The capital of the 1956 Winter Olympics is famous for its unique combination of stunning skiing opportunities and a unique atmosphere, which attracts the ski beau monde here. The city center is the pedestrian zone of Corso Italia, built up with clothing and jewelry stores, art galleries and fur salons.

Cortina d’Ampezzo is the most picturesque and upscale of the Italian resorts. Italians lovingly call their Cortina a “ski paradise.” A typical and at the same time alpine town, possessing its own unique flavor, is located in a natural bowl, filled with sun and protected from the winds by the magnificent peaks of the Dolomites that frame it.

The slopes attract many tourists from Rome and Milan, many of whom have bought villas here. In the evening, the streets are filled with crowds of tourists.

Nearest airports: Venice (165 km), Verona (247 km), Innsbruck (176 km).

Slopes and slopes

Cortina d’Ampezzo consists of seven main skiing areas. All of them are connected by an extensive network of lifts, as well as ski bus routes.

The highest point in Cortina d’Ampezzo is 3240 meters, the height difference is 2019 meters. The total number of ski slopes in Cortina d’Ampezzo is 140 km. Of these, 39 km are designed for skiers and snowboarders, 74 km are of medium difficulty. Only 7 km are suitable for quite experienced skiers, as they are the most difficult in terms of their technical indicators.

The length of the longest ski slope is 9 km. There are even ski slopes in Cortina d’Ampezzo that are illuminated and allow you to ski even at night.

Slopes in Cortina d’Ampezzo

The best red ski slopes in Cortina d’Ampezzo are located in the Tofane area. The Pomedes slopes will delight skiers with their always excellent snow cover and moderately long slopes. Skiers with professional training skills will definitely like the slopes at the peaks of Ra Valles and Forcella Stauniese, whose height exceeds 2 thousand meters.

The ski resort also has a wide range of other activities. These include dog sledding, curling, an ice rink, horse riding, a swimming pool, indoor golf and tennis, a sports center and the Olympic Ice Stadium.

In the local snowboard park, everyone can try their hand at half-pipe skiing. There is also the opportunity to ski on untouched snow slopes, to the top of which a helicopter will take you. In Cortina d’Ampezzo there are also cross-country skiing trails, bobsleigh runs and ski jumps.

The skiing season here lasts from early December to late April.

For beginners and intermediate skiers, all ski areas have excellent slopes – long, easy runs.

The Cortina area will not inspire fans of difficult runs, but there are still a few interesting runs here. An interesting descent from the second station of the Tofane cable car in Ra Valles, but it is often closed due to poor snow conditions. Another steep descent in Cortina runs from the top of the Cristal area to Forcella Staunches.

Interesting intermediate runs in the upper Tofane are short, but usually have the best snow. The “red” runs at Pomedes are longer and offer good skiing. Faloria has a whole range of short northern “red” runs.

Ski schools in Cortina d’Ampezzo

There are 4 main ski schools in Cortina d’Ampezzo, with over 300 ski instructors. To learn how to ski or snowboard, you can sign up for individual lessons or attend group lessons.

The most popular are group ski lessons. However, to get into a class of up to five people, you need to sign up in advance. A five-day course in this case will cost 250 EUR. All those who want to learn the basics of skiing in an individual program will have to pay for this from 42 EUR per hour.

More detailed information about where you can learn skiing and snowboarding can be found on the websites of the main ski schools in Cortina d’Ampezzo.

The resort offers vacationers 2 ***** hotels, 18 **** hotels, 39 – ***, 4 – **, with a total of 5,000 beds, as well as 18,000 beds in residences and apartments.

200 boutiques, shops, 5 nightclubs, over 40 restaurants for every taste, 20 luxury restaurants, 6 discos, a cinema, museums, art galleries. There are all the opportunities for practicing various sports: 58 km of cross-country skiing trails, 6 km of hiking trails, there are indoor tennis courts, the Olympic Ice Stadium, you can play curling, there is a riding school, as well as a bobsleigh track and toboggan, paragliding.

Excellently prepared slopes, a large number of snow cannons. An excellent choice for families with children and intermediate skiers who like to walk around the city after skiing.

Resort altitude (m): 1,224

Maximum altitude of slopes (m): 2,939

Ski lifts in Cortina d’Ampezzo

The many-kilometer area of ski slopes in Cortina d’Ampezzo is served by 81 lifts, which have a capacity of 60 thousand people per hour. Each ski lift has its own price, but it is much more profitable not to pay for each trip, but to buy a ski pass once for the entire stay here and use them without restrictions.

The cost of a ski lift in Cortina d’Ampezzo will depend on its type and the season of stay here. In total, there are 6 cable cars, 29 chair lifts and 16 tow lifts on the territory of the ski resort. By choosing a ski lift to move around Cortina d’Ampezzo, you can easily visit all the main slopes of the resort and see the most picturesque places.

Ski pass in Cortina d’Ampezzo

Those vacationers who have purchased a ski pass have the right to ski on all the slopes of Cortina d’Ampezzo. Naturally, there is an option to pay for each lift trip separately, but experienced skiers know that this is extremely unprofitable. The first lifts in the region open in November, despite the fact that the official season begins in December and ends in April.

The cost of a ski pass for one adult in Cortina d’Ampezzo is equal to 52 EUR per day. You can buy a ski pass for six days for 262 EUR. Children and teenagers aged 8 to 16 have the right to buy a ski pass for Cortina d’Ampezzo much cheaper. For one day, such a pass will cost them 36 EUR, and for six days it will cost 183 EUR.

It is especially nice that the ski pass price for children under eight years of age is not set. That is, the pass is provided to them absolutely free of charge. There are also a number of discounts for those who ski pensioners. There are especially many discounts and special offers at the beginning and end of the ski season.

Amateurs and professional skiers can also buy a ski pass for all 12 regions that are part of the Dolomites Superski region. You can get additional information about prices and skiing in these regions on the website.

Ski equipment rental in Cortina d’Ampezzo

As you know, a complete set of ski equipment takes up quite a lot of space, and in order not to carry it with you from home, there are ski equipment rental points in Cortina d’Ampezzo. There are quite a few of them on the resort’s territory, but they all belong to three main companies. A comprehensive list of information about them can be found on the websites: skimanservice.com, dueduecortina.com and snowservice.it.

In some establishments, you can not only rent skis and snowboards, but also customize them, polish the surfaces, sharpen the edges or rub them with paraffin.

On average, ski rental in Cortina d’Ampezzo per day for an adult will cost 16 EUR. In addition to these, you will also need to take a helmet for 4 EUR, poles for 3 EUR and a set of sportswear for 47 EUR.

If you prefer snowboard rental in Cortina d’Ampezzo, its price per day will be 22 EUR. There is also the opportunity to rent a children’s snowboard for 17 EUR.

Weather in Cortina d’Ampezzo

In Cortina d’Ampezzo, the weather forecast pleases with a large number of sunny days almost all year round. Looking at the weather in Cortina d’Ampezzo for 14 days, it becomes clear that there is a fairly mild microclimate here, since the surrounding Dolomites are able to protect from strong cold winds.

Going to Cortina d’Ampezzo in winter, the weather for a week will make it possible to understand that the coldest month of the year here is January. However, even with its onset, the temperature during the day does not drop below 0 ° C. However, in order to plan your vacation as best as possible, you need to know the weather in Cortina d’Ampezzo for 5 days not only during the day, but also at night.

In the summer season, the weather in Cortina d’Ampezzo for 3 days will show the maximum number of sunny days. From June to August, the air temperature here fluctuates between + 19-21 ° C. However, when packing a suitcase, you should take not only light things, but also warm ones, since with the sunset the weather in Cortina d’Ampezzo can change and become quite cool.

Those who like to ski on snowy slopes will not have to wait long, as a fairly dense snow cover can be observed here already in November. If the winter promises to be snowless, then a large number of snow cannons have been installed on the resort territory, which will be able to correct this situation.

The Mountain Pearl of Italy – Cortina d’Ampezzo

“The Queen of the Alps” – this is the name of the best ski resort in Italy Cortina d’Ampezzo. This fairy-tale town is surrounded by unique mountains: their unusual pink hue earned them the status of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The magnificent nature made Cortina d’Ampezzo a favorite of celebrities and the world’s elite. Ernest Hemingway and Vladimir Nabokov were inspired here, Audrey Hepburn, Clark Gable, Ingrid Bergman and Brigitte Bardot rested, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley skied. Today, among the “star” guests of the city you can meet George Clooney, Keanu Reeves, Liz Taylor, Madonna and Monica Bellucci.

Houses in Piazza Roma

View of the City Hall (Piazza Roma)

A cafe-bar on one of the city’s central streets

Like a little Hollywood, Cortina d’Ampezzo has repeatedly served as a filming location for films that have already become classics of world cinema. Among them are “The Pink Panther” starring Peter Sellers and Claudia Cardinale, “Lovers” with Marcello Mastroianni and “For Your Eyes Only” with the legendary Roger Moore as Agent 007.

Piazza Roma, the central square, with a view of the 18th-century church

View of the Dolomites

Dolomites

In 1956, Cortina d’Ampezzo hosted the Winter Olympics. No wonder: its 67 ski slopes, stretching over 140 km, ice rinks and snowboard slopes provide the perfect venue for sporting events. In high season, skiing here costs 40 euros per day, a weekly pass costs 223 euros, and a season pass costs between 600 and 660 euros. In summer, golf, equestrian sports, mountaineering, and kayaking are popular activities in this area.

View of the church in Piazza Roma

The Ciasa de ra Regoles building, which houses three museums: the Museum of Painting and Sculpture, the Museum of Paleontology and the Museum of Ethnographic Art

One of the central streets of the city

Cortina d’Ampezzo is not only fabulous nature, crystal air of the Alps, ancient buildings and ancient traditions. It is also a paradise for elite shopping: here you can find boutiques of the best Italian brands, including Gucci, Moschino, Prada, Dolce & Gabbana and Fendi. In total, there are 250 shops selling made in Italy clothing, jewelry and antiques in the city.

View of the city hall building and the Alps

View of the city buildings and the Alps

View of the church and town hall

There are very few permanent residents in Cortina d’Ampezzo – about 6,000 people. However, in winter the population of the city increases to 30,000 people. That is why hotels are growing like wildfire here, and today their number reaches 54, which is unprecedented for such a small area.

One of the central streets of the city

View of the Hotel de la Poste

Mountain road leading to Cortina d’Ampezzo