Whet your appetite with a snowshoe walk
Follow one of these five itineraries and you’ll be rewarded with a memorable meal
From Passo San Pellegrino to Rifugio Fuciade:
a romantic Ristorante set amidst stunning scenery
This is an easy excursion starting from Passo San Pellegrino above the Val di Fassa. Follow a gentle 4 km long trail through a landscape of snow-covered trees and meadows, backed by Dolomite cliffs. After a while, you’ll come to some rustic huts: a sign that you’re close to Rifugio Fuciade, whose inventive cuisine, rooted in Trentino tradition, has earned high praise from both restaurant critics and cookery writers.
From Passo Rolle to Capanna Cervino:
a magical walk beneath the Pale di San Martino
Set in the heart of the Unesco Dolomites and the Paneveggio Natural Park, the mountain hut can be reached by an easy, 20-minute walk, beneath the stunning crags of the Pale di San Martino. Park your car in Passo Rolle (free parking), and in no time at all you’ll find yourself in front of a crackling fire in this traditional wooden hut. The food is full of local flavours: be it bread and mushroom gnocchi or Porcini mushroom Tortelloni, or even a simple local cheese and speck platter.
From Sant’Antonio di Mavignola to Malga Ritorto:
a view over the Brenta Dolomites
Your starting point is on the road from Pinzolo to Madonna di Campiglio. When you see the sign “Fratè”, take the forest road on the left until you reach the Milegna meadows, then follow the signs for “Giro di Campiglio” until you get to a wooden hut. Here you will start seeing the signs for the Malga Ritorto. After a stretch of woodland walking, you will find yourself in a wide clearing with a stunning view onto the western wall of the Brenta Dolomites. Once inside the Malga, you can feast on fresh Alpine cheeses, scented with mountain herbs, and aromatic mushrooms.
Malga Millegrobbe:
snowshoeing, gourmet food and a sense of well-being
From the Millegrobbe Nordic Ski Centre on Alpe Cimbra, (where you can park your car), follow the signs for Malga Costalta along a snow-covered path. You wind in and out of the forest, beside the Nordic ski trails, before reaching an an Austro-Hungarian cemetery from the Great War – blanketed with snow. From here, walk downhill beneath snowy pine trees to Malga Millegrobbe. The owner Max will welcome you with a range of local beers and dishes made from venison and Vezzena cheese. He also has his own well-being centre, complete with sauna, Turkish bath and relaxation area.
Malga Stablasolo in the Stelvio National Park:
a walk into another world
In the heart of the Stelvio National Park, lies the Val di Rabbi, a lovely, unspoilt little valley, which feels a million miles from the modern world. This is where you’ll find Malga Stablasolo. Leave your car at the Nordic Ski Centre at Plan, right after the Thermal Spa in Rabbi. The walk takes you through forest, and across the Rabbies stream on a wooden bridge, before a gentle climb up to Coler and the Rifugio Al Fontanin. From here there are still 3,5km to go before you reach the Malga and its fabulous range of traditional dishes. Leave some room for dessert.