Italy
In the heart of the Dolomites, where towers of pale limestone rise like the spires of a gothic cathedral against the Alpine sky, Cortina d'Ampezzo reigns as the queen of Italian winter resorts — a title earned through a combination of natural grandeur, sporting pedigree, and the particular brand of elegant informality that Italians call sprezzatura. Host of the 1956 Winter Olympics and co-host of the 2026 Games, Cortina occupies an amphitheatre-like valley at 1,224 metres, surrounded by peaks that the UNESCO inscription for the Dolomites describes, with characteristic restraint, as "among the most beautiful mountain landscapes anywhere."
The town's character blends Alpine ruggedness with Italian sophistication in a way that no Swiss or Austrian resort quite manages. The Corso Italia, Cortina's pedestrianized main street, is a promenade of boutiques, galleries, and cafés where fur-clad signore window-shop alongside weathered mountaineers fresh from the via ferrata. The architecture mixes traditional Ampezzo wooden houses with Belle Époque grand hotels that recall the town's discovery by European aristocracy in the late 19th century. The campanile of the Basilica dei Santi Filippo e Giacomo provides the town's visual anchor, its clock face a meeting point for generations of Cortinesi.
The culinary tradition of Cortina reflects its position at the cultural intersection of Italy, Austria, and the ancient Ladin world. Casunziei — crescent-shaped ravioli filled with beetroot and dressed with melted butter and poppy seeds — represent the signature dish, a brilliant purple creation that tastes as extraordinary as it looks. Canederli (bread dumplings), speck (smoked ham), and game dishes featuring roe deer, chamois, and wild boar connect the kitchen to the mountains. The wine list at restaurants like the Michelin-starred SanBrite features Alto Adige whites — particularly Gewürztraminer and Sylvaner — that pair magnificently with the rich mountain fare.
The Dolomite scenery surrounding Cortina is, quite simply, superlative. The Cinque Torri (Five Towers), a cluster of rock pinnacles used as a natural climbing gymnasium, provides both challenging routes and stunning photography. The Tre Cime di Lavaredo — three iconic peaks whose sheer north faces are among the most famous rock walls in alpinism — lie within day-hiking distance. The Lagazuoi cable car ascends to tunnels carved during World War I, where Italian and Austro-Hungarian forces fought a surreal underground war at 2,778 metres. In winter, the Dolomiti Superski pass provides access to 1,200 kilometres of slopes — the world's largest ski carousel.
Cortina is accessible from Venice (approximately 2 hours north by car) or from Innsbruck, Austria (2.5 hours south). The town is connected by bus to regional airports. Winter season (December-April) offers skiing and the social whirl; summer (June-September) delivers hiking, via ferrata climbing, and the Dolomite landscape at its most accessible. The autumn shoulder season, when the larch forests turn gold against the pale rock, may produce the most beautiful scenery of all.