Dolomites Italy Val Gardena

Dolomites Italy Val Gardena: hospitality, snow, culinary delights and sport

Pure white snow, culinary delights, hospitality and sport on the Dolomites in Italy:  this is a holiday in Val Gardena, a “Ladino” valley with three municipalities and a hundred kilometres of slopes that pass under the rocky massifs of Odle, Sella, Sassolungo and CIR, this is the Dolomites, the so-called Pale Mountains, Unesco world heritage site.

Val Gardena, with Ortisei, Santa Cristina and Selva is known throughout the world by all the ski enthusiasts who wish to have a winter holiday here with infinite possibilities of enjoyment in the open air.

The Sellaronda, the mythical skiing area around the Sella massif, which connects the Alpe di Siusi and the Dolomiti Superski (12 ski areas and 1200 km of slopes), they are able to satisfy the needs of all skiers, from the beginner to the professional.

One ski pass for more than 500 km of connected slopes, 95% covered with artificial snow and equipped with some of the safest ski lifts in the world, they are serviced every year respecting the standards of the European Union. While, the dense network of cycling routes, safe bike sheds, repair workshops and bike rentals, make Val Gardena a paradise for those who ride a bike.

Dolomites Italy Val Gardena: on the slopes that have made the history of skiing

A great part of the history of skiing on the Dolomites in Italy, and not only, was written along the pistes and slopes of Val Gardena, thanks to the champions of various disciplines (such as Isolde Kostner, Werner Perathoner and Peter Runggaldier) and to the World Cup whose heats, every year at Christmas time, take place along the mythic piste Saslong, 3.4 km. with a drop of 839 meters.

All through winter there is a succession of events such as the Christmas Markets at Santa Cristina, the project "Ortisei the Christmas town", the competition of snow and ice statues, Carnival, the parade in traditional costume, concerts, and sporting displays such as FIS Ski World Cup, the Sellaronda Ski marathon and the Südtirol Gardenissima Kids and the Südtirol Gardenissima. This is the longest, unusual giant slalom in the world, where expert skiers compare themselves with champions of today and yesteryear, on a 6km route Skiing in Val Gardena

Val Gardena boasts around a hundred touristic experiences and is able to combine a strong and fascinating tradition, with technology and avant-garde structures, an ideal holiday for all the winter sports enthusiast.

Dolomites Italy Val Gardena: holidays between culture and identity

Holidays on the Dolomites in Italy in Val Gardena also means high quality gastronomy, art and culture, it is a Valley with an important history and strong traditions, which vigorously expresses the Ladina cultural heritage. Every year in fact initiatives and events are held which transmit the features of this patrimony.

All of the cuisine from Gardena, from starred restaurants to mountain refuges or farmsteads, is always based on antique recipes that are reworked according to the chefs and cook’s creativity, using many local raw materials.

In the hotels in Ortisei, Santa Cristina and Selva Gardena you will find comfort and well-being of the highest level. Wellness hotels, family hotels, hotels for your mountain bike holiday and for your skiing holidays offer special services and packages for your stay in Val Gardena.

Shopping lovers will be thrilled by the wide choice of shops in Val Gardena. Clothing and footwear shops, specialized shops and wood sculpture shops are characterized by the quality and variety of the offer, as well as by personal and professional advice.