Alta Via 1 North Self Guided 4-day Itinerary AV1-4N

Accommodation

Generally speaking, the huts toward the beginning of the route are more fancy (by hut standards, of course) and the huts toward the end of the route are more basic. This is generally due to the fact that the Alta Via 1 becomes more remote, the further south you go. Many of the huts do have private rooms available, but these book out very quickly. At the end of the route, none of the huts have private rooms, so it is impossible to do the route 100% in private rooms without exiting early. Hikers who insist on private rooms should book early, have a flexible date range, and/or be willing to use off-route accommodation that is convenient to reach.

While not all huts on the route are equal, we hear great feedback about every hut on the route. Of course, there’s variation amongst our customers regarding the most, and least, favorite huts on the route. It’s really a matter of personal preference. If there are specific huts that you would like to stay in, you can share that with us in your booking, and we’ll do our best to honor your request.

Meals

Breakfast and dinner will always be available at, or near, your accommodation. It is not necessary to carry your own food for these meals. In most cases, the huts allow us (and often require us) to book half-pension for our customers, which includes a multi-course set menu for dinner (usually with a vegetarian and non-vegetarian option) and breakfast. Drinks are never included. In our experience, the dinners serve up heaps and heaps of delicious Italian food, and the breakfasts are less impressive with bread as the centerpiece. Some huts do not have set menus that they offer, and instead expect guests to order dinner a la carte at the hut. At these huts, we are unable to book and pay for dinner in advance, so dinner is not included in the package, but it is available for purchase on site.

Read about dietary restrictions at the huts

1. There are so many huts along the way, that depending on your itinerary, you’ll likely have options to sit down for a warm lunch on each day. While this sounds appealing, it is also very expensive and time-consuming. This is not a great option on long hiking days or for slower hikers who are already concerned about covering the planned route.
2. Most huts offer sack lunches that you can bring with you on the trail. We find these to be overpriced and repetitive to breakfast, and this option generates a lot of trash. Most huts do not include picnic lunches in their reservation process, which is why we are unable to book these in advance for you. Sack lunches should be requested immediately upon arrival at the hut for the next day. Huts are generally not very flexible in honoring dietary restrictions with their sack lunches.
3. The third option, and our favorite option, is to bring your own food. Since there aren’t any grocery stores along the way, it’s necessary to purchase food before starting on the trail.
   

Early September: The first snow of the winter usually falls in the first week of September. The snow rarely sticks around for more than a day, but the visibility can be very low, making navigation problematic on this one day. Most days in early September are beautiful and perfect, and the thunderstorms are less, but there is a higher risk of snowstorms and conditions that may prevent you from completing your hike during this time. Many hikers have incredible weather in September, but some do not. It’s simply a matter of luck. The later you push into September, the higher the risk that unfavorable conditions (usually snow, but sometimes extremely cold temperatures) can interfere with your hiking itinerary. We notice that customers who are on the trail beyond September 15^th are much more likely to quit their hike early due to conditions. In early September, the wildflower season is mostly over, with the exception of brilliant bursts of fireweed that mark the end of summer. The Malga Ra Stua shuttle is not running, so a taxi is required if you decide to do the easier itinerary and start at Malga Ra Stua instead of at Lago di Braies. The regular bus service from the end of the tour to Cortina d'Ampezzo may stop running as early as September 8th (the exact date changes each year and we don't know this date until June), so it may be necessary to arrange a taxi at the end of the tour.

In all months, it’s reasonable to expect 1 to 2 rainy days on the trail.

To research more detailed information about average temperatures, precipitation, etc., we recommend checking Meteoblue (go to “History & Climate” and then “Climate (modelled)”) for Passo di Falzarego.

Important note about availability on the Alta Via 1: Many authors and bloggers have published information that June and September are the shoulder seasons and are less crowded on the Alta Via 1 than other times of the summer. The word is out and now huts tend to fill up faster in June and September than they do in late July and August. In fact, for the past couple of years, August has had the most availability for last-minute bookings. With that said, August is a busy time of year for tourists in the area, so hotels in Cortina can be more expensive at that time, and sometimes difficult to get.

The Alta Via 1 is a very popular route, and the huts are going to be full during the entire season. If your goal is to avoid the crowds (although in most places the trail does not feel crowded at all), then we recommend choosing a route that is less famous, but just as, if not more, incredible. There are well over 800 mountain huts in the Alps, and hut-to-hut possibilities are endless. Here are some great tours to look at:

Best of the Dolomites Trek
Culinary Delight Hut Hiking Tour
Hut to Hut Light in the Austria Alps
Tour of the Vanoise
Hut to Hut in Switzerland

Read more about Understanding the hut-to-hut hiking season in the Alps.