The lovely Spa Hotel Adler lies in the village center of St. Ulrich. Operated by the Sanoner family since 1810, this magnificent hotel is truly an oasis for the body and mind. Check in, relax on your balcony, wander the hotel’s lovely private park or enjoy their spa facilities.

Each night the Adler’s expert culinary staff creates a unique offering, be it an extensive buffet of Tyrolean specialties, more traditional Italian favorites or an informal outdoor barbecue. The up-and-coming wines of the Veneto region of Italy or perhaps a frothy German beer accompany all of our meals.

We begin today with a cable car ride to explore the high alpine plateau of the Seiseralm, offering spectacular views of three different mountain ranges. We slowly approach the immense rock face of the Sassolungo, which at almost 10,000 feet is the highest peak of the region. As we begin our traverse through pines and meadows, the mountain looms ever closer, and it seems as if you could almost reach out and touch it.

Near its base, in an open field, we stop at a local “Gasthaus” for a rustic Alpine lunch. Afterward, we descend to the valley floor via chairlift where we follow the river in a leisurely stroll back to St. Ulrich. Later we head to St. Ulrich’s oldest dining establishment, an 18th-century fully renovated inn experimenting in elegant cuisine. Maybe some basil sorbet for desert?

The Seceda lift, at over 7,000 feet, is our starting point today and offers a unique perspective of our previous day’s walk. We begin well above tree level, strolling through high alpine pastures, past the small mountain huts where shepherds still sleep and where we can taste a sip of fresh Alpine milk.

We’ll continue on into the Puez National Park and reach the Rifugio Col Raiser and enjoy not only a stunning panorama of the Puez Geisler group of peaks, but also a memorable lunch of pasta with sausage and radicchio, risotto with fresh mushrooms, or the Tyrolean specialty of baked eggs with potatoes and bacon.

Back in St. Ulrich,there will be time for last-minute shopping or a final massage before we leave for the Val Gardena tomorrow morning.

This morning, we take one last look back at the Sassolungo before descending from the Gardena pass down into the long finger-like valleys that make up the Alta Badia region. Our stroll takes us through a variety of local villages as we make our way to a lakeside inn for lunch.

It is here in the Badia that the cultural diversity of the Dolomites is at its most playful. An animated discussion at a local cafe becomes an amusing off-key melody of German, Italian and the Ladino dialect, all spoken simultaneously.

Our home is the Sporthotel Panorama in the heart of the mountains. The views are unsurpassed, and it is difficult to pry oneself away from the balcony, if even to sample the local delicacies that the chef has prepared for us this evening.

The “Col di Lana,” or “woolly hills,” are a small range of mountains that punctuates the Badia’s many isolated valleys. The Pralongia point caps the Col di Lana and is our destination today. We slowly rise to one of the most spectacular panoramas in the entire Dolomite chain: a 360-degree view of the Marmolada, Sella, Puez and Kreuzkofel groups.

Today’s meals are as local as it gets. Here we share our tables and bratwurst with walkers, hikers and climbers of all nationalities—all while being observed by the cows outside. Our afternoon walk is a slow, delightful descent back to our hotel door. A dip in the whirlpool or sauna could rejuvenate us before our dinner down the road at a family-run restaurant that welcomes us the way only a family can.

For three long years during World War I, Italy held Austria at bay from the 6,300 ft. Falzarego pass. Tunnels were carved from Cortina through the peaks of the Tofane range to supply the barracks, which were hewn directly into the red granite walls. Today we retrace this route through the eerie ruins and galleries of stone that provided Italy’s defense. It is not unusual to have mountain goats, deer or marmots share this trail with us.

Lunch is enjoyed at a rifugio, a haven for walkers and climbers alike. When we arrive in Cortina in the afternoon, it is overwhelmingly evident how effective those defenses were. Gone are any traces of the German. Sunny outdoor cafes replace the dark, rustic, alpine taverns here, and the menus are distinctly Italian.

On our final day, we board a succession of three cable cars to reach the peak of the Tofana di Mezzo, which towers above Cortina. At 3,243 meters, the Tofana di Mezzo is the second highest peak in the Dolomites. From its edges, we look down into the velvet green valleys we have traversed on our previous walks.

After an exhilarating walk around the paths at the summit, we descend to enjoy lunch beside a secluded alpine lake where the trout is caught fresh that morning. This afternoon, we stroll the meadows of the Val Cortina, enjoying a sweeping panorama of the chain whose peak we summited just hours before. Back in town, there will be plenty of time to shop and explore before meeting for our farewell dinner.

Departure this morning for Calazo, which offers connections by bus to Venice or by train to Verona and Milan.

Whatever your travel plans, we will go over them with you and make sure that your continuing journey is as easy and effortless as possible.

Auf wiedersehen and Arrivederci!