Alpine trails

Summit & Silence
in the Dolomites

Follow an age-old pull into the high Dolomites, where forest gives way to open mountains and the world begins to fall away

Awe of nature
Into the wild
Mindful movement
Dolomites, Italy
Map View
Overview

There has always been a pull towards the mountains. The ancient Celts found meaning in this region's forests and high places. Later, as summer warmed the valleys below, Alpine communities followed their animals upward to cooler air, fresh water and high pastures alive with herbs and wildflowers. At 1,800 metres, FORESTIS sits within that old mountain world. From here, the journey leads through forest and meadow and further into the Dolomites, following old mountain ways until, high above the valley, there is little except you and the mountains.

Forestis
Wyda at first light
Forest-inspired spa rituals
Guided walks
Meet mountain herbalists
Cook with herbs
Lunch in high pastures
A Signature Journey
From £0
Tailored to you
No two journeys are exactly the same. Every experience is adapted around your interests, preferred pace, group size and travel dates.
Start your journey
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Ritual
The mountains awaken

Wake early, while mist still hangs between the trees and first light begins to reach the Dolomites. The day begins with Wyda, the movement and breathing practice of the Celts, taught in the open-air during summer. Afterwards, at the spa, choose between the forest scents of larch, stone pine and mountain pine for the Tree Circle Ceremony. Wood, warm stone, sound and massage follow. Beyond the windows, the mountains are waking too.

Ascent
Into the mountains

Set out with mountain guide Herbert, who has walked the Polse since he was a boy. Paths disappear into spruce and pine, then open into meadow and climb towards higher ground. As you walk, the trees and plants start to separate into things you can name, and Herbert fills you in on the people who have lived and worked among them. Higher up, the forest thins, the views open and the Dolomites begin to fill the horizon.  

Abundance
What grows up here

At 1,400 metres, the steep slopes of Schmiedthof are full of herbs; around 80 varieties grow in the clear air and long hours of mountain sunshine. The Frener family cultivate them by hand. Walk the rows with Laurenz and Giada discovering what is flowering and what is ready to be gathered or dried for the season ahead. Tastes teas, blend herbal salts. Later, back at FORESTIS, some of those same mountain herbs find their way into the plate in Roland Lamprecht’s Forest Cuisine.

Pasture
Follow the summer uphill

For generations, summer drew people and livestock into the cooler high pastures. Follow Herbert through meadows where cattle graze the grasses of the Alpine summer. Hear of families living in mountain huts, turning the morning's milk into butter and cheese. Stop at a traditional malga for lunch, at a table with the people who still work these pastures. Up here, summer has always been precious, and nobody wastes it.

Retreat
Further into silence

Climb higher to ODLES LODGE, just four chalets alone in the high forest. Walk part of the way while your luggage goes ahead. The fridge is already full, with jams and fresh juices, cheese and butter, eggs, smoked ham and fish. In the morning, a mountain breakfast comes to the door. The rest of the day, the kitchen is yours. In the shared courtyard, there’s a pool, stone pine sauna and steam bath. Sit on your private terrace as the light moves across the Dolomites. Let the hours soften.

Summit
Before first light

On the final morning, leave while the mountains are still dark. Follow Herbert by headtorch, the path appearing a few steps at a time, breath loud in the cold. Keep climbing. Then wait. First light touches the pale rock of the Dolomites, and peaks that were silhouettes begin to take shape. Below lies the landscape you have spent five days moving through. Above, only sky. There is nowhere further to go.

Reflect
From up here

There’s a profound clarity that comes standing above a landscape you walked through and seeing it at once. Perhaps it's the effort of getting there. Or the scale of what surrounds you. After five nights in the high country, what stays with you may not be how far you walked or how high you climbed. It may simply be standing there, with nowhere else to reach for. Mountains don't hand over answers. Sometimes it's enough to find that questions feel different from up high.

On the journey
Signature moments, curated around you

Every experience is thoughtfully shaped around your interests, pace and the season, while staying true to the spirit of the journey.

  • Luxury mountain retreats
  • Private experiences
  • Wyda at first light
  • FORESTIS Tree Circle Ceremony
  • Private mountain walks with Herbert
  • Meet the herb growers of Schmiedthof
  • Cook with herbs from the mountain
  • Lunch in the high pastures
  • A sunrise ascent in the Dolomites
  • Seamless transfers throughout
Where you'll stay
Way up high

For this journey we recommend three nights at FORESTIS, where suites look through floor-to-ceiling glass towards the Dolomites and the forest is always close. Then venture higher for two nights at ODLES LODGE, four chalets built from local spruce and Swiss stone pine in the tradition of old South Tyrolean Mountain dwellings. Water comes from springs on the Plose at 2,000 metres, the same mountain water that drew doctors here in 1912. Here, the hours are yours. Cook, walk, watch the light change. Sleep with the mountains just outside.

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