Six nights in the Dolomites: what to do?
 

I had a previous post on our itinerary in Italy and Switzerland and received a lot of fantastic support and advice.

Now I am going to ask for your help again in refining one part of our itinerary: the Dolomites.

Just to recap: we are four adults (my daughter is not going anymore; love has gotten in the way!) aged 61 (me), 59 (dear Wife), 53 (dear Sister) and my son, aged 36. I have a bad knee, which I am working on very hard with my Bio kineticist, and I am doing exercises to strengthen some muscles and to get my fitness to a reasonable level. The hikes/walks we wish to do will therefore have to be easy to moderate.

We have six nights/five full days to spend, and we’ll be staying in Ortisei for the entire time, depending on one specific thing. Our accommodation has been booked, but not paid for yet.

Worth mentioning is that we’ll have a rental vehicle for the full period.

Here is my list:

1. Please help me with nice walks with beautiful views. The reason why we are going to the Dolomites, is Seceda, so we’ll definitely visit there and then walk down to Col Raiser and catch a lift down to Santa Christina. If you can help me with three or four walks, I’d be very grateful.

2. Hand-in-hand with point 1, is that we would like to visit as many Refugios as possible on our walks, and have a cold drink, beer, soup, wine, lunch or whatever we feel like when we get there. Again, any information on this will be appreciated.

3. We don’t really have ski-lifts or gondolas in South Africa, so our aim is to ride as many as possible. One that I am thinking strongly to include, is the coffin lifts at Sassolungo, which I think has a very high probability of unexpected humour. Please help us with this as well, although I think it may form part of both preceding questions.

4. One thing I would like to do, is spend our sixth night in a rifugio, for the experience of it. I have tried Lagazoui’s because of the views and it being easy to reach, but they only have dorm beds available and we are past our dorm days. Is there one that is kind of similar that you can recommend? I think half board would be okay with us.

Any other advice on what is not to be missed (such as where to experience a beautiful sunset etc), will also be appreciated.

Ewoud

What are your specific dates in the Dolomites?

You mention "bad knee" and use the word "walk" rather than "hike," so does that mean you are limited to more level trails?

Check out the Kamoot list.

https://www.komoot.com/guide/1885/hi...-the-dolomites

And here's another list that includes several hikes, although most of the "easy" rated hikes are nearer Cortina.

https://www.earthtrekkers.com/best-h...the-dolomites/

Where are you headed after the 6th night in a rifugio? That destination might dictate which rifugio is even a realistic option.

Our first trip we stayed in Ortisei for a week, and did local easy walks from the various gondolas, eating apple strudel at each one 😉 a nice start is Resciesa.

Seceda was amazing, and the walk you describe is easy and beautiful.

Comici hut was also fabulous, a bit more uphill, but the surrounding scenery …..😍

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...a0a59c5442.jpg


https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...fe8a553fd9.jpg


https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...32129a7737.jpg

we didn’t walk around at Sassolungo, but the lifts are something else
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...b6c83e8f3e.jpg


Coffin lifts, heading up….




Seiser Alm is flat, mostly
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...275e19692a.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...e0120f9e6e.jpg

A lot of walkers enjoy Seiser Alm as it’s a huge alpine meadow. A bit too flat and open for me.

I wish we’d done the Vallunga walk in Selva, not the long arduous one, just the flat amble into the valley (it’s a return walk unless you’re doing one of those ‘difficult’ hikes) - looks very dramatic.

Most gondolas lead you to an awesome hut or lookout, then on to more challenging hikes, but the easy walks are brilliant too

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...f01621a561.jpg
Life is good. Seceda then down Col Raiser, stop here first , yum.

There are huts with private rooms like Grossberg Hut https://www.grossberghuette.com/it/appartamenti-prezzi.
Have a look at the Hut list, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano - Elenco dei rifugi alpini and choose the huts you are interested in.

Hi All,
Jean, yeah I have osteo-arthritis in my right knee. At this stage, I can do reasonably level walks but I think by June I'll be able to some moderate ones as well. Our dates are 11 - 17 June and our next destination is Lake Maggiore.
Adelaidean, thanks for posting those pics. It just confirms that adding the Dolomites to our itinerary was a good decision. We are not strudel fans, but I know those in the Dolomites would be amazing; it is apple country after all. If the uphill is not too strenuous, we'll try and visit Comici hut. Any other good ones you can recommend will be highly appreciated.
Thanks for the links, neckervd, I'll take some time checking it out. My assumption is that you have overnighted in a hut; was the experience worth it?

Ewoud

I think putting the overnight rifugio stay at the end could be a bit problematic, esp. if the hut is in the eastern/northeastern part of the Dolomites. You'd have to hike out from the hut and then drive to L. Maggiore all in one day. The drive from Cortina to Stresa, for example, is nearly 6 hours without stops and not counting the hike/drive to Cortina. You might want to limit the rifugio search to the western/southwestern area.

I'm sure an overnight in a rifugio is a memorable experience, but you might want to check weather records for June before you commit to having to hike on specific days. June can be rainy and mountain weather is always changeable. Of course, having the right gear can make almost anything tolerable, but you might want to change clothes before getting in the car for the long drive. Also, make sure you leave the car with your luggage in a safe location for that night.

Jean, but it never rains when one is on holiday...
On a more serious note, I understand exactly what you mean, but even having the right rain gear does not always make a rainy day good. Good advice about the time as well.
neckervd, I took a look at the link you sent on the rifugios, and it will take some time to read about them all. Don't mind doing that, I learn about hikes, the rifugios and the areas they are in. I even recognized some of them from my research done so far.
Thanks for taking the time to assist me. I appreciate it a LOT!