CiaoCortina, short introduction
CiaoCortina is an unofficial tourist guide for Cortina d'Ampezzo. We live here all year and we want to provide a service to the guests of Cortina. Every article is sincere and "written with the heart".
We don't want to welcome our visitors with a wall of text, you can see a more in-depth introduction in the bottom part of this page. So let's start with a list of all our articles, divided into sections.
What to do in Cortina
This section contains the best activities for spending your vacation in Cortina. The things to do are divided according to season or weather conditions. This is the ideal starting point to discover what to do in Cortina d'Ampezzo.
Living Cortina
A collection of articles for those who are on vacation in Cortina and want to experience the town at its best. In this section are collected the best experiences to enjoy what Cortina has to offer, from sports to gastronomy, to having fun and partying.
The surroundings of Cortina
If you want to explore the surroundings of Cortina, this is the section for you. All the articles here focus on the most attractive places that can be easily reached from Cortina d'Ampezzo, either by car or by bus.
Information about Cortina
A collection of articles on Cortina traditions, some interesting facts and other useful information. A page written for both guests and residents, where you can get to know the town a little better and, perhaps, learn something new.
The best summer and winter hikes
The most beautiful summer and winter hikes in Cortina d'Ampezzo. From the easiest walks to the hikings where some training is needed, divided by category, as well as some advice for novice hikers.
Other pages
The other pages of our website, where you can find more information on the authors of the page, some ways to support our work and some alternative projects, such as our modest photo gallery.
CiaoCortina, presentation
As mentioned in the introduction, at the top of the page, CiaoCortina is a website that contains articles "written with the heart" about things to do and things to see in Cortina and its surroundings. There are also some ideas on where to eat, what to visit, where to party and many other useful information.
The reason we often write in the plural is because CiaoCortina is the result of the work of two brothers. We both live in Cortina all year round.
... we don't want to advertise, but honestly tell you what we love about Cortina...
All the recommendations, considerations and articles you'll find on this website are sincere and disinterested. This is not a "soulless" website full of ads: everything you'll read, every recommendation of what to see or where to go, is written without ulterior motives.
These are the same suggestions we could give to a friend of ours who, coming to visit us, asks us for a recommendation.
Our interest is not to advertise, but to let you know what we sincerely love about Cortina. In fact, no recommendation is paid in any way.
... we want to thank all the tourists who allow this town to live...
We believe that living in the "Pearl of the Dolomites", as Cortina is often called, is a privilege that is granted to us thanks to those who come to visit it. We take this opportunity to thank all the tourists, who allow this town to live.
Why should you visit Cortina d'Ampezzo?
The name Queen of the Dolomites was not given without a reason. Cortina is a wonderful place. It has been built in a natural conformation that is unique in the world: a wide valley, surrounded by some of the most beautiful and characteristic mountains of the Dolomites.
... the panorama that will appear before you is magical, it will leave you breathless...
Reaching Cortina for the first time will take your breath away, the panorama that will appear before you is magical, almost surreal, so much so that the Dolomites have been considered a World Heritage Site by Unesco.
These characteristics have made Cortina d'Ampezzo a very attractive place for every type of tourist: from those who love the mountains, who prefer less crowded months, to those who prefer stroll comfortably along the lively streets of the center, doing some shopping, and then eat in a luxury restaurant or in one of the wonderful mountain lodges of Cortina.
... in our travel guide we have tried to consider all types of tourism...
In writing the articles in our Cortina tourist guide we have tried to consider all types of tourism: from that oriented to experiencing nature, to that interested in worldliness and the good life.
There will be some missing articles regarding "super luxurious" pastimes, because they don't represent us, but nonetheless we want to give you all our best recommendations on what to do and what to see in Cortina. We do our best to tell you both sides of the Queen of the Dolomites: touristic and naturalistic.
The two souls of Cortina
In towns like Cortina, which suffer a lot from seasonality, you can see two opposing realities. On the one hand there are the months of peak season, characterized by crowds, queues, traffic and the top of social life. On the other side there are the off-seasons, characterized by extreme tranquility, almost deserted streets, shops, bars, restaurants and businesses mostly closed.
... the transition periods are probably the best months to visit Cortina...
Obviously there are also the transition periods, in which the two souls merge in what are probably the best months to visit Cortina: those where the tourist flow is more reasonable, but the activities are still all open.
This huge difference in the different months causes a kind of seasonal schizophrenia in residents and guests, with those who love and hate certain times of the year versus others. We recommend you to reflect on what you think would be the best months for you.
... remember that, at the end, Cortina is a small mountain village...
Finally, we must consider that a town like Cortina could be described as boring and limiting by some, but we believe that anyone who knows how to appreciate small things and quiet life will not agree.
Remember that, at the end, Cortina is a quiet mountain village: even in the moments of maximum turnout you can't hope to find the same stimuli that characterize, for example, large cities.
A website without advertising nor cookies
We have made an unusual choice: completely remove advertising from the website. We also decided not to track our visitors.
The ads helped us cover the costs of running the website, but we decided to pay with our money. We want to try to see if this project is sustainable only thanks to the generosity of our visitors.
For this reason CiaoCortina has become a website that is financed only thanks to donations. If you'd like to help us, we invite you to visit the page Support us.
If you only want to suggest a change, propose something or just say hello, in the section contacts and info you'll find all the ways to reach us.