Accommodation in the Dolomites
 

We are 2 couples travelling in the Dolomites for 10 days in early September. The husbands are there for the hard trekking.The wives are more into the gentle walks and gondola type travel!
We are looking for a base in a beautiful location. Thinking about Ortisei or Selva?? Would greatly appreciate recommendations(or websites)for quality apartments or bb type accommodation with beautiful views and balconies. It seems pointless to pay for the amenities of hotels that we are not interested in like restaurants and swimming pools.
Many thanks,
Sally

Just Google " Val Gardena" and you will find a wide selection.

For ten days, you probably want two different "bases". I have stayed up on the Alpe di Siusi, and the views, walks, and serious treks are all wonderful. In summer the area is mostly car-free (you can drive to your hotel, but then everyone gets around by shuttle bus). So it is very peaceful. Last time I stayed at the Pensione Seelaus, with a gorgeous view of Schlern), but I'd relly love to stay at the other end of the Alpe, at the Berghaus Zallinger:
http://www.zallinger.com/
But it's probably only for horse-lovers.

Either Ortisei or Selva would be good for a second base area, or you could cross over the pass to the next valley, Val Badia, and stay in Colfosco. We had a lovely room with balcony and view at Garni Delta, a 2-star pensione.

Sally - For accm in Val Gardena - Ortisei or Selva - your best place to start is:

http://www.valgardena.it/

I usually stay in Ortisei as I think it's the nicest village - though Selva wins on setting.
I've stayed in Villa Park (B&B) and found it a comfortable base.
www.hotelvillapark.com

I'd second Enzian's suggestion of Corvara/Colfosco in Val Badia as another base:

www.altabadia.org

Hope this helps ...

Steve

Thank you very much for the information. I have been "googling" very busily but personal recommendations from Fodorites are always much appreciated. Whilst there is clearly heaps of accommodation the "garni" type is not so well represented on the net and the quality can vary tremendously! Enzian, the Garni Delta is perfect and I will book it immediately. More suggestions are very welcome. I am surprised that I can't find more recommendations and reviews. We thought it was a very touristy area in winter and summer.

Many thanks
Sally

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For the Alpe di Siusi area I'd suggest staying in Castelrotto - a delightful village with easy access to the Alpe by bus/car (- or alternatively by cablecar from nearby Siusi).

For excellent B&B accm in Castelrotto I can recommend Hotel Zum Wolf -
www.hotelwolf.it
(- no balconies though ...)

http://www.kastelruth.com/

Hope this helps ...

Steve

Sally---you are so right; it is hard to find opinions on this area on the web or even in guidebooks. The only resource I could find several years ago was the Lonely Planet "Walking Italy" book, which has few lodging recommendations. So I just went on the internet, using the websites that Steve James mentioned, and found places to stay. After viewing photos and prices, etc. on the websites, I contacted places by e-mail, intending to choose the ones that seemed the friendliest. But they were all so friendly it was often a difficult choice, and it generally came down to availability. Many of the small, family-run places have a loyal clientele that returns year after year.

There are, however, some guidebooks that cover the hiking routes and via ferrata---Gillian Price has written at least two, published by Cicerone Press. Hoopefully your husbands have found these or other guides for their hikes. Many of the "hiking maps" for the area do not show elevation changes nor difficulty, except that where the line indicating a trail turns into +++++++ , that is a via ferrata.

There are nice walks along the river in the Val Badia, as well as pleasant strolls from the tops of some of the lifts, for you and your friend. If you enjoy cycling, you can rent bikes at the shop in La Villa, the next town down from Corvara.

If you do stay at Garni Delta, there is a nice lighted footpath that leads straight into the town----don't try to walk the road. We found a very pleasant, casual place for dinner, with such good food we returned every evening. Unfortunately I can't remember the name!

We stayed at the Hotel Zum Wolf that Steve James mentioned and we had a balcony. Our room was in the rear of the hotel. Very nice and charming town. Very easy to get to Alpe du Suis.

Travelatte

I also stayed in Castelrotto and really enjoyed the town and the location. Exactly what were looking for. You mention "gentle walks," and the above mentioned Alpe di Siusi is gorgeous and has lots of low, fairly level walking options.

Because there were just two of us, and in early June so not crowded, our Dolomite visit (part of a trip to other parts of Italy) was without reservations. We drove into Castelrotto, drove around looking at lodging options, and stayed at the first place offering "zimmer" that we looked at. Cheap, spotless and charming. German and some Italian spoken, no English.

Dinner at the Cavallino d'Oro -- very good.

(I have an awesome guidebook for the Dolomites, covering summer and winter in great detail. It is called 'The Dolomites of Italy' by James and Anne Goldsmith. Published in Italy, the UK and the US -- the US publisher is Hunter Publishing in NJ.

The problem is that I am not sure if it is still in print. It was written by two Americans (I knew them and their stories are one reason we HAD to visit the Dolomites!) whose daughter married a man from the area; after spending tons of time visiting the region, they were frustrated at the lack of a guidebook in English and with help from their local guide friends, wrote an excellent one!)

Thank you thank you! My husband and friend are serious walkers - they did a 12 day trek in Patagonia last November so we have many books about the hiking in the Dolomites and they have hired a guide for one. I think the problem with the accommodation is, as everyone says, it is uniformly reliable unlike so many other places. However, we live in Perth in Australia and it is FLAT here. So we love glorious views of mountains! The worst possible outcome for us would be a very ordinary place in the middle of a village with a view of the church (especially if the bells ring at night).
Very much appreciate the info about lovely walks. Keep it coming please. There seems to be a few lakes around too. Some of the individual valley websites are marvellous in their details. It is all so exciting.
Many thanks
Sally

Sally - Will you have a car? If so, don't miss Lake Braies - one of the most beautiful lakes in Europe IMO. The walk around is a real delight ...

Lake Braies is also the starting point of the Via Ferrata No.1 - if your husbands are looking for a serious trek ;)

I expect you've found these links:

http://www.dolomiti.org/dengl/cortin...oni/index.html

http://www.planetmountain.com/english/Trekking/ferrate/

Nearby is another area with quite beautiful views for a walk - Prato Piazza. We had lunch at the refuge up there.

In the same area near the Austrian border are the lovely Sesto Dolomites (- near San Candido). Head for the Val Fiscalino ...

.....

If you are in the Alpe di Siusi the best of that area IMO is the area around Saltria, with stunning views .

Hope this helps ...

Steve