If you’re planning a trip to the Dolomites your itinerary is not complete without a visit or hike to Seceda! I have now been to this magnificent area in the North of Italy a couple of times and when it comes to spectacular mountains Seceda truly takes the cake!
There are several ways to visit this famous mountain peak but depending on the time of year it will be a little easier to reach the top. In this article I will talk you through all of the different options and highlight my personal favourite.
The Most Beautiful Hike To Seceda in The Dolomites
Planning your trip to the Dolomites
🏨 Find the best accommodations on Booking.com
💰 Get reliable travel insurance from World Nomads
🎒 Pack a power bank, hiking shoes and trekking poles.
🚗 Rent a car to drive to the best hiking trails in the Dolomites with SunnyCars.com
📚 Read Photographing the Dolomites and Walking in the Dolomites
How to reach Seceda by cable car
During the Summer months it’s pretty easy and straight forward to reach the top of Seceda. Even people taht absolutely hate hiking or don’t have the time in their itinerary can visit this beautiful place.
All you need to do is take the cable car up to Seceda in the town of Ortisei in Val Gardena. It’s two separate cable cars that will take you all the way up and drop you off at the top of the mountain. The cost for this trip is €35 and the ticket includes the cablecar Ortisei – Furnes and the gondula Furnes – Seceda for the mountain trip and the gondula Seceda – Furnes and the cablecar Furnes- Seceda for the valley trip.
Opening hours for 2021
06/05/2021 – 10/10/2021
Daily 08:30 – 17:30
How can I watch the sunrise or sunset at Seceda?
This is the questions that most photographers wonder about! It is absolutely possible to visit Seceda mountain during sunrise or sunset but it will require more effort!
For sunrise you either have to start hiking up the mountain during the night and calculate enough time to reach the summit. Or another option is to stay overnight on the mountain and wake up for sunrise. There are several mountain huts at the summit and a little below or you can set up your tent. A good place to stay is the Rifugio Fermeda.
For sunset you can either take up the gondola and stay and hike back down in the dark or you also stay overnight on top of the mountain after admiring the sunset.
How to reach Seceda without a cable car
There are basically two different ways that you can reach the top of the Seceda without a cable car but one of them is really boring and doesn’t offer any nice views during hiking. So I will give you all the details that you need to know to go on one of the most spectacular hikes in the Dolomites and have an amazing time!
Col Raiser to Seceda hike
To get to the start of the drive to the Col Raiser cable car station and park your car on the parking lot. During the Summer months you’ll have to pay a parking fee but during during mid to late October (when the cable car stops running) you can park here for free. From here the adventure and one of the most beautiful hikes in the Dolomites can begin!
Starting Point – Col Raiser cable car station
Ending Point – Col Raiser cable car station
By Car – From Bolzano it takes around 50 minutes to reach the cable car station and there’s enough parking space available
By Public Transport – This hike can be easily reached by bus! Go to the bus station in Bolzano next to the train station and jump on the 350 to Val Gardena. After 1h15 you’ll reach the bus stop St. Cristina, Dosses where you need to get off. From here it’s an average of 20 minutes walking to the Col Raiser cable car station.
Distance – 17km (round trip)
Elevation Gain – 1100m
Hiking time – The total duration of the hike will be around 6,5 hours (without adding extra time to take photos).
Difficulty level – Moderate to difficult. There are some very steep parts and if there’s snow it can take a lot of endurance to reach the top.
Okay let’s do this!!! Once you’ve parked your car make sure to put on proper hiking shoes and if you have hiking poles take them with you. They might come in handy on the steep parts!
When you first arrive it’s not immediately clear where the hiking trail starts. But all you need to do is walk around the cable car station (you’ll end up on another parking lot) and follow the paved road on the side that goes up. After a short while you’ll see your first hiking arrows! The one you need to follow is the one that leads to Rifugio Firenze.
The first part if the hike is pretty steep and I could feel my little legs were starting to hurt from all of the hiking I already did the days before :p. But after a short while you’ll start walking through a beautiful forest and pass by a peaceful little forest lake.
It takes around 1,5 hour to reach Rifugio Firenze and by now you’ll be hiking through the beautiful Puez Odle Nature Park.
Once you reach rifugio Firenze you need to follow the sign that says Seceda (there will be a cable car icon next to it). The first part of the hike is less steep and goes through a meadow. Make sure to stop sometimes and look around to take in the views cause this truly is the most beautiful hike to the Seceda! At one point you’ll be able to see the Seceda cable car station and after a quick descent you’ll get ready for the last incline. This is where it got tricky with us because of the snowfall and we were knee deep in snow. Otherwise it’s just a steep incline that requires you to drink enough water.
Once you’ve reached the top you’ll be walking on the Seceda ridgeline and from here it’s only 15 more minutes to reach the top at the Seceda cable car station!
When you’ve admired the view it’s time to hike back down! But before we start I do have to add something. I visited Seceda two times, once in Summer with the cable car and once mid October (with the hike I just described). And I have to say I will forever prefer our visit in October. Because the cable cars aren’t running anymore you pretty much have this mountain top all to yourself. During high season you’ll be surrounded by at least 300 other people and it takes away a lot of the magic!
Once you start hiking back down make sure to make a stop at the Baita Daniel Hütte for lunch or if they’re closed to simply enjoy the view!
Below you’ll find some of my favourite hiking items! If you’re going hiking during Fall season and there’s already snow make sure to wear proper sunglasses! The ones I was wearing at first weren’t strong enough and I ended up with two inflamed cornea’s and a blurred vision for over a week. Pretty scary and something that could have been easily avoided! I linked the sunglasses I bought for your below!
[show_shopthepost_widget id=”4237516″]
Other Blog Posts You Might Like
- 18 Most Beautiful Places in the Dolomites
- Fun Day Hikes in the Dolomites
- 5 Day Itinerary if it’s your first time in the Dolomites
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Charlotte Lint is the founder of Charlies Wanderings.
Charlotte has traveled all over the world and is based in Belgium where she also owns her very own dental practice.
She is an expert on writing efficient travel guides and finding unique places to stay.
Every month she helps over 134.000 people discover the most beautiful places in the world through her detailed travel guides.
Carmie says
My heart is set on visiting the Dolomites in late October and hiking Seceda. Everything I have read said that to hike to the summit without the cable car was “too exhausting” Thanks for your perspective! Is there always snow at the summit in late October?
Charlotte says
Hi Carmie! The hike from Col Raiser is so stunning you wil love it! Chances are high that there will be snow at the summit during that time but every year is different. Last year there was already snow in the Dolomites in september so keep an eye out on the weather forecast. You can still do it if there’s snow, just gotta be careful and calculate some extra time cause the hike will take longer cause you go way slower 🙂
Bethany says
Hello! I’m headed to Italy in february — is this hike possible at that time?!
Charlotte says
Hi Bethany! That totally depends on the weather and the amount of snow. We did it in October and as you can see we already had to deal with a lot of snow towards the last half pof the hike.
I do think around that time the cable car is open again for winter activities so in case you can’t do the hike I think you can still reach the top with that.
Ni says
Hello, I’m absolutely impressed by the breathtaking view along the hiking road😍 Thx for your sharing! And I’m about to take this hiking route next Monday 🏔 So if you could provide the map for this hiking trail would be a grand help🙏🏻 I searched online many times but it seems that you are the only one blogger took this road
Thank you so much
Charlotte says
Hi! I don’t have a map for it but you can find a very good explanation of the trail and which way to go in the article!
mary says
Do you know if there is overnight parking at the bottom of the Col Raiser cable car station? I’m staying at the Firenze Rufugio for two nights, but I’ll have a car.
Charlotte says
Hi Mary! I am pretty sure that won’t be a problem! Just overnight camping wouldn’t be allowed. Have fun on your trip!
BreeAnna Lasher says
What was the boring way to get up?