Cortina d'Ampezzo has no airport and no railway station: the line that once served it closed in 1964 and its track bed is now a cycle path. Arriving by air means Venice or Treviso, and the last leg is by road. Here is how it works.
The route
From Marco Polo it is 147 km and about one hour 45 minutes: the A27 to Belluno, then the SS51 "Alemagna" up the Boite valley through Longarone, Pieve di Cadore and San Vito. The final forty kilometres are mountain road, with the Dolomite walls filling the window long before you arrive.
From Treviso the sum is almost identical: 137 km, one hour 45. For Cortina the difference between the two airports is about ten minutes: choose by the flight, not by the distance.
The options
Scheduled coach. Direct services run from the airports in high season, a few departures a day at fixed times. Cheap, but a delayed flight means a long wait, and the drop-off is in the centre, not at your chalet.
Train plus bus. Rail to Calalzo di Cadore, then a bus: two changes and long timings, awkward with ski equipment.
Private transfer. From €360 per vehicle up to 3 passengers and €450 for a V-Class up to 6, from Marco Polo; from €340 and €425 from Treviso. The price is per vehicle: a group of six skiers pays once.
Skis, snowboards and luggage: what to declare
Ski bags take up a lot of room, and the vehicle is chosen on that basis. Rule of thumb: a sedan takes two bags; from four upward you need the V-Class. Declaring it at booking is not a formality — it decides whether the right vehicle turns up.
Winter: tyres, chains and timings
From 15 November to 15 April mountain roads require winter tyres or chains on board. In heavy snowfall the journey stretches by half an hour or more: that is not a mishap, it is the season. Peak-season Saturdays are changeover day across the Dolomites and the Alemagna fills up: leaving early beats any shortcut.
The other valleys
Cortina is not the only destination: from Marco Polo you can reach Arabba (163 km), San Martino di Castrozza (134 km), Alleghe and the other resorts of the Dolomiti Superski network, which covers 1,200 km of pistes on a single pass. Each valley has its own fare: we quote on the resort, not on a flat rate.
In summer
From late June to September the same road leads to the via ferrate, the refuges and the Dolomite passes. It is the season to ask for a stop at the Cinque Torri viewpoint: ten minutes that repay the drive.