Lago di Misurina with the Tre Cime
Tour 02 · Eastern Dolomites · all year

Cortina and the Lakes: Private Tour from Bolzano

A private tour from Bolzano to Cortina d’Ampezzo and the lakes of Misurina, Dobbiaco and Braies, over the Gardena, Valparola and Falzarego passes. About 9 hours, up to 7 guests, with Ferjy as your private driver.

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  • ≈ 9 hDuration
  • ≈ 260 – 280 kmDistance
  • Gardena, Valparola, Falzarego, Tre CrociPasses
  • All yearSeason
  • EasyWalking

Cortina and the lakes in a single day

This is our loop through the eastern Dolomites: about 260–280 km depending on where we collect you, with four mountain passes: Gardena, Valparola, Falzarego and Tre Croci. You start in South Tyrol, cross into the Veneto between Valparola and Falzarego, visit Cortina and Misurina, and return to South Tyrol through the Val di Landro and the Val Pusteria. In one day you pass through Ladin, Tyrolean and Venetian valleys, and the scenery changes with every pass.

It is a long tour, designed for guests who want to see the best-known places of the east in one go: the Olympic town of Cortina, the Tre Cime di Lavaredo mirrored in Lago di Misurina and the wooden boathouse at Lago di Braies. The pace still feels unhurried, because Ferjy does the driving and all you have to do is look out of the window.

If you would rather walk at the foot of the Tre Cime, the Lake Braies and Tre Cime private tour drives up to Rifugio Auronzo. If you only have one day and want the western passes too, have a look at the Dolomites in one day.

Suggested itinerary, hour by hour

Duration ≈ 9 hDistance ≈ 260 kmSeason All yearWalking Easy
  • Pick-up in BolzanoEarly start for a long, unhurried day.
  • Val Gardena & Passo GardenaFirst views over the Sella group and Alta Badia.
  • Valparola & FalzaregoGreat War trenches, the Cinque Torri, the Tofane ahead.
  • Cortina d’AmpezzoCoffee on Corso Italia in the Olympic town.
  • Lago di MisurinaThe Tre Cime di Lavaredo mirrored in the water. Lunch on the lake.
  • Lago di DobbiacoA short lakeside walk, ice cream in Dobbiaco.
  • Lago di BraiesThe famous wooden boathouse. Time for a row or a walk around the shore.
  • Return via the Pusteria valleyBack in Bolzano around 17:30 – 18:00.

Road access to Lago di Braies is regulated in high season: we plan the day around the permitted hours, with an early start or an afternoon stop.

Over the Great War passes to Cortina d’Ampezzo

After Val Gardena, Passo Gardena opens up the view of the Sella group and drops into Alta Badia, past Corvara, La Villa and San Cassiano. The climb to Passo Valparola leads right into the First World War front line: at the pass, the Austro-Hungarian Forte Tre Sassi houses a Great War museum, open in the summer season. From nearby Passo Falzarego the Lagazuoi cable car climbs towards the tunnels the soldiers dug into the rock.

On the descent to Cortina you see the Cinque Torri and the bulk of the Tofane. Cortina d’Ampezzo, host of the 1956 Winter Olympics and co-host of the 2026 Games, is best explored on foot along Corso Italia, between the bell tower, the cafés and the shop windows. An hour is enough for a coffee and a stroll; if you want longer, we simply stay longer.

Misurina, Dobbiaco and Braies: three lakes, three moods

From Cortina, Passo Tre Croci, between Monte Cristallo and the Sorapiss, leads to Lago di Misurina at about 1,750 m. On clear days the Tre Cime di Lavaredo are reflected in the water, and the restaurants and cafés around the shore make it the natural place for lunch.

Next comes the Val di Landro: beside the small Lago di Landro, a viewpoint shows the north faces of the Tre Cime straight from the road. Further on lies the quiet Lago di Dobbiaco, framed by forest, with a path along the shore. Last of all Lago di Braies, the most famous of them, with its wooden boathouse and an easy path that circles the lake in about an hour to an hour and a half.

Lago di Braies: access and seasonal rules

In high summer, driving into the Braies valley during the middle of the day is regulated and requires an online booking or a transit permit. The rules change from year to year: we check what applies on your date and plan the timing and order of stops around it, for example Braies early in the morning and Cortina in the afternoon.

New traffic rules are also being discussed for the Dolomite passes, Passo Gardena in particular. We check the regulations in force before every tour and, if a booking or a detour is needed, we tell you when we confirm.

The Braies rowing boats are available in the warmer months. In winter the lake often freezes, and the shoreline path becomes a quiet walk in the snow, with far fewer people.

Why a private driver for the eastern Dolomites

This is a long day of mountain roads, hairpins, car parks that are often full in Cortina and Misurina, and access rules you need to know about. With a private driver nobody in your group has to drive, and every stop begins at the entrance rather than with a hunt for a parking space.

You travel in our clean, well-kept black Mercedes V-Class for up to 7 guests, with room for rucksacks and pushchairs, reserved for you all day. Over distances like these it is a far simpler choice than a taxi: one fixed price per vehicle, agreed before you travel, and a driver who speaks English, Italian, German and French.

  • Pick-up at your hotel in Bolzano or anywhere in South Tyrol, including Val Gardena and the Val Pusteria
  • Lunch at Lago di Misurina or wherever you prefer, booked on request
  • Stops and changes of plan whenever you like during the day
  • Child seats on request
  • Enquiries by WhatsApp or through the contact form
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

It is a long but relaxed day: the stops come regularly, and the longest stretch, the drive home through the Val Pusteria, comes at the end, when most guests are happy to sit back. If you prefer a slower pace, we can drop one lake or split the loop over two days.

On this tour you see the Tre Cime from Misurina and from the Val di Landro. To walk right beneath them, you drive up a toll road to Rifugio Auronzo, which is normally open only in the summer season: that is the heart of another of our routes, Braies and the Tre Cime.

During the regulated summer period, driving in during the middle of the day requires a booking or a permit. We check the rules for your date and explain in advance how we will plan the visit, so there are no surprises on the spot.

Yes, this is one of our all-year routes. In winter we check each morning which passes are open and, if needed, reverse the loop or reach Cortina via the Val Pusteria and Cimabanche. Snow-covered lakes have a charm of their own.

Of course. The loop can start from any hotel in South Tyrol and, on request, from Cortina too; we adjust the order of stops so the day stays comfortable. If you need to get to Cortina with luggage, there is also our private transfer to Cortina d’Ampezzo.

Book your Cortina and lakes day

Tell us the date, the number of guests and your hotel: Ferjy replies within hours with a plan, a pick-up time and a fixed price for the vehicle.

Call +39 348 472 1691

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