Great Drives Open the map app

Great Dolomites Road

SS241 / SS48 · Bolzano → Cortina d'Ampezzo · Italy

Length
68 miles
Drive time
3 h (1–2 days)
Type
Grand touring road
Region
Europe

Before you go: High sections closed in winter

The original 1909 tourist road from Bolzano to Cortina: Lake Carezza's mirror, the Pordoi and Falzarego passes, and pink-glowing walls of rock the whole way. The classic Dolomites day.

The 1909 tourist road from Bolzano to Cortina: SS241 and SS48, Lake Carezza, then Pordoi and Falzarego, pink rock the whole way. Sixty-eight miles; three hours moving, a day with stops, two if you ride the cable cars. High sections close in winter. Lago di Carezza has a big car park and a short walk to the water — that is the first photograph. Passo Pordoi at 2,239 m is the high point, with the Sass Pordoi terrace above; Passo Falzarego is the last pass before Cortina, Lagazuoi and the war tunnels. Fuel at Canazei Eni before those two climbs.

Enrosadira — the evening colour on the walls — is real, and it is why people linger at Falzarego rather than charging for Cortina. Summer is busy; June and September are kinder. The Sella and Val Gardena passes sit just off this corridor if you want a second day (the Dolomites Long Weekend already does that loop).

This is a touring road, not a single pass. Let Carezza, Pordoi and Falzarego be three stops, not a blur through the coach windows. Canazei is the practical overnight between Carezza and the two high passes. Cortina is expensive and busy; if you only wanted the road, Falzarego and back still counts. Winter closures isolate the high bits while Bolzano to Carezza can remain open — check, do not assume the whole 1909 line is a single gate. The Sella loop (Gardena, Pordoi, Sella, Campolongo) is the second day if the first one landed.

Highlights of the Great Dolomites Road

Where to stop on the Great Dolomites Road

Drive the Great Dolomites Road

Open Great Dolomites Road on the map → ⬇ Download GPX

GPX works with Garmin, TomTom, Beeline and most bike sat-navs. Free, no sign-up — these are indicative waypoints, so follow the road signs, not the arrow.

Plot it, add it to a club run with a meeting point and pit stops, then share the whole trip as one link. Free, no account, works offline.

Route research: Club road index · More roads in Italy

More driving roads in Europe