Alps by Design
Signature Route · Trek

Alta Via 1 (Dolomites)

The Dolomites' great hut-to-hut walk, north to south.

🇮🇹 ItalyLago di Braies → Belluno (La Pissa)

Distance

120 km / 75 mi

Total ascent

6,800 m / 22,311 ft

Stages

9

Difficulty

Moderate–strenuous (3/5)

High point

Forcella del Lago · 2,486 m

Shape

Point-to-point

Alta Via 1 is the most accessible of the Dolomites' high routes — a roughly 120 km traverse from the postcard-perfect Lago di Braies south to Belluno, sleeping in the region's storied rifugi the whole way. There's no technical climbing on the main line, just day after day of the most theatrical rock scenery in the Alps: sheer pale walls, WWI tunnels, high meadows, and hut terraces where lunch is the main event. It's the ideal first multi-day trek in the Dolomites.

Why walk it

  • Start at Lago di Braies, the most photographed lake in the Dolomites
  • Sleep and eat in the rifugi — the social heart of Dolomite trekking
  • WWI front-line tunnels and trenches threaded through the peaks
  • The great rock amphitheatres of the Fanes and Tofane groups

When to go

Late JuneJulyAugustSeptember

Difficulty

Moderate–strenuous

For fit, regular hikers happy with a full day on the trail.

Per day
5–7 hrs
Ascent
600–1,000 m
Grade
3 / 5

Countries you cross

  • 🇮🇹Dolomites

Elevation profile

High point 2,752 m

2,752 m
Lago di BraiesBelluno (La Pissa)

Stage by stage

Every stage with its real specs: distance, ascent, descent, time on foot, and where you sleep.

  1. Day1

    Lago di Braies Rifugio Biella

    🇮🇹 ItalyMountain rifugio
    7 km / 4 mi1,000 m150 m4 hrs▲ 2,327 m

    Straight up from the emerald lake into the high Croda del Becco plateau — a steep, dramatic introduction to the scale of the place.

  2. Day2

    Rifugio Biella Rifugio Fanes

    🇮🇹 ItalyMountain rifugio
    13 km / 8 mi500 m700 m5 hrs

    Across the rolling Fanes high pastures, a gentler day through one of the Dolomites' great karst basins to the welcoming Fanes huts.

  3. Day3

    Rifugio Fanes Rifugio Lagazuoi

    🇮🇹 ItalyMountain rifugio
    13 km / 8 mi900 m500 m6 hrs▲ 2,752 m

    Up to the Lagazuoi, perched at 2,752 m with arguably the best sunset terrace in the Dolomites and a labyrinth of WWI tunnels beneath it.

  4. Day4

    Rifugio Lagazuoi Rifugio Nuvolau

    🇮🇹 ItalyMountain rifugio
    12 km / 7 mi750 m800 m6 hrs▲ 2,575 m

    Past the Cinque Torri climbing towers and up to the tiny Nuvolau hut, a stone eyrie ringed by a 360° wall of famous peaks.

  5. Day5

    Rifugio Nuvolau Rifugio Città di Fiume

    🇮🇹 ItalyMountain rifugio
    14 km / 9 mi500 m900 m6 hrs

    Beneath the great south faces with Monte Pelmo growing ahead, a quieter day into the forested heart of the range.

  6. Day6

    Rifugio Città di Fiume Rifugio Coldai

    🇮🇹 ItalyMountain rifugio
    12 km / 7 mi800 m500 m5 hrs▲ 2,191 m

    Around the base of Monte Pelmo and up towards the Civetta, whose immense wall — one of the biggest in the Alps — now dominates the walk.

  7. Day7

    Rifugio Coldai Rifugio Vazzoler

    🇮🇹 ItalyMountain rifugio
    13 km / 8 mi600 m950 m6 hrs▲ 2,486 m

    The route's high point at Forcella del Lago, beneath the sheer Civetta wall, then down through pine forest to the garden-like Vazzoler hut.

  8. Day8

    Rifugio Vazzoler Rifugio Carestiato

    🇮🇹 ItalyMountain rifugio
    11 km / 7 mi700 m650 m5 hrs

    Below the Moiazza's towers on quieter trails, the crowds thinning now as the trek moves into its wilder southern half.

  9. Day9

    Rifugio Carestiato Belluno (La Pissa)

    🇮🇹 ItalyBus to town
    15 km / 9 mi350 m1,400 m6 hrs

    The long descent off the high route through forest to the valley road at La Pissa, where a bus carries you down to Belluno and the end.

The biggest mistake

Not booking the rifugi early enough. The Dolomite huts on AV1 are famous and limited, and they sell out for July and August by spring. Show up without reservations and the trek simply isn't walkable as planned.

How it’s done

The same route, packaged for different travelers. Pick the version that fits your time, fitness, and how you like to sleep.

Classic rifugi

9 days

Mountain huts, half-board, carry a light pack

Trekkers who want the full north-to-south traverse and hut life.

Highlights, 6 days

6 days

Braies to Civetta, the most scenic northern half

Walkers short on time who want the icons and the best huts.

With a luggage base

9 days

Some nights in valley hotels with transfers

Those who'd rather not sleep in dormitories every night.

Where to base

Bases & springboards

The towns that work as trailheads, rest stops, and the nights you’ll want a real bed before or after the route.

Dolomites

Cortina d'Ampezzo

$$$$

Glamorous, dramatic, and the gateway to Tre Cime.

3–4 nightsCar helpful
Val Gardena, Dolomites

Ortisei

$$$

The Dolomites' most charming base — food, meadows, and lifts.

3–4 nightsCar helpful
Good to know

Questions, answered

Do you need climbing experience for Alta Via 1?
No. Unlike Alta Via 2 and the via ferrata routes, the main line of AV1 is a walkers' trail with no compulsory cabled or technical sections. You need a good head for heights in places and solid fitness for the daily ascents, but no ropes, harness, or climbing skill. Optional via ferrata variants exist if you want them.
How do the rifugi work on the Dolomites high routes?
Rifugi are staffed mountain huts serving hot meals and a bed (usually a bunk in a shared room, sometimes a small private room). Half-board — dinner, bed, and breakfast — is the norm, so you walk with just a light pack and daytime supplies. They are the social and culinary heart of a Dolomites trek, and they must be booked ahead for summer.
When is the Dolomites trekking season?
Late June to late September, once the rifugi open and the snow has cleared from the high passes. July and August are busiest and warmest; September brings thinner crowds, firmer weather, and the first cool nights, but huts begin closing from mid- to late September, so check dates carefully.

Want this route planned for you?

Tell us your dates and pace and we'll turn this into a complete, bookable plan — bases, huts or hotels, transfers, and timing.

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