AN EXCLUSIVE EWS TRAVEL ADVENTURE IN THE ITALIAN DOLOMITES
The Dolomites in Northern Italy are an imposing mountain range that has drawn climbers to the region for hundreds of years. Now, thanks to the Enduro World Series and the hard work of local riders, mountain bikers are also gravitating to the Dolomites, home to our new EWS Travel Val di Fassa adventure.
Your local guide for this adventure is not only a professional MTB guide, but also a local hero who can be found building trails, and in winter skiing some of the toughest routes in the Dolomites. As well as showing you the best lines around Val di Fassa, he’ll also get you away from the well-known trails and share his backcountry knowledge and beautiful lunch stops.
You will also have a 2-day Sella Ronda adventure like no other. It’s no doubletrack tourist route, it’s 110km of trails with 7000m of descent, characterising our EWS Travel Val di Fassa experience in the Dolomites.
- Skill level: Intermediate+
- Fitness level: 5/7
- 8 days / 7 nights
- £2,300 / $3,335 / €2,875
- Max. group size: 8
Tour Dates 2023
- 24 Jun – 1 Jul (TRIP FULL)
- 26 Aug – 2 Sep (1 PLACE)
- 2 – 9 September (TRIP FULL)
- 9 – 16 September (TRIP FULL)
Trip Highlights
This EWS Travel Val di Fassa adventure in the Italian Dolomites will take you beyond the ordinary into the extraordinary.
You’ll leave the crowds behind to discover trails that even some locals have yet to ride, and soak up the mountain lifestyle of Val di Fassa and the surrounding region. Here are a few highlights to look forward to…
- Discover remote trail gems, known only to a handful of locals
- Experience a 2-day Sella Ronda adventure with 7000m descent
- Enjoy an overnight in a remote mountain refuge
- Join the trail builders to help build a section of the EWS trails
- Post-ride leg soak in the snowmelt, then beer in the town square
- Receive an EWS goodie bag
THE MOST BREATH-TAKING RACE?
“This spectacular region has been in my mind for years since my climbing days, and it’s been a dream come true to craft an EWS round here. During the race weekend we make good use of what Val di Fassa has to offer, but that’s just scratching the surface of what is available in the surrounding mountain range, this tour reaches out to these trails and makes the most of them!”
CHRIS BALLEWS DirectorEWS Travel Val di Fassa Itinerary
This exclusive mountain bike experience in the Italian Dolomites will take you to parts of the region that some people didn’t even know existed. You’ll take innumerable gondolas and chairlifts to connect a web of trails, do a 2-day Sella Ronda singletrack tour and hike your bike high above Val di Fassa. Most of your climbing will be gondola-assisted, so be prepared for a lot of downhill grinning on this tour. But don’t be fooled, there’s still some hard work involved!
- +Day 0 - Arrival in Venice - Italy
If you’re travelling a long way or across several time zones to Italy we advise arriving in Venice a day early to allow your body to adjust to local time and to make sure any flight or luggage delays don’t spoil your trip.
- +Day 1 - Transfer to the Dolomites - refresh + prepare for your bike tour
Your guide will meet you at our recommended hotel at Venice Airport at 8am, then you’ll get settled in for the 4-hour drive to the mountains. Upon arrival your guide will go through the tour briefing over lunch, and you’ll have the chance to ask any questions and hear what the week has in store for you.
Then we’ll build your bikes in the bike room, before heading out onto the trails to get your first taste of this incredible region.
Tonight’s dinner will be in the hotel with views over the imposing peaks at the other side of the steep-sided valley.
Distance cycled: 10km (app. 2 hours)
Accommodation: 4* hotel Canazei
Meals included: L, D
- +Day 2 - Introduction to EWS life in the Dolomites
As you awake from your first night’s sleep in the fresh mountain air and draw open your curtains you will be met by a view of the imposing Marmolada mountain at the head of the valley.
Today we start exploring Val di Fassa and ride the EWS stages that make this valley so unique on the race calendar. This will give you a feel for the terrain and infrastructure created here for mountain biking.
We will utilise the amazing gondola system to maximise our time on trail, enabling us to cover as much ground as your legs and arms will allow. Today is a true classic, and already a day to remember as you’re introduced to views that will continue to impress throughout the week.
On our way back to town we will stop off for a quick beer in the square to relive today’s adventure and a quick look forward to tomorrow’s fun and games.
Distance cycled: 30km (app. 7 hours)
Accommodation: 4* hotel Canazei
Meals included: B, L
- +Day 3 - Searching further afield - Panorama tour
Yesterday you got to know the valley that you are staying in, but that’s just one part of our adventure here in the Dolomites. Today we are going to the top of the second highest lift in the valley and being dropped across the valley from Marmolada, the ever-present giant in the region. You will be awestruck at its dominance and the hanging glacier facing you, and it will be a reminder that we are in the high mountains.
As you head up and over the shoulder of this mountain ridge you will be introduced to a variety of trail surfaces, and even start to notice the different trail builder styles at play in this region. You will take in multiple drops as you work your way from valley-to-valley before ending up at Passo Padon for lunch.
As lunch is digesting you will take your final gondola of the day, gaining almost all the height you lost during the morning’s ride. We’ll traverse back across the valley to your final trail of the day.
You still have some work to do, this trail is a high alpine traverse with continuous jaw dropping views, that leads to a farm access track descent to the head of Lake Fedaia, before you finish the trail on the most grin-inducing descent imaginable.
All delivering you back to the square and you new favourite post-ride beer stop!
Distance cycled: 40km (app. 8 hours)
Accommodation: 4* hotel Canazei
Meals included: B, L
- +Day 4 - Hike-a-bike day and spa
Hovering high above the hotel, on the opposite side of the valley is a mountain with a large cross on it. It’s approximately 1000m above the hotel and Val di Fassa, and that’s your target this morning.
You will leave the hotel after breakfast and ride through town, stopping in at the local deli for some mid morning snacks to enjoy at the top. As you reach the other end of town after a gentle warm up ride, you will board the one and only gondola of the day. This will whisk us up to 800m above the valley floor, where the hard work starts: you have 200m vertical to get to the cross – a hard 200m, but totally manageable and worth the 1000m of descending ahead of you to come.
As you crest the top of the climb, the valley opens up in front of you, taking your breath away and revealing the past two days of riding in one panorama. Snacks devoured, you will turn and head down, taking in natural trails, EWS stages, local knowledge gold and some of the most stunning forest in the region.
It has been a hard two-and-a-half days of riding, so now you have the afternoon off to relax, hit the spa or sunbathe in the park, it’s up to you!
Distance cycled: 15km (app. 4 hours)
Accommodation: 4* hotel Canazei
Meals included: B, L
- +Day 5 - Sella Ronda singletrack and refugio stay
Today you will leave the hotel behind and ride off into the mountains for the next two days. On your back you will have all your normal gear, plus a change of clothes for the night ahead and your wash bag. But don’t worry, you won’t be roughing it! Your mountain refugio half-way around the Sella Ronda tour is a wonderful, warm and welcoming place to spend the night enjoying food and wine.
The Sella Ronda tour is a well known doubletrack-style route that you can do in one day, but we don’t tend to do what other people do.
You will ride around the Sella Ronda route on as much singletrack as possible over the course of two days, taking in over 110km of trails with 7000m vertical over the course of 16 hours of riding. This is a great expedition ride that takes you full circle around some of the best scenery in the Dolomites.
Half-way around the tour you will stop overnight in a wonderful refugio for some hearty home cooked food and a glass of wine as you watch the sun set over the surrounding mountains.
Distance cycled: 60km (app. 8 hours)
Accommodation: Small refugio
Meals included: B, L, D
- +Day 6 - Sella Ronda day two - 3500m of descent
Day two of the Sella Ronda will see you complete the loop back to the hotel in Val di Fassa. As you wake in the morning to the smell of coffee brewing in the refigio, you can amble downstairs to a warming breakfast and await the sun reaching the refugio over the mountain ridge line.
Once fuelled and sitting on your bike, you will set off to complete this circumnavigation of the Sella Massif mountains.
After another day of epic views and equally incredible trails you will finish with a rough and technical ride down into the valley and back to your hotel.
You’ll get showered up and meet for dinner in the hotel restaurant where we can enjoy the wonderful food on offer before heading off to bed to recharge the batteries for your last day in Val di Fassa.
Distance cycled: 60km (app. 8 hours)
Accommodation: 4* hotel Canazei
Meals included: B, L
- +Day 7 - Fun day - Choose your trails
After two days circumnavigating the Sella Ronda trails, it’s nice to back in the valley amongst familiar faces and trails.
This morning you will ride a selection of trails of your choice. You can revisit the best trails from earlier in the week, re-do the Nos tour or see some of the guide’s secret trails – you decide.
You will return to the hotel for a late lunch and then you’ll have time to clean and pack bikes, do some gift shopping, and prepare for you last night’s dinner at the guide’s favourite spot in town.
Distance cycled: 20km (app.5 hours)
Accommodation: 4* hotel Canazei
Meals included: B, L, D
- +Day 8 - Departure day
Sadly this is the end of your EWS Travel Dolomites adventure. It’s time to load up the van and head for home. Your guide will arrange pick up times from your hotel and deliver you to the airport in plenty of time to catch your flight home (please book a flight departing no earlier than 4pm, if possible). Arrivederci!Meals included: Breakfast
Please note: Your EWS Travel Val di Fassa mountain bike tour of the Dolomites is a living thing, being influenced by multiple factors such as changing weather conditions, group riding abilities, trail damage, to name a few. Your local guides are experts in guiding mountain bikers in the Dolomites, Italy and will be continually assessing these factors and making tweaks to the itinerary where necessary to ensure that every member of the group has the best possible experience on our EWS Travel Val di Fassa adventure.
- +Tour price
EWS Travel Val di Fassa Tour Price
£2,300 / $3,335 / €2,875 per person (ex. flights, based on two sharing a room)
Price includes:
- Services of fully-qualified, English, German and Italian speaking expert mountain bike guide(s) for the duration of the trip
- All breakfasts and lunches, and 3 evening meals.
- All lifts during the course of your tour
- 7 nights’ accommodation in 4* hotel
- Meet and ride with EWS trail builders
- All ground costs
- Transfers between Venice and Canazei, Val di Fassa on day 1 and day 8
- EWS goodie bags
- All group safety equipment
- Global Rescue medical and evacuation services
Price excludes:
- International/ domestic flights
- Bike rental – we can arrange bike rental at a cost of £450/ $652.20 / €562.50 for the duration of the trip
- Single room supplement* £495 / $717.75 / €618.75
- Travel and activity insurance
- Tips in restaurants and hotels
- Alcoholic/ non-alcoholic beverages
- Personal safety and cycling equipment
- Any other items not mentioned as included
* Single supplement is only applicable if you are travelling solo and do not wish to share a room with another rider of the same sex. If you’re happy to do that, you need not add the supplement.
Please note: A single room may not be available at time of booking, and is not available on the night spent in a refugio.
H+I Adventures is bonded by the Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited (ABTOT), so you can be sure that when you book with us your money will be safe.
- +Skill + fitness levels required
Does this sound like you? Your vacation time is precious and we want to be absolutely sure that you’re making the most of it, by finding the perfect mountain bike tour for you. Be honest with yourself, if this adventure isn’t right for you, we have other mountain bike tours that may well be a better fit for your mountain biking experience and ability.Please note: The skill level required reflects an overall rating for the trails on the trip but you should expect to find sections and obstacles that push your ability levels.
SKILL LEVEL: INTERMEDIATE+
- You are generally comfortable riding most types of terrain in different conditions: singletrack, double track, muddy, dry, loose, bedrock…
- You can brake, use gears and corner instinctively
- You’ll have a go on moderate technical features, such as small rock gardens, small drops and steeper sections, but may get off and walk certain technical features
- You ride more than once a week throughout your biking season
- And the ‘+’ part of ‘Intermediate+’ means that you will be aiming to tackle more of those moderate technical features
Fitness level: 5
- You have a good level of bike fitness, exercising at least three times every week throughout the year, for an hour at a time
- You can ride a mountain bike for up to six hours a day at a moderate pace, with snack and photo stops, for three or more consecutive days
- You can tackle two or three fairly significant climbs a day, up to 600 metres each
Typical trails you’ll be riding
- Much the riding you’ll do on our EWS Travel Dolomites MTB tour will be done on EWS racing trails, on a variety of different terrain
- Doubletrack: undulating forest roads made up of hard-packed dirt and small rocks
- Singletrack: mainly forested and ridgeline trails with roots crossing the trails; steep descents, some very flowing, others more technical; golf ball-sized rock gardens; dusty loose trails and purpose built MTB trails
- Some of the trail sections are hundreds of years old, so are not always buff purpose built trails, they are natural walking trails that link villages across the region and surfaces may be soft and/or muddy at times
- +Arrival + departure details
Your EWS Travel Val di Fassa mountain bike tour will start and end in Venice, Italy.We advise you arrive the day prior to your tour start date and spend one night in Venice, allowing for any delays to flights to luggage and being ready for your guide to meet you there the following morning. Your guide will meet you in the foyer of your hotel and he/she will be holding an H+I Adventures sign and wearing an H+I ride top.
We recommend Hotel Titian, which is easily accessible by road and offers a shuttle service from the airport.
On the last day of the tour, your guide will ensure you are dropped off at Venice airport in time to catch your flight home. Therefore, we would advise booking your flights home no earlier than 4pm on your day of departure.
If your departure flights differ from this, we would be happy to help book you into an airport hotel overnight, if needed.
- +Travelling to Venice
Your EWS Travel adventure in the Dolomites will start in Venice, Italy. Venice airport is well-served by many major airlines from all over the world.For up-to-date timetables and booking visit:
Here are some tips and video on how to pack your bike for travel.
Visas
Citizens of most countries do not require a visa to visit Italy. For more information on visa requirements visit the Schengen visa site.
- +Preparing yourself + your bike for your adventure
Please read the full kit list before you start packing for your EWS Travel mountain bike tour of the Dolomites, so that you have everything you need!Our mountain bike tour of the Dolomites is for Intermediate+ riders with level 5 fitness. The ideal bike for the Dolomites trails is a good quality full-suspension bike with around 150-170mm of front travel.
To get the most out of your mountain bike tour in the Dolomites you should plan some training in advance of your tour.
If you are travelling with your own bike, you must ensure that it has been properly serviced before the trip.
We have some handy tips on how to do this, however if this isn’t possible for you we can arrange rental of a high quality full suspension mountain bike for the duration of your EWS Travel Val di Fassa adventure in the Dolomites.
- +Your mountain bike guides in Italy
Our mountain bike guides in the Dolomites, Italy are of the highest level.They are qualified in first-aid and they have the knowledge and experience to lead a group safely in these remote, wild and beautiful parts of the Dolomites, Italy.
Your head guide Albi is a local trial guru who thinks riding the same trail more than twice is too many – so he knows every trail there is to know!
Our guides have years of experience in the saddle on the trails of the Dolomites area and will be able to enhance your holiday with facts and fables on local history, flora and fauna. They’re also genuinely nice people and will do their best to make sure that everyone in the group has a great time.
- +Accommodation + food
We aim to use the best, locally-run accommodation in each country, and that which is traditional to that specific area, whether it be city or mountain.On this EWS Travel mountain bike tour Dolomites you’ll be staying in one hotel for the duration of your visit, except one night when you will be staying in a refugio. The reason for this is that the region is small enough that we can reach all four corners easily from Val di Fassa, allowing us to work with the weather to deliver the best trail experience each day.
We will enjoy a wide array of food on our EWS Travel Dolomites tour, all of which is prepared with the greatest of care and skill, using local ingredients.
- +Health + safety
No vaccinations are required for visiting the Dolomites.We recommend you check before drinking tap water, but 99% of this is safe for consumption. Bottled or filtered water will be readily available throughout the trip.
Also, please let us know if you have any special food requirements, allergies or pre-existing conditions your guides should know about.
You should always consult your own doctor or physician before travelling to new countries to seek their advice on matters concerning your health abroad.
Your health and safety is on our EWS Travel mountain bike tour Dolomites is our top priority so when you travel with us you also have the peace of mind knowing that you will be covered by Global Rescue emergency medical and evacuation services.
- +Currency + foreign exchange
The official currency of Italy is the Euro. ATM machines are readily available throughout Italy.Tipping
It is not compulsory to tip your guides the Dolomites, but if you feel that you have had a good service or experience on your mountain bike tour of the Dolomites, you can tip at your discretion.
It is not compulsory to tip in restaurants, however should you wish to tip your servers, 10% of your meal cost would be acceptable.
- +Travel insurance
You are required as a condition of booking to be insured against medical and personal accident risks. In this policy you must include cover for mountain biking and we recommend that you take out a policy which covers cancellation and baggage.We work closely with WorldNomads who specialise in adventure travel. You can arrange your insurance cover directly with them and we ask that you send us your policy details.
Please note: our EWS Travel mountain bike tour of the Dolomites is a living thing, being influenced by multiple factors such as changing weather conditions, group riding abilities, trail damage, to name a few. Your local guides are experts in guiding mountain bikers in the Dolomites and will be continually assessing these factors and making tweaks to the itinerary where necessary to ensure that every member of the group has the best possible experience.
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Frequently asked questions (FAQs) EWS Travel Val di Fassa mountain bike tour
- Q. How many people will be in the group?
We only run small group mountain bike tours to ensure that everyone has the best experience possible, and groups will usually be no more than eight people on this experience. We can stretch to a maximum of ten if it’s a group of friends. The minimum number of people we require to run this mountain bike tour of the Dolomites is four.
- Q. What’s the age range of people who come on this holiday?
Our EWS Travel Dolomites tour caters for a wide age range; typically between 30- and 60-years-old.
- Q. What style of mountain bike tour is it?
This EWS Travel Dolomites adventure is a guided mountain bike vacation, ideal for Intermediate+ mountain bikers. The terrain you’ll be riding consists of double track and singletrack through thick forests, villages and mountain ridges. You’ll encounter steep descents and rooty sections, as well as fabulous, swooping descents. These trails are part of the EWS racing series, so can be technical. Altitude should not be a factor here.
- Q. How far will we be mountain biking each day?
The distances we cover each day range from 20km to 60km, in accordance with the altitude and height gain/ loss on each stage. We will gain a lot of height via lifts, but you will still need to ride and climb. Each evening your guides will chat with you about the following day’s mountain biking and give you an idea of the sorts of trails you can look forward to. If there’s anything you feel anxious about, your guides will be happy to discuss it with you.
- Q. Do we have to carry all our gear with us?
No, you only need to carry a day pack with you whilst riding with all of your spares and repairs, warm and waterproof clothing. Your main bags will stay at your centre based accommodation throughout the tour, except on day 5 where you will stay in a refugio (mountain hut).
- Q. What if I come across a section of trail I can’t ride?
Your guide will be very happy to give you some bike skills tips during your trip to help improve your confidence and your enjoyment of your EWS Travel Dolomites tour. If there is a section that you would prefer not to ride, then you can simply hop off your bike and walk. You won’t be the only one to walk certain sections and it’s not a competition in biking ability; it’s a mountain bike holiday!
- Q. Who will be guiding us?
Your mountain bike guides are local to the Dolomites and experienced professionals who have a real passion for mountain biking and for the culture and landscape of the Dolomites. They are also EWS racers and trail builders, who get involved in every aspect of the EWS races when they are in town.
Your safety is their number one priority, closely followed by your enjoyment of your mountain bike tour of the Dolomites. They will always be on-hand to answer any questions or requests you may have throughout your trip.
- Q. What sort of accommodation will we be staying in?
On this mountain bike tour in the Dolomites, Italy you will be staying in one hotel in the main town of Val di Fassa. The reason for this, is each corner of our riding area can be reached easily each morning. On day 5 you will be staying in a mountain refugio half way around the Sella Ronda singletrack route.
- Q. Which meals are included in the tour price?
All breakfasts, all lunches, and dinner on the first and last nights.
- Q. What type of mountain bike is best for the trip?
A good quality full suspension with 150-170mm front travel would be ideal for this EWS Travel mountain bike tour Dolomites.
- Q. What clothes and kit should I bring?
You should bring cycling shorts/trousers, gloves, padded undershorts, specific shoes for cycling, sun cream, insect spray, and Advil or Ibuprofen. Read the full kit list to find out what you need to pack for your mountain bike adventure.
- Q. Will there be a chance to get laundry done?
Yes, you will have the chance to have laundry done each evening.
- Q. Can I bring a drone with me?
Unfortunately not. We are working hard to provide each and every customer who rides with us an unparalleled mountain bike experience in every destination we ride. This takes years of experience, riding and planning to get right, and a drone adds a very real danger to the group’s riding experience and health & safety.
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