After years in the mountains, these are the places we return to again and again — each with its own character and light.
High ridges and summits for couples who want the effort — and the reward — of standing on top.
Turquoise alpine lakes like Braies, Eibsee and hidden Tyrolean tarns for calm, mirror-still mornings.
Gentle meadows and cable-car-accessible viewpoints when you would rather not hike far in your dress or suit.
A few alpine lakes are worth setting an alarm for. Lago di Braies is the emerald icon with its boathouse and rowboats; Lago di Sorapis glows milky turquoise after a two-hour walk from Passo Tre Croci (no cars reach it); Lago di Federa sits in a ring of larches that turn gold in October; and the Eibsee below the Zugspitze hides wooded coves few people find. All are calmest at first light — see them in our lake elopements, including a rainy morning at Braies.
If you'd rather not hike far in a dress or suit, the lifts do the work. The Seceda cable car sets you on a tilted grass ridge above Val Gardena; Sass Pordoi — the “terrace of the Dolomites” — lifts you to 2,950 m in minutes; Lagazuoi opens a balcony over half the range; and the Nordkette above Innsbruck is a twenty-minute ride from the city. We time the first or last cabin so the viewpoint is nearly empty — more on each in the most beautiful Dolomite spots.
From five-minute strolls to full-day summits — we match the effort to your comfort, fitness and footwear.
