Discover the dramatic peaks and ridgelines of the Italian Dolomites, home to the world’s greatest concentration of legendary via ferratas, ‘iron way’ climbs that trace airy ledges and vertical walls across this UNESCO World Heritage landscape. From the iconic spires of Tre Cime di Lavaredo to the mighty Marmolada, Sella, and Catinaccio ranges, each route promises adventure amid scenery famed for explosive rock formations, ever-changing colours, and a unique blend of cultures.

Ideal for adventurous walkers, scramblers, and climbers with a head for heights, this comprehensive Cicerone guidebook details 75 outstanding via ferratas spanning the northern, central, and eastern Dolomites. Routes range from short, accessible outings to long, technical challenges, offering a wide selection of grades and styles to suit both novices and seasoned ferratisti. Each via ferrata is meticulously described, with distances from 3 to 29km (2–18 miles) and durations of 2 to 12 hours, ensuring you’ll find the perfect challenge for your ambitions.

• Explore celebrated Dolomite areas, including Val di Fassa/Canazei, Selva, Badia/La Villa, Corvara, Arabba, Falzarego, Cortina, Misurina, Sesto, and Auronzo, each a gateway to unforgettable mountain adventures.
• All routes require a helmet, harness, and via ferrata lanyard, and are best enjoyed between June and September, when the Dolomites are at their most accessible.
• The guidebook features 1:50,000 mapping and detailed colour photo topos for every via ferrata route (with select routes at 1:40,000), making navigation straightforward and route-finding clear even on complex terrain.
• Practical advice covers essential equipment, safety, accommodation, getting there, getting around, and route planning, ensuring you embark on your via ferrata journey with the confidence and knowledge needed for a rewarding experience.
• Each route description is accompanied by an at-a-glance information box detailing start and finish points, distance, ascent and descent, estimated time, technical grade, seriousness, wire length, and GPS coordinates for parking, perfect for planning your days in the mountains.
• Routes are graded using the widely adopted Smith/Fletcher dual system, offering consistent guidance on both technical difficulty and seriousness.
• The guide includes summary tables for quick route comparison and covers everything from short, scenic routes for beginners to demanding, exposed climbs for experienced adventurers.
• Also available from Cicerone is Via Ferratas of the Italian Dolomites: Volume 2, which explores the southern Dolomites, Pala, Brenta, and Garda regions.

Plan your via ferrata adventure in the Italian Dolomites with confidence using the definitive Cicerone guidebook, and discover the untamed beauty, rich history, and unique alpine culture of Italy’s most celebrated mountain range.

Via Ferratas of the Italian Dolomites: Vol 1 – Quick Facts

Location: Northern, Central, and Eastern Dolomites, Italy
Number of routes: 75
Distance: 1–29 km per route
Duration: 2–12 hours per route
Regions covered: Val di Fassa/Canazei, Selva, Badia/La Villa, Corvara, Arabba, Falzarego, Cortina, Misurina, Sesto, Auronzo
Route type: “Via ferrata”, a mountain route or climb that is protected by a series of cables, stemples (metal rungs), pegs and ladders
Difficulty: Wide range, from novice-friendly to highly technical (graded by Smith/Fletcher dual system)
Terrain: Dramatic peaks, limestone ridges, exposed ledges, protected paths, ladders, cables
Navigation: 1:50,000 maps, detailed route descriptions, colour photo topos, GPS coordinates
Best season: Mid-June to September
Highlights: UNESCO World Heritage scenery, iconic spires, panoramic views, rich alpine culture, and historic military routes
Equipment: Helmet, harness, via ferrata lanyard required for all routes
Accommodation: Mountain huts, hotels, guesthouses, campsites in valley towns
 

Author Highlight

"The Dolomites are home to the greatest concentration of via ferratas in the world. First constructed in the early 1900s, these cabled routes originally followed traditional climbing lines and were initially conceived as a form of recreation for visiting tourists. When the First World War broke out, the front line between the Italian and Austro-Hungarian troops ran through the middle of this mountainous region and the via ferratas took on a new role; existing routes were expanded and many new cables were installed to aid the movement of alpine military troops through the mountains. After the war many old routes were restored, expanded and rerouted, and as popularity grew new via ferratas were added, creating a vast network of cabled climbs which today is one of the Dolomites’ major attractions for summer tourism. The sheer concentration of via ferratas ensures there is something for every ability, from family-friendly mountain days, to exposed ridge routes, to physically demanding climbing.” 

- James Rushforth, author of Via Ferratas of the Italian Dolomites Volume 1

Overview map
Map key
Route summary table
Foreword
Introduction
What is a via ferrata?
Using this guide
When to go
Getting there
Getting around
Accommodation
Telecommunications
Maps and place names
Weather
Route gradings
Equipment
Cable etiquette
What to wear
Accidents and mountain rescue
A brief history
Geology
Plant life
Wildlife

Val di Fassa/Canazei
Route 1 Sentiero Massimiliano
Route 2 Via Ferrata Laurenzi
Route 3 Via Ferrata Passo Santner
Route 4 Via Ferrata Roda di Vaèl
Route 5 Via Ferrata Masare
Route 6 Via Ferrata Catinaccio d’Antermoia
Route 7 Via Ferrata Franco Gadotti
Route 8 Via Ferrata I Magnifici Quattro
Route 9 Via Ferrata Kaiserjäger
Route 10 Sentiero Attrezzato Bepi Zac
Route 11 Via Ferrata Paolin-Piccolin
Route 12 Via Ferrata dei Finanzieri
Route 13 Via Ferrata Hans Seyffert
Route 14 Via Ferrata Eterna Brigata Cadore

Selva
Route 15 Via Ferrata Sass Rigais Est/Sud
Route 16 Sentiero Attrezzato Piz Duledes
Route 17 Via Ferrata Sandro Pertini (closed and wire removed)
Route 18 Via Ferrata Oskar Schuster
Route 19 Via Ferrata Col Rodella
Route 20 Via Ferrata Mesules (Pössnecker)

Badia/La Villa
Route 21 Sentiero Attrezzato Günther Messner
Route 22 Sentiero Attrezzato Sass de Putia
Route 23 Via Ferrata Sasso Santa Croce
Route 24 Sentiero Attrezzato Piz de les Conturines
Route 25 Via Ferrata Furcia Rossa
Corvara
Route 26 Via Ferrata Piz da Cir V
Route 27 Sentiero Attrezzato Gran Cir
Route 28 Via Ferrata Brigata Tridentina
Route 29 Via Ferrata Vallon
Route 30 Via Ferrata Piz da Lech
Route 31 Sentiero Attrezzato Sassongher

Arabba
Route 32 Via Ferrata Cesare Piazzetta
Route 33 Via Ferrata delle Trincee
Route 34 Via Ferrata Sass de Rocia
Route 35 Sentiero Attrezzato Col di Lana

Falzarego
Route 36 Sentiero Attrezzato Sass de Stria
Route 37 Via Ferrata Cesco Tomaselli
Route 38 Sentiero dei Kaiserjäger
Route 39 Sentiero Attrezzato Galleria del Lagazuoi
Route 40 Via Ferrata degli Alpini al Col dei Bos
Route 41 Via Ferrata Averau
Route 42 Via Ferrata Ra Gusela

Cortina
Route 43 Via Ferrata Scala del Menighel
Route 44 Via Ferrata Giovanni Lipella
Route 45 Sentiero Attrezzato Grotta di Tofana
Route 46 Sentiero Astaldi
Route 47 Via Ferrata Punta Anna and Gianni Aglio
Route 48 Via Ferrata Lamon and Formenton
Route 49 Sentiero Giuseppe Olivieri
Route 50 Via Ferrata Maria e Andrea Ferrari
Route 51 Sentiero Attrezzato Giovanni Barbara/Lucio Dalaiti/Cengia de Mattia
Route 52 Via Ferrata Ettore Bovero
Route 53 Via Ferrata Michielli Strobel
Route 54 Sentiero Attrezzato Terza Cengia del Pomagagnon
Route 55 Sentiero Attrezzato Renè de Pol
Route 56 Via Ferrata Ivano Dibona
Route 57 Via Ferrata Marino Bianchi
Route 58 Via Ferrata Sci Club 18
Route 59 Via Ferrata Giro del Sorapiss

Misurina
Route 60 Sentiero Attrezzato Capitano Bilgeri/Monte Piana/Monte Piano
Route 61 Via Ferrata Merlone
Route 62 Sentiero Attrezzato Alberto Bonacossa
Route 63 Sentiero delle Forcelle
Route 64 Via Ferrata De Luca/Innerkofler
Route 65 Via Ferrata delle Scalette/Curato Militare Hosp

Sesto
Route 66 Via Ferrata Strada degli Alpini
Route 67 Via Ferrata Nord
Route 68 Via Ferrata Mario Zandonella
Route 69 Via Ferrata Aldo Roghel/Cengia Gabriella
Route 70 Via Ferrata Mazzetta

Auronzo
Route 71 Sentiero Cengia del Doge
Route 72 Sentiero degli Alpini
Route 73 Sentiero Attrezzato Amalio da Pra
Route 74 Via Ferrata Sartor
Route 75 Via Ferrata Via di Guerra/CAI Portogruaro

Appendix A Useful contacts
Appendix B Glossary of mountain terms
Appendix C Further reading

Seasons

Season runs from June until late September, though arguably the best conditions coincide with the lift opening dates - late June to mid September.

Centres

Arabba, Auronzo, Badia, Bolzano, Brunico, Canazei, Cortina d'Ampezzo, Corvara, La Villa, Misurina, Moena, Ortisei, Pozza, San Cassiano, Santa Cristina, Selva, Sesto.

Difficulty

Via ferrata will appeal to walkers, scramblers and climbers with a good head for heights; routes graded by difficulty and seriousness, with something for every ability; via ferrata kit (helmet, harness and VF lanyard) required for all routes in this guide.

Must See

Some of the most unique and magnificent mountain scenery on the planet; Corvara, Cortina d'Ampezzo, Selva, Alta Badia, Falzarego, Giau, Sella, Marmolada, Tre Cime (Drei Zinnen), Tofana, Lagazuoi, Val Gardena, Via Ferrata Tridentina, Fanis, Fanes, Passo Fedaia, Lago di Sorapiss, Croda da Lago, Sassolungo, Alpe di Siusi, Val di Fassa, Langkofel, Catinaccio (Rosengarten).

October 2024

Route 20 VF Mesules - bus

August 2024

Route 28 – Via Ferrata Brigata Tridentina

June 2024

Route 47 corrections

June 2024

Route 40 corrections

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