Cortina Runcation: Best Trail Runs in the Dolomites

All Levels Trip: Summer 2025

 

Cortina d'Ampezzo, set like a jewel in a crown of Dolomite mountains, will be your base camp for this highlight tour of some of our favorite trail runs in the area. You'll enjoy breathtaking trails in the Italian Dolomites with a private trail running guide for the day and get a chance to enjoy the comfort of a Cortina d'Ampezzo hotel by night. We've curated special routes where you'll visit classic landmarks such as the Tre Cime di Lavaredo, Sorapiss Lake, the Cinque Torri, and many more that promise plenty of views and adventure for your days on the trail. With your Dolomites trail running guide you'll enjoy guided transport up to the highest peaks and trails in the region and enjoy rolling descents and moderate amounts of uphill climbing. There will be plenty of stops at famous Italian rifugios for coffees, pastries, and pasta. In your free evenings you can enjoy the culture and history of this northeastern corner of Italy by visiting museums, spas, lakes, vistas, and fabulous cafes and restaurants in your afternoons and evenings. This is our first Dolomites Runcation for ALL LEVELS of runners. Learn more below!

Trip Difficulty: Level 1 (click to learn more about trip difficulty levels).

This retreat adventure is open to ages 15 and up of any pace. Please see detailed itinerary for mileage and elevation gain/loss per day. Optional 12-week training package available from an experienced running coach to ensure you're trained and ready to go for this adventure of a lifetime!

 
 

 
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Overview

• Highlights of the best day trip trail running locations in the Cortina Dolomites with a local trail running expert

• Guided runs up stunning mountain ranges, peaks, and alpine meadows

• Trail running point-to-point and loops in the scenic Dolomites from the Tre Cime to Cinque Torri

• Comfortable 3/4-star hotel in Cortina d’Ampezzo for 4 nights and a 4-star hotel in San Cassiano for 1 night with access to a wellness spa included
 

 

• Enjoy Italian cuisine, wine, and coffee

• Accommodates all levels of runners

• Afternoons and evenings free to explore wellness options, spas, museums, restaurants, cafes, and other outdoor adventures in Cortina d’Ampezzo!

• Baggage transport and transportation to trail running locations booked for you
 

 

Sample Trip Itinerary Summer 2025

Day 1

Welcome to Cortina!

Our trip will start early afternoon with a meet-and-greet and orientation meeting to meet the guides and go over the logistics and itinerary of the upcoming week! Your guide will get you checked in at the hotel. You’ll have the rest of the evening free to enjoy an optional flat shakeout run, take a walk, or enjoy the many restaurants in town.

Optional flat shakeout option available from hotel

Cortina 3/4-star hotel* with breakfast included

*depending on group size and availability

DAY 2

         Lago di Sorapis Lake Run

After a delicious breakfast with Italian coffees, pastries, cereals, fruits, eggs, and more, your guide will meet you at your hotel for your first day on the trails in the Dolomites. Your destination today is the famous Lago di Sorapis, famous for its turquoise blue waters surrounded by pale Dolomite limestone. It will be a day to acclimatize to the trails in the area with paths through forests opening to views of some of the mountain groups Cristallo, Popena, Cadini di Misurina and Tre Cime di Lavaredo. Enjoy views from the scenic alpine lake sitting under the “Dito di Dio” (“God’s Finger”) formation towering almost 9,000 feet above. On the way back you'll stop for a late lunch or snack before returning to Cortina.

~7-9 miles

+/- 2,400 feet elevation gain

Cortina 3/4-star hotel with breakfast included

Private transfer to and from guided run included

DAY 3

To Tre Cime!

After breakfast you'll get an early start to one of the most famous formations in the entire Dolomites. Along the way you'll pass Lago Misurina with the option for a short stop before continuing towards the Tre Cime, or "Three Towers." Your route for the day circumnavigates these massive limestone towers that shoot up into the sky. If you look closely you might spot climbers scaling the walls of these cliffs! You'll enjoy a rolling singletrack run with views of the towers as well as beautiful mountains that extend far into the distance. You'll have the chance to stop at an Italian rifugio along the way for a coffee or larger meal and arrive back into Cortina by the afternoon and continue exploring this Italian mountain town.

~9 miles

+/- 2,400 feet elevation gain

Cortina 3/4-star hotel with breakfast included

Private transfer to and from guided run included

Entrance fee included

DAY 4

Top of the Mountain

After enjoying breakfast at the hotel, your guides will meet you for an adventure to one of the most jaw-dropping mountain huts in the Dolomites. You'll bypass thousands of feet of climbing and be dropped off with views stretching back to Cortina and over into the surrounding valleys. Watch climbers and hikers scale the via ferrata up to the base and enjoy a coffee from the sun deck before the running starts! Today you'll enjoy some incredible downhill in a mixture of smooth and runnable fire roads to more technical terrain (at this point in the week you'll be ready for it)! You'll descend from the mountain crossing mountain passes famous amongst cyclists and finish with a singletrack trail through a meadow to enjoy lunch with a view! You'll make your way back to Cortina impressed by the transition of landscapes and culinary environments in this special place.

~ 8-10 miles (depending on group)

+/- 0-2,000 feet elevation gain (depending on route)

Cortina 3/4-star hotel with breakfast included

Private transfer to guided run included


DAY 5

Cortina to Alta Badia

For your final full day on the trail, you'll enjoy a final breakfast in Cortina before your final big adventure on the trails. As you ascend out of town you'll pass waterfalls, fields of marmots, and the best cappuccino and apple strudel stop in the Dolomites. Celebrate the end of your climbing before running through towering formations and descending into the adjacent valley of Alta Badia. Your 4-star hotel for the evening has multiple spa treatments, saunas, jacuzzis, and wellness center amenities to enjoy along with an excellent bar and restaurant to celebrate your week in the Dolomites. Enjoy your final evening in this special place!

~15 miles

+/- 3,200 feet

Alta Badia 4-star hotel with breakfast included

Access to wellness spa included

Complimentary aperitiff, local meats and cheeses, and dessert bar included

Private transfer to guided run included

Baggage transfer included

DAY 6

Goodbye Dolomites!

For your final morning, you'll enjoy an early breakfast and coffee at your hotel before departing back to Cortina in the morning. You'll say goodbyes to new running friends and the Dolomites and depart with tons of memories.

 

View from a day on the trails in the Cortina Dolomites.

 

What’s included

Trip logistics of route planning, lodging, and transportation reservations

A 8:1 ratio of guide to participants

A 3/4-star hotel in the chic Cortina d'Ampezzo (pricing based on double accommodation) and 4-start hotel in the heart of Alta Badia with access to a wellness spa including indoor and outdoor wood-fired saunas and jacuzzis with mountain views, cold plunges, steam rooms, a wellness center, and more

A full breakfast spread daily including coffees, teas, juices, fresh-baked pastries, cereals, fruits, yogurts, eggs, pancakes, and more

Baggage transport from accommodations

Transportation to and from Cortina to day trip trail run locations each day, including private vans, lift tickets, and park entry fees

Knowledgable local expert guide and running coach along the entire route*

*Please note, this Runcation includes private trail running guides during the trail running portion of the day from early morning until late afternoon. In your afternoons and evenings you will be unguided and free to explore!

Not included

International airfare

Alcoholic beverages and lunch/snacks/dinner during the day

Travel Insurance

Extra expenses due to a change in itinerary or in case of you having to shorten the day or trip as a whole (including personal return trips to the airport/next destination/etc.)

A small city tourist tax to be paid in cash in person upon checkout (normally 1-3 euros per person/day)

Before You Go

Passport: Must have a valid passport valid through 6 months upon date of travel.

Travel Insurance: Must have travel insurance prior to start of trip. 

Trip Difficulty: Level 1 (More Info Here on Trip Levels)


Prepare for your trip

Fitness/Pacing:

While there are guides to accommodate a variety of paces for attending runners, this trip requires participants to cover the mileage and elevation gain as described in the itinerary. While uphills are hiked, the flats and downhills must be jogged or run (no pace requirement). Training for this trip is highly recommended, and you can participate in the 12-week group training program designed specifically for this trip as a package add-on to ensure you're able to tackle the trails and get maximum enjoyment of this running retreat!

Weather:

Although the weather in late summer is often ideal, weather in the mountains is variable and trail conditions are subject to change on an hourly basis! Route subjective to change based on the safety of conditions and climate of the trail.

 

CANCELLATION POLICY

Please inquire for the full cancellation policy.

This was a trip of a lifetime for us. As mountain runners, we couldn’t have been in a better place. Our guide was so accommodating, fun, and knowledgable. We were so lucky to have such a wonderful group of runners who all seemed to be at the same level. The hotels were just incredible, the food so delicious, and because I’ve talked about this trip so much, I’m sure that some of my friends will be signing up. Thank you Runcation!! I’m not sure how we can ever top this trip.
— Freddi and Brian, Cortina All Levels Runcation
This was truly a trip of a lifetime! The Dolomites were unbelievable, Cortina was a great place to call home base, and our guide was super friendly and had extensive knowledge of the local trails and ensured we made the most of our time there. Highly recommend!
— Lauren, Cortina All Levels Runcation
Spectacular trails, great group & guide and excellent accommodation in Cortina. I liked that the group size was only 8 and the spa on the final day was amazing! Overall a wonderful experience!
— Aoife, Cortina All Levels Runcation
My first trip with Runcation and it did not disappoint! The accommodations, transports, and trail runs were well organized; hotels well-appointed and clean. The views of course were breath-taking and worth every bit of uphill pain. Minus others that were dealing with injuries, I was the slowest of the group. Our guide Dario made sure to check in on me often and remind me not to feel pressured to keep up with everyone else. I really appreciated that. Will definitely consider doing another Runcation.
— Betty, Cortina All Levels Runcation