Sella Ronda: The World-Famous Circuit, and How to Ride It from Alba di Canazei
Four mountain passes, four valleys, about forty kilometers without ever taking off your skis. Which lift runs from Alba straight onto the circuit, which direction to start in, how long it takes, and by when you must clear the final pass.
The Sella Ronda is a ski circuit of about forty kilometers around the Sella massif in the Dolomites, through four mountain passes and four valleys, completed in a single day without ever taking off your skis. From the hotel in Alba di Canazei you ride straight up to it on the Alba–Col dei Rossi cable car, set out before ten, clear the final pass by three-thirty, and return to the very same spot. An intermediate skier in reasonable shape finishes it in five to six hours. There is no route like it in the world, and it starts, quite literally, right above the hotel.
In brief:
- About 40 km, of which around 26 km are skiing and the rest lifts
- Orange = clockwise, green = counterclockwise (easier for a first time)
- Level: intermediate who skis reds with confidence, 5–6 hours
- From Alba: the Col dei Rossi cable car (the Funifor) goes straight onto the circuit; the Ciampac lift does not
- Set out before 10:00, final pass by 15:30
- You need a full Dolomiti Superski pass, not just Val di Fassa
What the Sella Ronda Is
The Sella massif is an enormous block of rock in the heart of the Dolomites, ringed by four passes: Pordoi, Campolongo, Gardena and Sella. The Sella Ronda is the loop around it, through Val di Fassa, Arabba, Alta Badia and Val Gardena. There are two directions, both marked on every sign along the way: orange, clockwise, the more challenging and busier one; green, counterclockwise, slightly easier and recommended for a first time. In both directions the runs are blue and red. There is no black stretch, but there are many long sections, and what wears you out is not the difficulty but the distance.
Who Can Do It
An intermediate skier in reasonable shape: confident parallel turns on a red run, and the stamina for five to six hours. A family where the parents are intermediates and the children already ski reds, yes. If you are unsure, spend the day before on the Belvedere and a few runs on the Pordoi, and if it felt easy, set out the next morning. And if you skip it, you don't lose the day: the area around the hotel—Belvedere, Col Rodella, Ciampac and Buffaure—is about 55 kilometers of runs in its own right.
How Do You Reach the Circuit from Alba di Canazei?
This is the detail that confuses the most people. Two cable cars leave from Alba, and only one of them is on the circuit:
- Alba–Col dei Rossi cable car (the Funifor): close to the hotel, rising straight up to the Belvedere plateau, which is on the circuit. This is the door to the Sella Ronda. Pedestrians ride it too.
- Alba–Ciampac cable car: rises to the Ciampac–Buffaure area, an excellent family zone that is not on the circuit. From Ciampac you ski back down to Alba and ride up on the Funifor.
- From the center of Canazei: the Canazei–Pecol lift followed by the Pecol–Col dei Rossi lift, up to that same Belvedere plateau.
The lifts open at eight-thirty, and in winter the hotel runs a shuttle to the lifts.
The Timetable, the Rule You Must Not Break
Five to six hours with the lifts, the lines and the breaks: about two hours on lifts, about an hour and a half of actual skiing, and the rest. That is why you set out before ten, ideally as the lifts open, and you must clear the final pass by three-thirty. After that, the lifts that carry you to the next valley close, and the only way back is a taxi over the mountain passes—long and expensive. The runs close at five, and on a short December day the sun disappears behind the cliffs even earlier.
What You Eat Along the Way
The huts along the route, and there are dozens, among the loveliest in the Alps, are not kosher. This is exactly the day when the sandwiches you made at breakfast and the thermos prove their worth: take your break on a hut terrace facing the view, with your own food. About food for the mountain.
Which Ski Pass Do You Need for the Sella Ronda?
The Val di Fassa–Carezza pass alone covers the four local areas (Belvedere, Ciampac–Buffaure, Catinaccio and Carezza) and does not cover the circuit beyond the Belvedere, nor Arabba, Alta Badia and Val Gardena, nor the Marmolada. For the Sella Ronda you need the full Dolomiti Superski pass, which covers the network's 12 areas, about 1,200 kilometers and around 450 lifts. Our package includes an extended ski pass; if you plan to do the Sella Ronda, confirm at booking that it covers the entire network.
And three more Italian rules: a helmet is mandatory at every age, third-party insurance is mandatory for every skier (sold with the ski pass), and skiing while intoxicated is an offense, with police checks on the slopes.
The Next Step: The Marmolada
For those who finished the Sella Ronda with ease, the next step is the Marmolada, the highest peak in the Dolomites. From the top lift station, Punta Rocca at 3,265 meters, the red run "La Bellunese" descends: about 12 kilometers and more than 1,800 meters of drop down to Malga Ciapela, the longest run in the network. You reach it via Arabba: the Porta Vescovo cable car, a ski down to the Fedaia side, and from there the three-stage cable car to the top. Even without skiing, the terrace at Punta Rocca is an unrivaled viewpoint, and at the Serauta mid-station there is a World War I museum, at 3,000 meters.
And those who ski less don't travel to the Dolomites just to prove themselves. On the Belvedere you ski all day on wide, sun-drenched runs facing the Sassolungo, and at Ciampac you get a quieter area with one black run for those who want it and a family park for those who don't. Which week suits you, and how to read the lifts.
Want to know if your level is enough for the Sella Ronda? Talk to us at Har Tayarut, and we'll tell you honestly.
How long does the Sella Ronda take?
Five to six hours including lifts, lines and breaks: about two hours on lifts and about an hour and a half of actual skiing. You set out before ten and clear the final pass by three-thirty.
What level do you need for the Sella Ronda?
An intermediate skier who skis red runs with confidence and is in reasonable shape. All the runs on the circuit are blue and red, with no black, but the distance is tiring. Not for your first week.
How do you reach the Sella Ronda from Alba di Canazei?
On the Alba–Col dei Rossi cable car (the Funifor), which rises straight up to the Belvedere plateau on the circuit. The Ciampac lift from Alba leads to a family area that is not on the circuit.
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