7 days/6 nights

Alta Badia Hiking & Via Ferrata Tour

Trip Location:

ALTA BADIA

Hike hut-to-hut and challenge yourself on exciting via ferrata!

The Dolomites are considered among the world’s most stunning mountain landscapes, and on this fantastic itinerary, you’ll discover why as you hike through Puez-Odle Natural Park—geologically significant for its full display of typical Dolomite formations—and Fanes-Sennes-Braies Natural Park, one of the region’s largest. Beginning and ending at a 4-star hotel in Corvara, Alta Badia (where Austrian-Italian culture thrives and locals speak Ladino), you’ll spend each day hiking and each night in a charming rifugio offering breathtaking mountain views. You can join a guided group departure, book a private guided trip with your chosen companions, or opt for a self-guided adventure with detailed support—the choice is yours!

Highlights

Walk along pastoral alpine pastures, across mountain passes, and on scenic trails

Enjoy the atmosphere of a different mountain rifugio each night, a real mountaineer experience

Options to experience the adrenaline rush of climbing a via ferrata!

Experience the rich Ladin culture with many traditions that make the Italian Alps so unique

Itinerary

Day 1

Arrive in Alta Badia, the Dolomites

Arrive in Alta Badia (1,226m / 4,022') on your own and check into your hotel (private transfer available on request).
Alta Badia is a sunny hollow on the south side of the Val Badia in the Alto Adige region. Incredible hiking, skiing, and vistas abound – particularly of the Sella Massif. Home to three cultures – Italian, Austrian, and the native Ladin, most signage in Alta Badia is written in three languages – Italian, German, and Ladin! Depending on when you arrive, you may have time for a hike or to explore one of the six villages of Alta Badia.

day 2

Start the day with a trip briefing—guided travelers meet their mountain guide, while self-guided travelers meet a Dolomite Mountains representative for orientation and maps. Hike into UNESCO-listed Puez-Odle Natural Park, known for showcasing all typical Dolomite rock strata. After a transfer to La Villa (1,433m / 4,701'), hike through forest or take an optional chairlift, then climb steeply toward a rifugio, enjoying stunning views of Alta Badia and Val Gardena. After lunch, a panoramic descent leads to Colfosco and Corvara (6–7 hours, 15.5km / 9.6 miles, 886m ascent, 1,150m descent).

day 3

Puez-Odle Nature Park

This morning, hike from Corvara toward the Cascate del Pisciadù waterfalls, ascending through Val di Mesdì and under the Dent de Mezdì (2,881m / 9,452') to a rifugio perched on the northern terraces of the Sella Group (2,585m / 8,481'), offering breathtaking views of the Pisciadù Valley and a nearby turquoise alpine lake (~4–5 hours, 6.8km / 4.2 miles, 1,064m ascent). For a more adventurous option, climb the Via Ferrata Tridentina, a spectacular route past waterfalls and across a dramatic suspension bridge (~5–6 hours, 750m / 2,461' ascent).

Day 4

Hike / Via Ferrata Option

Hike to Piz Boé: the Top of the Sella Massif

Begin with a steep ascent to dramatic views over Val di Mesdì, then climb to Antersass (2,900m / 9,514') before a gentle descent and another steep, rocky ascent to Piz Boé (3,152m / 10,341'), the highest peak of the Sella Massif. After lunch at a small rifugio with incredible 360-degree views, descend a steep, rocky trail to tonight’s rifugio, perched atop a natural rock balcony offering unforgettable scenery (~5–6 hours, 7.5km / 4.7 miles, 758m ascent, 823m descent).

Day 5

Descend to an alpine lake, follow a gravel path to the main road, then hike uphill through pastures on the Pralongiá Plateau (2,572m / 8,438') and continue across meadows to the Setsass group (2,575m / 8,448'). From there, reach the Lagazuoi cable car, which takes you to tonight’s rifugio atop Mount Lagazuoi (2,778m / 9,114'), one of the highest in the Dolomites, surrounded by dramatic rock formations and rich in hidden WWI history (~7–8 hours, 19km / 11.7 miles, 763m ascent, 1,193m descent).

Hike to Lagazuoi

Start with a torch-lit exploration of the WWI caves on Piccolo Lagazuoi, then hike down the Alpe di Lagazuoi to a beautiful lake before a steep ascent and descent into Val di Fanes, known as the kingdom of marmots. Continue down to a restaurant on the edge of Fanes-Sennes-Braies Natural Park, then transfer back to Corvara (~5–6 hours, 10.2km / 6.3 miles, 298m ascent, 1,318m descent). For a challenge, you can climb the Via Ferrata Tomaselli—one of the Dolomites’ hardest and most beautiful routes—ascending the exposed southwest face of Punta Fanes Sud (~6–7 hours total, 300m / 984' via ferrata).

Breakfast and departure on your own (private transfer available on request).

Day 6

Hike / Via Ferrata Option

Day 7

Departure

Area map