Tre Cime in Sep & October

The Tre Cime di Lavaredo, three rock towers standing side by side on the border between Veneto and South Tyrol, are the most recognisable shape in the Dolomites. A 10 km loop walks right round them, and for most of the summer it’s one of the busiest trails in the Alps, with a booked, €40 toll road at the start.

September and October are when the loop is at its quietest and often its clearest. They’re also when it’s easiest to get wrong, because the road, the huts and the weather all change over those eight weeks. This page covers what changes and when a guided tour is the simpler choice.

September: the best month

Early September is arguably the best time of year for the Tre Cime. The weather is often more settled than in August, the queue at the toll booth is shorter, and the huts on the loop are still open for coffee and lunch. By late September the first larches around Misurina and the Landro valley start to turn.

The one date to watch is the end of the month. Rifugio Locatelli, the hut under the north faces and the classic viewpoint, published its 2026 season as ending on 27 September. Other huts close around the same time. After that, the loop is the same walk but with no food along the way.

October: open, but on the weather’s terms

The toll road. The private road from Lake Misurina to Rifugio Auronzo usually stays open until the end of October. There’s no fixed closing date: it closes when snow or ice makes it unsafe, sometimes for a day and sometimes for the season. Parking costs €40 per car for 12 hours and is booked online at pass.auronzo.info.

The trail. The loop itself isn’t closed. On a clear, dry October day it’s superb, and the wide track from Auronzo to Forcella Lavaredo is easy walking. After a snowfall the shaded northern side, below Locatelli and over Forcella Col di Mezzo, can stay icy for days.

The light. Days are shorter and the sun is lower, so the north faces stay in shade for much of the day. After the clocks go back on 25 October there is noticeably less afternoon.

The listings. Several Tre Cime tours on GetYourGuide show dates in November and even December. That means the booking calendar is open. It doesn’t mean the road will be. For any date after mid-October, message the guide before you travel.

Four ways to do the Tre Cime in autumn

Walk the full loop with a guide. The guided Tre Cime loop from Misurina, featured at the top of this page, includes the toll road. A local guide drives the group up from Misurina and walks the whole 10 km loop, about 400 m of ascent in five hours, covering the geology, the First World War front line and the wildlife. All 23 hikers who reviewed it gave it five stars. Bring a packed lunch and a rain jacket.

Come from Venice and walk part of it. The Tre Cime huts day from Venice includes all the transport. You get about three hours on the trail with a certified guide, from Rifugio Auronzo over Forcella Lavaredo, before Misurina and Cortina. It has only seven reviews so far, and the operator asks you to confirm your date by email first, which is sensible in October.

Go at sunrise. The sunrise breakfast walk is our photography pick. It starts in the early light and books breakfast at a hut facing the towers. See photography tours.

Or just look. Most Venice day trips show you the Tre Cime from Lake Misurina or a roadside viewpoint, with no walking. The Braies, Tre Cime view and Cortina trip includes a fifteen-minute photo stop facing the peaks, and the highlights and hidden gems day views them across Lake Landro.

What to bring

Guides list these as mandatory: a backpack, at least a litre of water, hiking shoes, a rain jacket and a charged phone. In autumn add warm layers, a hat and gloves, since Forcella Lavaredo is windy at 2,450 m, and food, because the huts will probably be shut.

For other walks this autumn, see guided hiking tours, and for every October closing date, the Dolomites in October. Check availability for the guided loop.