Planning concept is to stay in Ortisei (Aug or Sep) for at least two days and use the bus to get around to see the sights and take a few easy walks/hikes. Will be a couple of 60+ folks fit enough for about 6-8 miles total per day (assumimg the inclines are not too steep).

I am trying to visualize how to go about it: walk in the valley around Ortisei, walk between the small towns in the valley, take a lift(s) up to alpine meadows, take guided walks.......... .

Concerned a bit about getting lost and finding shelter if we encounter lightening or a rain storm.

We loved our trip in 2014 when we stayed in Ortesei.

You can read the details in our trip report - the second half:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-dolomites.cfm

And see our pics here

https://www.flickr.com/photos/pug_gi...57636058614266

Ortesei has several lifts you can take up onto beautiful plateaus that make fairly easy walks. Well worth the efforts. In 2 days you can easily fill your days.

Bolzano has a great museum about Otzi, the Iceman, if you have time

http://www.iceman.it/en/

Happy planning!

Alpe di Siusi has many easy walks--can make them as long or short as you choose--so if you want to start small, you might choose that lift first.

I also second Jamie on Otzi and Bolzano. If for whatever reason you stay in Bolzano, I highly recommend the Parkhotel Laurin. I overnighted there on my way "down" from the Dolomites to Arezzo. Great, old-fashioned grand hotel, has a pool, beautiful gardens, elegant bar, good restaurant, very close to the train station.

In Ortisei I stayed at Hotel Grones and liked it quite a bit too. There are many choices.

We used Jamie's ideas for our trip .

Ortisei is the perfect base, there are cablecars and funiculars right in town.
Take the Resciesa and do the loop ( follow the crowd) stopping at the rifugio on the way for refreshments. There are extended walks you can add. Definitely do the Seceda and follow signs to Col Raiser, but go left via Pieralonga, so lovely. We had a week there last July, buried later in my trip report and last few pages of my photos..none of our walks were difficult.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...amily-trip.cfm

Photos here, Dolomites towards end: https://flic.kr/s/aHskDja7Fy

We did encounter one thunderstorm, typically in the afternoons in summer, take rain gear even if sunny and warm.

Highly recommend using the "summer" lifts/trams/gondolas--they get you out of the valley and up to where the views and panoramas are spectacular. Ortisei has three--Seis Alm up to the Alpe di Suisi, Rasciesa (a large tram) and Secede-Funis which is a two stage gondola system. All three have facilities at the top with 'shelter', food and drink and are jump off points for a multitude of hiking options which are well marked. There are also additional 'huttes' scattered around the area linked by the hiking trails and would also provide shelter.

Most of the accommodations in Ortisei also provide a transportation card allowing use of the bus service between villages in the Val Gardena. You can take the Secede up and connect with the Col Raiser lift down to St. Cristina and bus back to Ortisei--much like the skiers do in the winter. Don't worry about the trails as there are many levels and you can pick what you want but definitely get up on top!

Thank you all for your great fedback! i loved all the photos!

Thank you, sembach, for starting this thread! Another 60+ traveler tagging on. For those who have made the hike from the top of the Seceda lift to Col Raiser--is it manageable in athletic shoes (reasonable support but not a lot of tread) and without poles?

From a 60+ traveler--
We just returned and I did the hike in old running shoes and wish I hadn't. Its downhill mostly on a variety of surfaces ranging from gravel to scored concrete for vehicles to service the huttes. Without tread you will slip.
My wife had a hip replacement surgery 7 months earlier and she was able to do all hikes with the aid of a walking stick. I used the other one for a first time and found it to be very helpful on the sometimes steep trails. You will notice that a vast majority of the hikers in the area use walking sticks.
FWIW-we averaged about 10 miles a day for the week we were there and loved every moment. Enjoy!

Thanks, macanimals, that's very helpful!

bon_voyage, I wore trail running shoes b/c I was also running on this trip and didn't want to pack two pairs of bulky shoes. They were fine but hiking shoes would have been a bit better/more comfortable, especially on rocky descents.

Thanks, Leely! That helps bring things into focus. Will be taking my almost new Brooks Glycerins which will have to take me from city walking to my three nights in the Dolomites. I can manage the mostly packed dirt hiking trail ups and downs here at home with them together with poles. I do not see rocky descents in my future .

Interesting points about running shoes vs hiking boots.

I took good walking shoes to the Dolomites last year, which were fine, but this year I bought hiking boots due to a sprained ankle so protecting it, as well as better grip on loose surfaces. My hikers are very light, but kind of bulky for someone who travels light, so will be on my feet most of the time. I don't do steep walks or rough trails, but sometimes there is a more slippery surface after rain and I want to avoid another sprain.

Coming down from Puez-Odle toward Vallunga:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BW0j-0ADTK_/

Gentle trails in the Alpe di Siusi:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWnN6EUjPri/

I went to Ortisei in early June a few years ago and there was still snow, not too much sun.

And I learned most of the cable cars would open in late June or even July, not in early June.

Also had a Val di Gardena card which covered most of the major cable cars or gave discounts on them -- not sure which.

So missed out on most of those. I think I went up Alpe de Suisi or whichever the main one is near Ortisei town center. Was overcast so it wasn't the best.

One thing some websites I found was to really emphasize taking measures against ticks because of the threat of Lyme disease. Beautiful pastures up there surrounded by peaks but they said take the insect repellent, seal up the pant legs, be prepared to examine your legs when you got to the hotel at the end of the day, etc.

Adelaidean, I re-read (and re-enjoyed) your Aug 2016 trip report. Just checking, you did the hike to Pieralonga and down to Col Raiser in your walking shoes, no poles/no problems?

Great pics, Leely, that trail in the Alpi di Suisi looks gorgeous.

Scrb11, tics and Lyme disease were not on my radar screen for the Dolomites so thanks for the heads up.

bon voyage...that is a very groomed path, no rocky parts, no steep difficult bits, more of a walk than a hike, so walking shoes were fine. I didn't have or need poles.

It is so beautiful.

I didn't hear anything about ticks. I wore cargo pants, husband and kids wore shorts. Lots of people in shorts, it was hot last July.

One day we took the funicular up, another day we used the cable car. They are on opposite sides of the valley where Ortisei is located. Once up at the top, we had easy walks around meadows up there. It was not difficult at all on either side!

This is from a UK hiker's forum:

"Kean - on 09 May 2017
In reply to ogreville:

Just as an "Italian perspective"...I'm based just south of the Dolomites, and certain areas of the southern Dolomites are so infested with ticks they have signs warning walkers of the problem. The situation is really bad. I once did a walk, about 8 hours, I'd been told just how bad the tick situation was, but also that the walk was absolutely spectacular, and that if I could deal with the tick problem, it was well worth the effort, so decided that the more bare skin I had the easier it would be to check for the buggers along the way, so I opted for cycling shorts and bare-chest (roasting hot summer's day). I removed no fewer than 77 ticks, basically stopping every so often to do a body check.
So there you have it. Yomp naked...no problem.
Several friends have had tick-borne encephalitis and the situation is getting worse...so I'm guessing the situation is also getting worse in Scotland...?
A friend went to the doctor just the other day after getting bitten and the doctor's reaction seemed to be similar to other people's experiences on this thread. "Come back if you have symptoms".

Pharmacies sell a spray called "AUTAN PLUS" that comes in a yellow bottle with a red top. It is specifically made to ward off ticks, which regular mosquito spray won't. Typically the worst risk for ticks is sitting or laying on grass or walking off well-used paths into the brush & tall grass. Be aware too that the rodents that pass Lyme bacteria to ticks live in rocky outcrops & stone walls. Don't sit on these places to take photos or rest.

"... so decided that the more bare skin I had the easier it would be to check for the buggers along the way, so I opted for cycling shorts and bare-chest ..."

That's certainly outside the box thinking. We have ticks around here. Where's my speedo?