Rifugio Auronzo — Local services in Auronzo di Cadore

Maybe it's because I'm from California, where a mountain stay can easily run you $200+ for a room with a view of the mountains, but I was blown away by this rifugio in every way. I visited 5 rifugios on my trek through the Dolomites in August 2018, and this was by far my favorite for these reasons.||||1) Accessibility(!) . For a female solo traveler with no rental car (and who speaks zero Italian!) I had virtually no trouble reaching this rifugio. A few hours beautiful bus ride from Venice (FlixBus) got me to scenic Cortina d'Ampezzo. I went to the transport office in Cortina and was quickly provided with a ticket and bus# to get me to Rifugio Auronzo. The same bus company does a loop up and down from some of the rifgios (Auronzo, Lagazoui, and others) so once you've spent a day or two there you easily get the hang of bussing around. So much easier than driving those windy roads in a stick shift!! Many of the rifugios are accessible by one bus or another from hubs like Cortina. The tallest rifugio, Lagazoui, requires you to take a ski lift but you barely have to walk from the bus stop to the lift for some of the most amazing views I have ever seen. But back to Auronzo...||||2) Price: Once I got there, I was checked in (everyone spoke plenty of English, by the way, if you just have a little patience). Bring plenty of cash, some places take card but others do not, and most have you pay at check-out, unless you arrange to leave early. I recommend paying with card where you can, and saving cash for cash-only rifugios. Most rifugios I stayed at ran me about 45-65 euros for 3-course DINNER, BED, and BREAKFAST (less than $100 a night for world-class views and delicious food).||||3) Food: After a long afternoon hiking around the Tre Cime, dinner was a welcome respite. I am vegetarian and every rifugio I stayed at offered some filling vegetarian meal, and Auronzo was no exception. Breakfast is a little light, mostly yogurt, bread, maybe sliced ham (not for me, lol) and jam, but you can eat as much as you want. The only slight bummer was there was not assigned seating, so I had to make friends and ask to sit with a lovely French couple. Other, smaller, rifugios assign seating at dinner so no one eats alone and you have plenty of new friends for dinner conversation. ||||4) Atmosphere: due to its accessibility and locale next to the popular Tre Cime/Dreis ||Zimmen, Auronzo is bustling from 9am-after dinner. This did not bother me in the slightest but don't be surprised if halls are crowded until dinnertime. Of course, if you already have your room the upper halls/bathrooms are not crowded. I had no trouble sleeping in my 6-bunk room, and found accommodations comfortable, if plain. If you have never stayed in a hostel and are accustomed to swanky hotels, it might seem a bit spartan, but if you've stayed in hostels before it's pretty similar (bunk beds, no sheets so bring a portable set, thick blanket provided). I do recall electrical outlets in the rooms (but not enough for everyone, so I charged my portable charger in the bathroom outlet). There was running water and flush toilets, though the shower was cold (what do you expect for being thousands of feet in the mountains?). Dining hall was warm, and had beautiful views of the mountains outside.||5) VIEWS: HERE WE GO. For the price, location to hikes, accessibility, and the VIEWS you cannot get a better deal. I am dying to go back to the dolomites and spend more time here. Because of the bus that go basically to the parking lot of this rifugio, any age/ability can reach this stunning place. I have recommended it to my 55 year old parents so many times because even though my mom is not super active (can't run a mile) I'm confident she could easily get here and wold love it. The sunrise to the east (walk 4-5 minutes to the east around the rifugio and you can see the most amazing sunrise through the valley), the view from just the parking lot is stunning. ||||I can't recommend this place enough. If you have reasonable expectations for a mountain hut (i.e, not like a fancy american ski lodge), you will 100%love that you went here. I can't wait to go back and bring my...

Some advice:

1. Bring your own food - you can buy amazing cheese and cold cuts at SPAR located at lake Misurina. Much more delicious and hella cheaper. You gotta bring at least 3L of water cause the water in the refuge is non-potable. Also, bring your own kettle but only if it’s low-energy cause electricity is unstable.
2. Linen seemed clean, but feel free to bring your own. The duvet is the only one that doesn’t have any cover. Each room only have one plug so make sure someone brings an extension cord.
3. They have a daily quota on showers so don’t count on getting lucky. You can easily wash hair in the sink though (deep) and dry it with a hair dryer (bring one to also dry off your clothing in case of rain). There is toilet paper and soap in every loo. There is no showers on 3rd floor.
4. The water and electricity are shut down each evening at 10pm. This means in case of rainy days you have to get your gear dried off quickly or bring extra of everything!
5. Since this year, you have to book parking online with the national park if you want to get to the Rifugio.
6. The surrounding trails are easy and there is a lot of other refuges along the way. Don’t miss the nearby (30’) viewpoint Cadini di Misurina (picture). If there is fog when you come up, just wait for...

We stayed at Auronzo in July 2025, they do NOT have potable water, which is normal in this region. The problem is that even if you eat and have breaksfast here they do not provide any drinkable water. The only option is to buy 1L bottles for 3,5. When you are doing big hikes, like we were we needed to buy at least 3 per person. This means 3 one way plastic bottles going to landfills. The solution could be: 1. write it on the website, let people come prepared, 2. sell potabilizing tablets.

The food is okay and plenty. We are vegan and vegetarian and had a good experience. The rooms are clean but I did not sleep well. We asked people in different rooms and they all aagreed. We think it could be because the matresses were unconfortable and the central heating makes the year super dry. The views are great, but its at the end of a street, so be aware of the day tourists. I asked for a complain book and they said they did not have one. If Auronzo is reading it I would like to excersice my right of doing an official complain so please contact me.

Overall, I am writting this complain to shine some light on this unethical practices. They are an organziation that profities of nature so they should...