The Dolomites… a UNESCO World Heritage Area
In the summer of 2009 the Dolomites were declared a World Heritage Area by the UNESCO. This protected area of about 135,000 hectares contains a remarkable concentration of spectacular mountain ranges. Nine of these Dolomite ranges lie within the Heritage Area, six of them are in South Tyrol: the nature reserve
Sextner Dolomiten,
Fanes-Sennes-Prags, Puez-Geisler and Schlern-Rosengarten with Latemar and Bletternbach Gorge.
The evolutionary history of the Dolomites is quite unique in the Alps: 250 years ago they were formed as an enormous
coral reef in the Tethys Sea. Today the jagged towers of rock of the so-called “
Pale Mountains ”stand in contrast to deep valleys and gentle hills.
The Dolomites... The symbol of South Tyrol
The Dolomites captivate their admirers again and again with their changing colours: at sunrise they shimmer and at sunset they are ablaze with red-hot tones.
The most important massifs of the Dolomites are called:
- Sella
- Marmolata
- Tofana
- The Langkofel Group
- The Puez Group
- Fanes
- The Schlern Massif
- Rosengarten
- The Latemar Group
- Pala
- Civetta
- Pelmo
- Marmarole
- The Cadini Group
- Cristallo
- Sorapiss
- Antelio
- Lagorai
- Bosconero
- Vette Feltrine
- Schiara
- The Pragsa Dolomites
- The Sextener Dolomites
The Dolomites… the home of the Ladin people
Protected from the outside world in the valleys of the Dolomites, the
Ladin People have kept their identity up to the present day. Their language evolved about 2,000 years ago and is a mixture of Rhaeto-Romanic and Vernacular Latin and is today spoken by about 30,000 people. The Ladin People live mainly in the four valleys radiating from the Sella Massif: Gröden, Fassa, Buchenstein and Gader.
Get to know the Dolomites
In
summer you can explore this bizarre mountain world on gentle walks or on more strenuous climbing tours, by bike or motor-bike. In
winter the gleaming-white mountains offer the ideal conditions for skiing, cross-country skiing, snowboarding or snow-shoe hikes.