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Top Reasons to Go | Getting Oriented | Planning | Eating and Drinking Well in the Dolomites

Updated by Lorna Holland

The Dolomites, the inimitable craggy peaks Le Corbusier called “the most beautiful work of architecture ever seen,” are never so arresting as at dusk, when the last rays of sun create a pink hue that languishes into purple—locals call this magnificent transformation the enrosadira. You can certainly enjoy this glow from a distance, but the Dolomites are such an appealing year-round destination precisely because of the many ways to get into the mountains themselves. In short order, your perspective—like the peaks around you—will only become more rose colored.

In spite of their incredible beauty—the Dolomites themselves are strange, rocky pinnacles that jut straight up like chimneys: the otherworldly pinnacles that Leonardo depicted in the background of his Mona Lisa—this vast, mountainous domain of northeastern Italy has remained relatively undeveloped. Below the peaks rivers meander through valleys dotted with peaceful villages, while pristine lakes are protected by picture-book castles. In the most secluded Dolomite vales, unique cultures have flourished: the Ladin language, an offshoot of Latin still spoken in the Val Gardena and Val di Fassa, owes its unlikely survival to centuries of topographic isolation.

The more accessible parts of Trentino–Alto Adige, on the other hand, have a history of near-constant intermingling of cultures. The region’s Adige and Isarco valleys make up the main access route between Italy and central Europe, and as a result, the language, cuisine, and architecture are a blend of north and south. The province of Trentino is largely Italian-speaking, but Alto Adige is predominantly Germanic: until World War I the area was Austria’s south Tirol. As you move north toward the famed Brenner Pass—through the prosperous valley towns of Rovereto, Trento, and Bolzano—the Teutonic influence is increasingly dominant; by the time you reach Bressanone, it’s hard to believe you’re in Italy at all.

Top Reasons to Go

Grande Strada delle Dolomiti (Great Dolomites Road): Your rental Fiat will think it’s a Ferrari on this gorgeous drive through the heart of the Dolomites.

Hiking: No matter your fitness level, there’s an unforgettable walk in store for you here.

Museo Archeologico dell’Alto Adige, Bolzano: The impossibly well-preserved body of the iceman Ötzi, the star attraction here, provokes countless questions about what life was like 5,000 years ago. (Note that at this writing Ötzi is scheduled to be on display only until early 2013, although that may change.)

Trento: A graceful fusion of Austrian and Italian styles, this breezy, frescoed town is famed for its imposing castle.

Getting Oriented

Shadowed by the Dolomite Mountains, the northeast Italian provinces of Trentino and Alto Adige are centered around the valleys of the Adige and Isarco rivers, which course from the Brenner Pass south to Bolzano.

Trentino. This butterfly-shaped province is Italy with a German accent. Its principal city, history-rich Trento, is at the center. To the northwest are Madonna di Campiglio, one of Italy’s most fashionable ski resorts, and Bormio, another notable skiing destination, which doubles as a gateway to the Parco Nazionale dello Stelvio.

Bolzano. Alto Adige’s capital is the Dolomites’ liveliest city. Look for high-gabled houses, wrought-iron signs, and centuries-old wine cellars.

Alto Adige. This region was a part of Austria until the end of World War I, and Austrian sensibilities still predominate over Italian. At the spa town of Merano you can soak in hot springs, take the “grape cure,” and stroll along lovely walkways. To the southwest, Caldaro has an appealing wine-growing region.

Heart of the Dolomites. The spectacular Sella mountain range and the surrounding Val di Fassa and Val Gardena make up this region. It’s distinguished by great views and great mountain sports, both summer and winter. At the town of Canazei, the cable car 3,000 feet up to the Col Rodella lookout packages the vast panorama perfectly.

Cortina d’Ampezzo. Once a trendy hangout, Cortina has aged gracefully into the grande dame of Italian ski resorts. But it’s arguably at its best in summer, when there are countless options for hiking and mountain activities.

Planning

Making the Most of Your Time

For a brief stay, your best choice for a base is vibrant Bolzano, where you can get a sense of the region’s contrasts—Italian and German, medieval and modern. After a day or two in town, venture an hour south to history-laden Trento, north to the lovely spa town of Merano, or southwest to Caldaro and its Strada di Vino; all are viable day trips from Bolzano, and Trento and Merano make good places to spend the night as well.

If you have more time, you’ll want to get up into the mountains, which are the region’s main attraction. The trip on the Grande Strada delle Dolomiti (Great Dolomites Road) through the Heart of the Dolomites to Cortina d’Ampezzo is one of Italy’s most spectacular drives. Summer or winter, this is a great destination for mountain sports, with scores of trails for world-class hiking and skiing.

Getting Here and Around

Bus Travel

Regular bus service connects larger cities to the south (Verona, Venice, and Milan) with valley towns in Trentino–Alto Adige (Rovereto, Trento, Bolzano, and Merano). You’ll need to change to less frequent local buses to reach resorts and smaller villages in the mountains beyond.

If you’re equipped with current schedules and don’t mind adapting your schedules to theirs, it’s possible to visit even the remotest villages by bus.

Trentino Trasporti.
0461/821000 | www.ttesercizio.it.

SIT (Servizio Integrato di Trasporto).
| Alto Adige | 0471/415480, 800/846047 | www.sii.bz.it.

CortinaExpress.
Winter service with CortinaExpress connects the resort with Venice airport and the nearby Mestre train station. | 0436/867350 | www.cortinaexpress.it.

ATVO.
ATVO provides year-round service to Cortina from Venice’s Piazzale Roma bus park. | 0421/594672 | www.atvo.it.

DolomitiBus.
Covers the eastern Dolomites, including a number of small towns. | 0437/217111 | www.dolomitibus.it.

Car Travel

Driving is easily the most convenient way to travel in the Dolomites; it can be difficult to reach the ski areas (or any town outside of Rovereto, Trento, Bolzano, and Merano) without a car. Driving is also the most exhilarating way to get around, as you rise from broad valleys into mountains with narrow, winding roads straight out of a sports-car ad. The most important route in the region is the A22, the main north–south highway linking Italy with central Europe by way of the Brenner Pass. It connects Innsbruck with Bressanone, Bolzano, Trento, and Rovereto, and near Verona joins Autostrada A4 (which runs east–west across northern Italy, from Trieste to Turin). By car, Trento is 3 hours from Milan and 2½ hours from Venice. Bolzano is another hour’s drive to the north, with Munich four hours farther on.

If you’re planning a driving tour of the Dolomites, consider flying into Munich. Car rentals are less expensive in Germany, and it’s easier to get automatic transmission if that’s what you need to drive. Manual is better, however, for challenging mountain roads.

Caution is essential (tap your horn in advance of hairpin turns), as are chains in winter, when roads are often covered in snow. Sudden closures are common, especially on high mountain passes, and can occur as early as November and as late as May. Even under the best conditions, expect to negotiate mountain roads at speeds no greater than 50 kph (30 mph).

Train Travel

The rail line following the course of the Isarco and Adige valleys—from Munich and Innsbruck, through the Brenner Pass, and southward past Bressanone, Bolzano, Trento, and Rovereto en route to Verona—is well trafficked, making trains a viable option for travel between these towns. Eurocity trains on the Dortmund–Venice and Munich–Innsbruck–Rome routes stop at these stations, and you can connect with other Italian lines at Verona. Although branch lines from Trento and Bolzano do extend into some of the smaller valleys (including hourly service between Bolzano and Merano), most of the mountain attractions are beyond the reach of trains.

Trenitalia.
892021 within Italy | www.trenitalia.com.

Restaurants

Please note that restaurant prices listed as “Average Cost” include a meal consisting of first course (primo), second course (secondo), and dessert (dolce).

Hotels

Classic Dolomite lodging options include restored castles, chalets, and stately 19th-century hotels. The small villages that pepper the Dolomites often have scores of flower-bedecked inns, many of them inexpensive. Hotel information offices at train stations and tourist offices can help if you’ve arrived without reservations. The Bolzano train station has a 24-hour hotel service, and tourist offices will give you a list of all the hotels in the area, arranged by location, stars, and price. Hotels at ski resorts cater to longer stays at full or half board: you should book ski vacations as packages well in advance. Most rural accommodations close from early November to mid- or late December, as well as for a month or two after Easter.

Eating and Drinking Well in the Dolomites

Everything in Alto Adige (and, to a lesser extent, Trentino) has more than a tinge of the Teutonic—and the food is no exception. The rich and creamy food here, including fondues, polentas, and barley soups, reflects the Alpine climate and Austrian and Swiss influences.

The quintessential restaurant here is the wood-panel Tirolean Stube (pub) serving hearty meat-and-dumpling fare, and there’s also a profusion of pastry shops and lively beer halls.

Although the early dining schedule you’ll find in Germany or Austria is somewhat tempered here, your options for late-night meals are more limited than in southern Italy, where la dolce vita has a firmer grip.

Thankfully, the coffee is every bit as good as in parts south—just expect to hear “danke, grazie” when paying for your cappuccino.

Best of the Wurst

Not to be missed are the outdoor wurst carts, even (or perhaps especially) in colder weather. After placing your order you’ll get a sheet of wax paper, followed by a dollop of mustard, a Kaiser roll, and your chosen sausage.

You can sometimes make your selection by pointing to whatever picture is most appealing; if not, pass on the familiar-sounding Frankfurter and try the local Meraner. Carts can reliably be found in Bolzano (try Piazza delle Erbe, or in front of the archaeological museum) and Merano (Piazza del Grano, or along the river).

Polenta and Dumplings

Polenta is a staple in the region, in both its creamy and firm varieties, often topped with cheese or mushrooms (or both). Dumplings also appear on many menus; the most distinctive to the region are canederli (also known as Knoedel), made from seasoned bread in many variations, and served either in broth or with a sauce.

Other dumplings to look for are the dense strangolapreti (literally “priest-chokers”) and gnocchi di ricotta alla zucca (ricotta and pumpkin dumplings).

Cheese

Every isolated mountain valley in the Trentino–Alto Adige seems to make its own variety of cheese, and the local specialty is often simply called nostrano (ours).

The best known of the cheeses are the mild Asiago and fontal and the more pungent puzzone di Moena (literally, “stinkpot”). Try the schiz: fresh cheese that’s sliced and fried in butter, sometimes with cream added.

Pastries and Baked Goods

Bakeries turn out a wide selection of crusty dark rolls and caraway-studded rye breads—maybe not typical Italian bread, but full of flavor. Pastries are reminiscent of what you’d expect to find in Vienna. Apple strudelis everywhere, and for good reason: the best apples in Italy are grown here. There are other exceptional fruits as well, including pears, plums, and grapes that make their way into baked goods.

Alimentari

If you’re planning a picnic or getting provisions for a hike, you’ll be well served by the fine alimentari (food shops) of Trentino and Alto Adige. They stock a bounty of regional specialties, including cheeses, pickles, salami, and smoked meats. These are good places to pick up a sample of speck tirolese, the salt-cured, cold-smoked, deboned ham hock usually cut in paper-thin slices, like prosciutto (though proud speck producers often bristle at the comparison). Don’t discard the fat—it’s considered the best part.

Wine

Though Trentino and Alto Adige aren’t as esteemed for their wines as many other Italian regions, they produce a wide variety of crisp, dry, and aromatic whites—Kerner, Müller Thurgau, and Traminer, to name a few—not surprisingly, more like what you’d expect from German vineyards than Italian. Among the reds, look for Lagrein and the native Teroldego, a fruity, spicy variety produced only in the tiny valley north of Trento. The Trento D.O.C. is a marvelous sparkling wine in a class with Champagne.

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