Lago di Braies or Lake Misurina?
Lago di Braies or Lake Misurina on a Dolomites day trip: how they differ, how much driving each adds, access rules, and which tours give you enough time at either.
Both lakes appear on Dolomites day trips from Venice, and plenty of tours visit both. If your day only has room for one, they are not interchangeable: one is a picture, the other is a place to spend an afternoon.
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The short version
Lago di Braies is the more dramatic scene: emerald water, a wooden boathouse, rowing boats and a wall of rock behind. It sits at 1,496 m in South Tyrol, well north of Cortina, so including it adds driving. The walk round it is about 3.5 km and takes an hour and a half to two hours.
Lake Misurina is easier and more sociable: 1,754 m, right beside the road between Cortina and the Tre Cime, with hotels and restaurants along the shore and a level 2 km path around it. The Sorapiss rises above it and the Tre Cime show over the far end.
If you want one photograph you will remember, that is Braies. If you want a lunch, a walk and a view of the three peaks without hiking, that is Misurina.
How much driving each one adds
This is the real trade. Venice to Cortina is about 160 km. Misurina is 30 to 40 minutes beyond Cortina and sits on the natural loop most tours already drive, so it costs almost nothing to include.
Braies is another hour north again, past Dobbiaco. On a day trip that time comes out of somewhere else, usually Cortina or Misurina. It is why the tours that include Braies tend to have more driving and shorter stops overall.
Access and the rules
Braies has the stricter rules. In 2026, from 1 July to 15 September, cars cannot drive to the lake between 9am and 4pm without a booked parking space. After 15 September the restriction ends, which is one reason autumn is a good time to go. Some tours include the entry fee or use a vehicle pass.
Misurina has no such restriction. It is on a public road and you can stop there any time of year, which is also why it is on almost every itinerary.
Which tours give you enough time
Time at the lake matters more than whether it is on the list at all.
- 90 minutes at Braies: the Braies, Tre Cime view and Cortina trip (entry included), the Braies and Misurina day, and the guided Braies and Misurina day.
- About 45 minutes at Braies, two hours at Misurina: the Mercedes V-Class tour, which trades lake time for comfort and hotel pickup.
- Three hours at Braies: the guided hiking day, when the guide picks its Braies option.
- Misurina only, at length: the Cortina and two lakes day (about 2¼ hours) and the Misurina small-group day (about 3 hours with Lake Antorno).
Forty-five minutes at Braies is enough for the boathouse and the near shore. It is not enough to walk round.
Which one in which season
In summer, Misurina is the more relaxed choice, because Braies is at its busiest and the road rules apply. Misurina also has the chairlift and boat hire from mid-June to mid-September.
In autumn, Braies gets better: larches turn gold on the slopes above it, the road opens up after 15 September, and the crowds thin. See Braies in autumn.
In November, both are open and quiet. Braies has no restrictions and the bus from Dobbiaco runs year round; parts of its shore path can be icy. See the Dolomites in November.
And if you want both
Plenty of routes do both in one day — the Braies tours above all stop at Misurina too. It makes for more driving and less time at each, but for a single day in the Dolomites it is a reasonable way to see the range’s two most famous lakes.
Compare every option on all Dolomites day tours, or read which day tour is right for you.
Venice to the Dolomites and Back in a Day
Piazzale Roma pickup, Pieve di Cadore, over two hours at Lake Misurina and an hour in Cortina d'Ampezzo by minivan — rated 4.9/5 by 1,116 guests. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
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