The summit of Dürrenstein was on my list from the first moment I set foot in the Dolomites. I have heard and read about it countless times but always pushed it to the back of my never-ending hiking bucket list. I always knew I wanted to do it in the Fall to avoid the crowds, and I finally managed to tick it off during my last autumn visit. I regret not doing it sooner because the summit views were worth it.
Total roundtrip distance
kilometres 10.2 / 6.3 miles
Elevation gain
807 meters / 2650 feet
Time required
5-7 hours
Overview of the hike
Dürrenstein or in Italian Picco di Vallandro is a mountain in the Fanes-Sennes-Braies Nature Park in the South Tirol region of the Italian Dolomites. You must have heard of Lago Di Braies, the park’s most famous landmark.
The summit of Picco di Vallandro has 360-degree views over the surrounding peaks. To the north, the snow-covered Austrian Alps stretch for kilometres. To the east, you can spot Tre Cime – the iconic Dolomiti photo spot. My favourite, however, is the view of the Monte Cristallo range to the south. Monte Cristallo is home to two iconic Dolomiti via ferratas: Marino Bianchi and Ivano Dibona.
It’s certainly not the most leisurely hike, but the trail is straightforward, thanks to the good boot-beaten path. The challenge comes with sun exposure. The Dolomites can get pretty hot during summer, and hiking all day in a 20-30-degree sun can be exhausting. That’s one of the reasons why I decided to postpone the Dürrenstein hike until autumn.
Another obstacle is the summit push. Some chains are installed between the two summits. If you are uncomfortable with scrambling, you can turn around on the first summit and skip the chains altogether.
The map & elevation profile of the hike
Important info about the hike
You can hike Durrenstein as late as October. I hiked it with my friend in the second half of October, and we still had fantastic weather conditions. We had the summit all to ourselves and enjoyed the autumn colours in the surrounding valleys. If you hike in the summer, go as early as possible to avoid the midday heat and the afternoon storms.
TIP: I loved hiking Dürrenstein in October so much that I included it on my autumn road trip itinerary across the Dolomites.
When to go: Mid-June – October
Trail difficulty: Demanding
Trail number: 40
Type of hike: out and back
Highest point: 2839 meters / 9314 feet
Parking: bottom Brückele/Ponticello, top Plätzwiese
Trailhead: 46.65637, 12.1761
Nearest towns: Monguelfo, Dobiacco, San Candido
Getting there
There are two parking lots for this trail. One is free of charge and close to the rifugio Prato Piazza, only a few meters from the trailhead. To reach it, you will need to take the toll road; more on that soon. The second one is 6 kilometres lower at the Brückele/Ponticello Parking area (paid), near Alpin Natur Hotel Brückele.
The road to Rifugio Prato Piazza is very windy and narrow. If you are uncomfortable driving on these roads, you should also use the shuttle. Large campervans are not allowed on that road. If you drive an RV, leave it in the bottom parking lot and use the shuttle bus.
By bus
From the first week of June until the start of November, shuttle bus no. 443 runs between the two parking lots at 30-minute intervals.
The departure stop is Ausserprags (Prags) Brückele, and the arrival stop is Ausserprags (Prags) Plätzwiese.
Check the Süd Tirol Mobil website for departure times. The bus starts the run from Monguelfo, Villabassa, and Dobiacco. Tickets can be purchased on the bus, and reservations are not required.
By car
The parking lot near the trailhead can only be reached via toll road within certain hours. The road stays open to public traffic until 10 AM and reopens after 3 PM.
The access is limited to 100 cars daily. After that, the gates shut, and the only way to reach the trailhead is by shuttle bus.
TIP: Many hotels include a South Tyrol travel card in their stays, providing free travel on public transport across South Tyrol.
Overnight stay & dining possibilities
Rifugio Pratto Piaza is located about 10 minutes into the hike. Bring enough snacks to make it to the summit and back. After completing the hike, you can have drinks and a proper meal. It is possible to stay overnight at Rifugio Pratto Piaza.
TIP: If you stay on the plateau overnight, consider hiking to Monte Specie the next day.
Where to stay nearby
The nearby valleys have many hotel choices and are close to all the Fanes-Sennes-Braies Nature Park attractions. If you want to be in the middle of nature with beautiful mountain views, check out my recommendations below! I would appreciate it if you used my affiliate links to support my site.
Best Value
Top Rated
Hi Marta,
I am planning on following your 7-day itinerary of the Dolomites starting on Oct. 19.
I prefer driving but do you recommend that we take the bus or drive and park at Prato Piazza during this time of the year?
Also, are there places to eat or you suggest we pack lunch?
Thank you,
Kay
Hi Kay. You can do either. The restrictions are still there so if you drive you have to do it early. The buses run as late as early November. Part of this road goes on gravel so if you have a rental better to leave it at the bottom and take a bus. The huts are generally close at this time so I would recommend bringing lunch with you.
Thank you! Very helpful!
Hi Marta,
Thanks for all these helpful infos. Do you recall when it was exactly in Oct? I’d like to avoid snow which can make the hiking road muddy or slippery…
Hi Cat. I did this trail around October 20th. I had some light snow just below the peak. The trails are generally pretty dry in October, but there is no guarantee that it won’t snow. All it takes is one bad day of rain in the valley and snow up in the mountains for the peaks to get covered. We even had 40 cm of fresh snow above 2000 meters at the start of July this year. It melted pretty quickly, but that’s the mountain weather for you. I hope that helps!
Great information. I’m planning to visit Prato Piazza by car in the first week of October and I looked at the street view on the map for the road going from Ponticello to the upper 100 car parking at Prato Piazza. I have a question: Isn’t that road too narrow for a 2 way traffic, especially that buses go there too, these days I understood that bus 443 from Dobbiaco goes all the way up to the 100 car parking. Is 2 way traffic manageable on that portion of the road? Thank you.
Hi Maria, Yes the road is quite narrow, but good enough for two way traffic providing you pass one another carefully. I drove my fiat ducato campervan up there without an issue. The road isn’t open the whole day though. When the buses run in the summer, the road stays closed to other traffic (unless one has a reservation).
Hi Marta,
Thank you very much for the very interesting article! I have one more question: How did you manage to hike this route with a dog? Especially the part where you have to cross the rope-secured spot. That looks pretty difficult with a dog to me. My dog is big and trained, but I’m still not sure how doable the hike is with dog.
Thanks in advance and best,
Nati
Hi Nati. Thanks so much for your feedback. My dog is way more agile than I am. He is a mountain goat in a dogs skin 🙂 Jokes aside though I always have him on a harness and a bungee leash and wear a harness myself which helps tremendously. There were times when I had to turn around when the route was too much, but Durrenstein was actually ok, and the cable protected section is not as tough as it looks on the photo. There were plenty of footholds that both Jasper and I could use to walk up and down on. In rare cases on some hikes I have to assist him or watch out that he doesn’t pull me off the ledge or anything like that. That was the case with Romsdalseggen in Norway which I wouldn’t do with a dog again. I also taught him to always stay behind me when we hike down. That way he isn’t pulling me.
Hi Marta, thanks so much for your fast reply and all the helpful infos 🙂
No Worries! I hope you will have lots of fun!