Itinerary: One Day Exploring the Stunning Dolomites

Last updated on May 12th, 2023 at 10:02 am

The Dolomites might not be as well known, nor as popular as the Swiss or Austrian Alps. But, these stunning peaks have intensely unique qualities which have captivated adventurous people from around the world. Here, you will discover a collection of dramatic, battlement-like rock walls. Surrounding these formations you will find stoic mountain steeples, deep valleys, and serene, tealy-blue alpine lakes. There is much to see and do, and this area deserves far more than a one-day visit. Unfortunately, that was all the time we had and I hope to return some day to explore even further. In this post, you will find the itinerary we followed, which is largely dedicated to exploring two of the most famous sites in the Dolomites region.

***Disclaimer: Be sure to look up all entry rules and restrictions for Italy and and activity you wish to participate in before booking any part of your journey!

What Are the Dolomites?

The Dolomites, also known as the Dolomite Alps, are located in Northern Italy. The characteristic rock of the Dolomites consists of fossilized coral reefs which formed during the Triassic Period (around 250 million years ago). It may be hard to believe, but the structures that you can see and climb today were once at the bottom of the ancient tropical Tethys Ocean. When the African tectonic plate was pushed north across the Tethys sea, it collided with the European plate, creating steep, rocky structures. Once the ancient ocean receded, the magnificent pinnacles were revealed for all to admire.

This stunning mountain range was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2009. This is due to their physical beauty and geological significance. To learn more, please visit the UNESCO World Heritage website.

Weather and Activities in the Dolomites

Our visit to the Dolomites took place in mid-July. In spite of the summer season, it was quite cool (we had to wear long pants and jackets), rainy (with bouts of thunderstorms), and overcast.

Unfortunately, the weather can be a bit difficult to predict in mountainous areas, but I can say that thunderstorms are pretty common in this region during the summer. Therefore, it is important to pack items that allow you to enjoy your visit no matter what mother nature decides to do. For example, pack layers to accommodate for chilly mornings and warmer afternoons, bring good, waterproof shoes, have a rain jacket/umbrella on you, and carry your hiking items in a rainproof backpack so you don’t have to worry about your things getting wet, etc.

I also recommend keeping your schedule flexible. The weather forecast changed multiple times throughout the day during our visit. So, you might need to reverse the order in which you do your activities for the day. It’s also important to note that the weather higher up in the mountains can be much different from down on the valley floor.

Seasonal Activities

This itinerary is designed for a warmer weather visit. Other typical summer activities in the region include hiking, biking, via ferrata, rock climbing, lake activities, and much more.

Winter is another popular time to visit the Dolomites. But, of course, the types of activities available will be different and include things like skiing, snow boarding, and seasonal Christmas markets.

How to Get to the Dolomites?

The airport that will get you closest to the start of this itinerary would be the Venice Marco Polo International Airport. From here, I highly recommend renting a car. Otherwise, it will be much more challenging to get around the area since public transportation is intermittent.

Where Should You Stay in the Dolomites?

The Dolomites region is composed of 9 different parts that stretch across a large portion of Northern Italy. Therefore, there are many places that you can stay depending on which area/s of the region you are hoping to explore.

Personally, we chose to stay at the Hotel Croda Rossa. The main reason we chose it was due to its proximity to the activities we wanted to do: Tre Cime and Lago di Braies. It truly was the cheapest place that I could find at the time that I was booking our trip. That said, I really felt like it was overpriced for what it is. At the end of the day, what we paid for was location. And, when you are limited on time, that seems like a good enough reason to me. If you only have one day and are hoping to follow this Dolomites itinerary, I would recommend making a reservation either here or somewhere close by.

Alternatively, you can look for lodging options in the popular village Cortina d’Ampezzo. It’s about 30 minutes away from the free parking for the hike to Tre Cime and about 1 hour from Lago di Braies.

***In the last section of this post, I have included some other popular villages and places to stay within the Dolomites region.

Map of the Journey

Below, you will see a map of this one day Dolomites itinerary. Of course, you are welcome to reverse the order or adjust any aspect of this itinerary to match your own personal/group needs. You can also feel free to switch out the restaurants as you deem fit.

Dolomites Itinerary First Stop: Hike to Tre Cime di Lavaredo

Tre Cime di Lavaredo (Three Peaks in English) is one of the most remarkable and distinguished sites in the Dolomites. Therefore, it was one of our top priorities, and we made sure to add it first to our Dolomites itinerary.

We chose to hike from a free parking lot up to one of the Tre Cime lookouts at Rifugio Auronzo. Overall, our experience was very positive although the weather during our mid-July visit was a little bit on the fritz. We lucked out by having an uneventful and fairly clear hike up. We had many amazing views of various mountains and rock structures. However, at the top, it was incredibly foggy with very low visibility. So, we did not get to enjoy any of the views of Tre Cime. 🙁 Sadly, within 30 minutes or so of our arrival at Rifugio Auronzo, it began to rain and so we took the bus back down the mountain.

Despite not getting to see Tre Cime, I am thankful that we did the hike up. I felt like we really got to immerse ourselves in the area and experience the power of the Dolomites. If I were to do it all again, I wouldn’t change a thing.

Planning Your Visit to Tre Cime di Lavaredo

This is a very popular hiking area and I recommend arriving as early in the day as possible in order to guarantee parking (if you are driving) and avoid the crowds.

How to Get to the Tre Cime Lookout

Since we had a car, we chose to drive to this parking lot. I’m going to be completely transparent, it was very unclear to me (despite the reviews online and other people parking there) whether or not it was a legitimate place to park for free. Luckily, we had no issues parking here and we didn’t get any tickets. 🙂

From this starting spot, it took us about 3-3.5 hours to hike up the mountains to Rifugio Auronzo. For your reference, the hike is moderate but with some pretty steep places and at times. We stuck to following the 101 red and white markers and made it to our destination without too much difficulty (although there were a few places when we questioned whether or not we were on the right path).

Alternatively, if you don’t feel like doing the hike, you can pay to take the toll road up to Rifugio Auronzo. It costs about 30 euros per car to drive up and park.

There is also a bus that you can take up to Rifugio Auronzo. We personally decided to take the bus back down to the free parking lot because the weather was starting to get a bit rough. Our ride back down to the stop at Lago d’Antorno (which was just a short walk away from where we had parked) was quite cheap and much quicker/drier compared to walking. To view the bus timetable, please visit the Sued Tirol Mobil website.

What to Do Once You Arrive

Once you arrive at Rifugio Auronzo (either by car or on foot), you have the option to take a rest and eat a snack, grab a warm drink at the restaurant, or hike many other trails. A popular hiking option choice is to continue along the trail to Rifugio Lavaredo which is about 30 minutes (one way) on foot. From this point, there are even more paths to choose from and your decisions will be largely based on the weather, how much time you want to devote to this area, and what else you are planning to do for the rest of the day.

Originally, our plan was to hike at least to Rifugio Lavaredo or possibly even further, but due to the unpredictable weather and the fog which prevented us from having any view of Tre Cime Lavaredo, we chose to return to the car after a short rest at Rifugio Auronzo.

Dolomites Itinerary Second Stop: Lunch Break

We decided to have lunch at Ristorante Lago di Landro, which is located right next to the beautiful Dürrensee. Here, we chose to try a traditional dish from this region called Canederli soup. It is composed of dumplings (made with bread, speck (bacon), eggs, and a few other ingredients) and broth. Seeing as the day was rather cool and rainy, we particularly enjoyed the warm broth-y soup and hearty dumplings.

After eating, I suggest taking a quick hike around the Dürrensee and enjoying the views/general splendor of the area.

Dolomites Itinerary Third Stop: Lago di Braies

Boats on Lago di Braies in the Dolomites

The next stop on our Dolomites itinerary is about 30-40 minutes away and brings us to the tranquil Lago di Braies. This beautiful lake is probably one of the most famous places in the Dolomites. In fact, it is so incredibly popular, that there are restrictions placed on entry (depending on the time of year and time of day). Unfortunately for us, we did not know this ahead of time. But, thankfully, we were able to work around it (read: we parked in a parking lot close to the entrance and waited 45 min until just before 4pm to drive in)!

One of the things that makes this lake so popular, especially among photographers and the Instagram community, is the serene lineup of boats floating on the water. On nice days, it is a popular thing for visitors to rent the boats and row out into the middle of the lake. Since it was a bit cold and rainy during our visit, we chose not to rent the boats.

However, we did do the hike around the lake and I found it to be an enjoyable and memorable experience. If you visit the lake, you will not want to miss this easy hike which takes about 1.5 -2 hours to complete.

Advice For Parking and Visiting Lago di Braies in the Dolomites

We learned this the hard way and that is why I feel very adamant about sharing this information with you now.

Due to the rising popularity of Lago di Braies, entry into the Pragser Tal Valley is strictly limited during the high season (summer months). If you wish to enter between the hours of 9:30 am and 4 pm, you will have to have prepaid to reserve your parking spot. Failure to present this will result in denied entry into the Pragser Tal Valley (which leads to Lago di Braies). You can reserve your parking spot online at the official website.

Outside of the restricted hours, it is free to come and go as you please. Just know that you will still have to pay for parking at the machines! 😉

Dolomites Itinerary Final Stop: Dinner

Lago di Misurina located in the Dolomites

We had a lovely dinner at Pizzaria Edelweiss located along the Lago di Misurina. The food was pretty good (we ate here two nights in a row!), but the view was even better. The photo above was taken from right outside the front of the restaurant. It was a rare and magical moment during our visit when the clouds parted just enough for us to get a glimpse of the glorious Dolomite peaks. In order to maximize your experience, you will want to get a seat near the window, if it’s available. 😉

Where to Go From Here?

As I mentioned previously, I wish we had had even more time to spend in the Dolomites. It is certainly my hope that we will get to return some day and maybe spend a week here. Below, I’m providing you with a list of other incredible stops and things to do in the region so that you can explore even more of its uniqueness.

Bolzano – Have a few more days to spend in the Dolomites region? Bolzano might just be the right fit for you! This capital of Italy’s South Tyrol province has a wide variety of interesting things to do. Plus, the beautiful city sits between beautiful mountain peaks and vineyards. It is also the home of the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology and the famous alpine iceman called Otzi. There are castle ruins to explore, the famous Via dei Portici, and much more to enjoy. Also, because Bolzano is considered a gateway to the Dolomites, you will find many opportunities for hiking in this area.

Lake Garda – Located just over 2 hours away from Bolzano, Lake Garda is the largest lake in Italy. You can explore many villages around the lake, hike, bike, swim, and take part in a wide variety of water activities.

Explore the Vie Ferrate – Climbing these iron treks is one of the most famous things to do in the region. The vie ferrate were developed during WWI to help alpine soldiers move quickly through the intense landscape.

In Conclusion

I hope that this Dolomites itinerary is helpful for you as you plan your own vacation. I hope you enjoy your visit to the Dolomites and find them just as inspiring as I do! 😀

Happy Travels,
<3 Christine