from€745£645
Albania & Montenegro
Peaks of the Balkans Highlights
Albania's Accursed Mountains into Montenegro: wild limestone, farmhouse beds, tiny prices.
- 8 days
- Max 10
- Difficulty 3/5
- Family guesthouses
- Duration
- 7 days
- Group size
- Max 10
- Difficulty
- Sleeps
- Rifugi (dorms) + hostel
- Season
- Late June to mid September
- Start / end
- Cortina d'Ampezzo → Cortina d'Ampezzo
- Per day
- €128£111
Overview
What this trip is
The Alta Via 1 runs north to south through the Dolomites. The full route takes ten days; the northern half has most of the famous scenery — Lago di Braies, the Fanes plateau, Lagazuoi, Cinque Torri — and that's the half we walk.
Rifugi are the reason hut-to-hut works so well here: a bunk, a three-course dinner and a carafe of house red at 2,500 m. They're not the cheapest huts in Europe, so we save elsewhere: dorms not private rooms, public buses not taxis, and a Cortina hostel rather than a Cortina hotel.
No via ferrata, no glaciers — just well-marked paths, a few stiff climbs and First World War history underfoot.
Highlights
- Starting from the green waters of Lago di Braies
- The lunar Fanes-Sennes plateau
- A night at Rifugio Lagazuoi (2,752 m) — sunset over half the Dolomites — and the WWI tunnels
- Cinque Torri, Nuvolau ridge and the grassy balcony of Passo Giau
Day by day
Itinerary
Day 1Arrive Cortina
Make your own way to Cortina (Cortina Express bus from Venice airport, about 2 hrs). Evening briefing at the hostel.
Day 2Lago di Braies to Sennes10 km · ↑ 950 m · ↓ 300 m
Bus to the lake, a lap of the shore, then the big first climb to Forcella Sora Forno and across to the Sennes plateau.
Day 3Sennes to Fanes12 km · ↑ 550 m · ↓ 650 m
Down the old military road to Pederü, then up into the Fanes basin and its huts among limestone pavements and marmots.
Day 4Fanes to Lagazuoi13 km · ↑ 1,150 m · ↓ 450 m
Over Forcella del Lago, down to the tiny Lago di Lagazuoi, and the long haul up to the hut on the summit plateau. The best sunset of the week.
Day 5Lagazuoi to Nuvolau area11 km · ↑ 600 m · ↓ 950 m
Explore the wartime tunnels, descend to Passo Falzarego and climb past Cinque Torri to a rifugio on the Averau–Nuvolau ridge.
Day 6Passo Giau to Passo Staulanza16 km · ↑ 550 m · ↓ 1,100 m
Round the Nuvolau to Passo Giau, over Forcella Ambrizzola beneath Croda da Lago, and down under the great wall of Monte Pelmo. Bus back to Cortina.
Day 7Depart
Trip ends after breakfast.
The deal
What’s included, and what isn’t
Included
- UIMLA-certified mountain leader
- 4 nights in rifugi (dorm, half board), 2 nights Cortina hostel with breakfast
- Local buses to Braies and from Passo Staulanza
Not included
- Travel to and from Cortina
- Lunches, drinks, shower tokens
- Dinners in Cortina (2)
- Sleeping bag liner, travel insurance (both required)
The honest box
What’s basic about this trip
- Rifugi book out early; we take what dorm space we can get, so the exact huts may vary from those listed.
- Showers are token-operated and brief. Bring €1 and €2 coins.
- Days 4 and 6 are long. Day 4 can be shortened with the Lagazuoi cable car at your own cost.
Nothing hidden
Where your money goes
- Guides 30%
- Beds 30%
- Food 20%
- Transport 7%
- Us 13%
Indicative split for this trip. "Us" covers planning, insurance, this website and keeping the lights on.
When
Dates and availability
Pack
Kit list highlights
- Walking boots
- 30–35 L pack
- Full waterproofs
- Warm layer
- Sun hat and high-factor cream
- Sleeping bag liner
- Coins for showers
- Head torch for the tunnels
Good to know
Trip FAQs
Is there any via ferrata?
No. The Lagazuoi tunnels have a handrail cable and need a head torch, but no climbing kit. There's a walk-round alternative.
Can I have a private room?
Rarely, and it pushes the price up a lot. This trip is priced on dorms. Tell us when you enquire and we'll ask the huts.
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Questions about this trip?
Ask about fitness, kit, the huts, the dogs, the weather. We’d rather you asked than guessed.