drink on the panoramic terrace before taking the cable car down to Passo Falzarego, where our driver will be waiting to transfer you to Conegliano. The hike:12.3km/7.7mi. Elevation gain 1093m/3500ft. Elevation loss 432m/1382ft. Moving time: 5.5 hrs. Hard-packed dirt and rocky trails. Transfer time to Conegliano: 2.5 hours. Overnight: 4-star Hotel Canon D’Oro or similar. Breakfast, picnic lunch, dinner, and hotel/rifugio included.

Your adventure ends in Conegliano. You can continue your journey within Italy from Conegliano train station, or take a taxi, train, or bus to get to nearby Venice International Airport. Travel time by taxi is 40 minutes. Or you can travel to Venice, which is also connected by taxi, train, and bus. Indeed, Conegliano is a good base for visiting Venice. It is easy to explore Venice by day and retire to Conegliano’s low-key, untouristy vibe for the evening. Breakfast included.