Forbes - 2024 Bucket List Trips For Every Kind Of Adventure And Active Travel

I have spent a lot of time in mountains all around the world, from the Rockies to Himalayas to Andes, and I have never seen a more beautiful mountain landscape than Italy's Dolomites, a geological example so unique it has been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Hiking and skiing here are exceptional as well, but the beauty of mountain biking is that the options are endless, and suitable for all abilities. You could spend a week on wide track jeep roads, you can tackle the gnarliest single track, and you can do it all by fully human power or e-bike.

The options include one of the world's epic single day rides, the famed Sellaronda, a loop that climbs four high passes. You can do different day bike tours, or go town to town—fabulous towns—or valley to valley. Depending how you measure ski resorts, the Dolomiti Superski network of lifts and trails is either the first or second largest interconnected system in the world, and many of the lifts and gondolas run in summer too, creating an entire another level of MTB options for those who prefers not to do a ton of uphill. Basically, you cannot run out of options while in one of the most beautiful landscapes on earth, the region has the most extensive network of refuges (mountain restaurants) in Europe, and the food in general is excellent, from hearty comfort dishes to Michelin stars . Similarly, the lodging runs the gamut from staying in refuges to Realis & Chateaux luxury properties. Endless variations, none of them bad.

Go With: Surprisingly, given the number of high-end road bike tour operators in the market, no one has really done the same thing with mountain biking, and specialists for this tend to be highly regionalized local operators, Fortunately, there is just this here,  Dolomite Mountains , an Italian company focused on all things Dolomites, skiing, hiking, biking and climbing. They do not have any scheduled MTB trips (they do for skiing and hiking) but they have several  sample itineraries  you can check out, and then they design and guide a trip just for you and your group, with excellent guides and at more reasonable prices than this kind of thing is in most other places, regardless what level of luxe you opt for. I've traveled with them multiple times, and I'd choose them again.

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