Cinque Torri via Lagazuoi

The Cinque Torri via Lagazuoi circuit is one of the finest half-day hikes above Cortina d'Ampezzo in Belluno Province, combining two of the most photographed features of the Veneto Dolomites with an open-air museum of First World War history. The usual start is the Falzarego Pass (2,105m), reached by the regional bus from Cortina or by car with roadside parking at the pass. From there hikers can ride the Lagazuoi cable car to the 2,778m summit and descend on foot, or climb the trail in reverse; the full loop covers about 8km with roughly 550m of cumulative ascent and takes four to five hours. From the Lagazuoi summit, route 401 drops past the Martini Ledge and the restored Galleria del Lagazuoi — a steep tunnel system blasted by Italian troops during the 1915–1918 mountain war, where a headlamp is genuinely useful — before contouring beneath the Averau and Nuvolau peaks toward the Cinque Torri. These five free-standing rock towers, a magnet for climbers, are ringed by reconstructed Italian trenches and gun emplacements that form an open-air museum. Surfaces range from cable-car-served gravel to rocky mountain path and some loose scree on the descent; exposure is moderate and the trail is well-marked, with little shade above the treeline. Rifugio Lagazuoi at the summit and Rifugio Cinque Torri near the towers both serve meals, drinks and water, making natural rest and turn-around points. The Cinque Torri chairlift down to the Bai de Dones car park offers a shortcut for tired legs. Landmarks include the panoramic 360-degree summit view from Lagazuoi taking in the Tofane, Marmolada and Civetta, the wartime tunnels, and the towers themselves glowing at sunrise and sunset. Carrying water is optional given the refuges, but sun protection and a windproof layer are advisable on the exposed plateau.