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San Martino di Castrozza — Rolle Pass is one of the 12 ski resorts of the Dolomiti Superski, the second-largest ski area in the world after Les 3 Vallées in France. The resort is located in the Trentino-Alto-Adige/South Tyrol region of northern Italy and boasts stunning views of the Pala Group, which is the largest (240 sq km / 93 sq mi) in the UNESCO Dolomites. You can enjoy these views while skiing on the slopes above the main village of San Martino di Castrozza. A ski bus also connects this village to Rolle Pass (1,984 m / 6,509 ft), which has its own lifts and slopes. The ski area has 35 slopes covering 60 km (37 mi) and 21 ski lifts. It’s better suited for intermediate skiing and as a place for families. The San Martino di Castrozza ski season is generally from late November to mid-April.
San Martino di Castrozza — Rolle Pass Ski Resort is located between the namesake village and mountain pass in the Trento (Trentino) province of the Trentino-Alto Adige/South Tyrol region of northeastern Italy. The ski area occupies the vast Valle di Primiero mountain valley and is also known as the Valle del Cismon after the river responsible for its formation.
San Martino di Castrozza is a classic small alpine village at an elevation of 1,487 m (4,878 ft), while Rolle Pass is at 1,984 m (6,509 ft). However, the maximum elevation difference at the resort is slightly higher: 953 m (3,126 ft) between 1,404 m (4,606 ft) and 2,383 m (7,818 ft) (the peak of Tognola).
Cima Tognola belongs to the Lagorai Range of the larger Fiemme Mountains that covers almost all of southwest Dolomites as a geographic region. At San Martino di Castrozza Ski Resort, you are actually skiing in the Fiemme Mountains.
The resort is also a fraction of the Dolomiti Superski area with more than 500 km (311 mi) of connected slopes, the second largest ski area in the world after Les 3 Vallées in France (600+ km / 373+ mi). Today the area is divided into 16 smaller resorts (connected by a single pass), including:
The Pala Group is one of the nine mountain groups in the UNESCO classification of the Dolomites. Pala is the largest group in the Dolomites in terms of area (240 sq km / 93 sq mi), thanks to its high altitude plateau where the 18th-century French scientist Deodat de Dolomieu discovered the famous mineral later named after him. The resort is also in the center of the massive Paneveggio-Pale di San Martino Nature Park.
San Martino di Castrozza Ski Area is deep in the Dolomites, so it is not the most easily accessible resort. However, it is faster to reach than the more remote resorts in Dolomiti Superski.
Treviso, Venice, and Verona are the closest airports to San Martino di Castrozza. Bergamo and Milan are farther away but more likely to have direct or affordable flights. To the north is the Innsbruck, Austria airport.
From Venice, the resort is a 2 ½ hour drive. Head north along the A4 and E70, passing through Treviso, Montebelluna, Feltre, and Fiera di Primiero. Only the final section is a winding 14 km (9 mi) long mountain road with an elevation gain of 1,000+ m (3,280+ ft) out of 147 km (91 mi) in total. The road is usually free of snow; it is cleared the same day in the event of a heavy snowfall.
The road from Munich is twice as far — 347 km (216 mi) on the A95 and E45 through Brenner Pass at the border of Italy and Austria.
In San Martino di Castrozza, you can easily park your car in one of the several parking lots. Although the village is compact, I’ve never seen much traffic or crowds of tourists. Locals from other towns of the Valle di Primiero and Predazzo in Val di Fiemme mainly visit the ski resort.
During the winter season, the resort is well connected to all five above-mentioned airports in Italy thanks to the FlySki Bus. One way ticket costs €35, and the round-trip is €59, except for the more distant Milan, which is €50 and €85, respectively. See a sample FlySki Bus schedule for the season of 2022–23. The service is valid in Valle di Primiero and throughout the Trentino region, so you can use it to get to other resorts.
You can take the Trenitalia train to Feltre and then the Dolomiti Bus to the resort by public transport. The latter takes one hour with another change at Fiera di Primiero, but you usually don’t need to get off the bus.
To move between San Martino di Castrozza and Passo Rolle, use the special Skibus Primiero of Trentino’s main bus company Trentino Trasporti. This bus will also bring you to the resort from Fiera di Primiero and from the towns of Mezzano (Borghi più Belli d'Italia), Imer, and Canal San Bovo in Valle di Vanoi, a side valley of Valle di Primiero.
You can also find accommodation in one of these towns and in Feltre, where you can use the Dolomiti Bus. Another good town to find accommodation is Lamon, halfway between Feltre and Fiera di Primiero. A day ticket for Skibus Primiero costs €3, and a week-ticket costs €15. See a sample schedule for the season of 2022–23.
In general, the ski season at San Martino di Castrozza — Rolle Pass Ski Area begins in late November and lasts until mid-April, give or take a week or two. For example, in the season of 2022–23, when this guide was written and published, the exact dates of the season were December 3, 2022 — April 2, 2023.
Usually, San Martino di Castrozza is a snowy resort. However, it depends on the particular conditions in any given year. In general, snowfall has been decreasing across the Alps in recent years. However, the resort claims 90% of runs have a snowmaking system.
A few things to note about air temperature:
Like other mountain locales, the weather is quite variable. The sun may change to clouds, and they bring in a thunderstorm, which ultimately clears to a beautiful sunset.
Compared to the other Dolomiti Superski ski resorts, San Martino di Castrozza — Rolle Pass is a relatively small, compact ski resort. At the same time, it has varied terrain, so you won’t immediately get bored (not to mention the access to the rest of the Dolomiti Superski domain).
The resort has just one base area — the village of San Martino di Castrozza. It has just one main street with hotels, bars, and stores, but it branches off to more than a dozen others — in short, there’s somewhere to stroll around a bit. The Cismon River also crosses the village, and it has a small but beautiful bridge.
From the base area, you can get to one of four ski areas:
Colverde is the most central and smallest area on the resort in the Pala Group, with only two runs. It’s named after the Rifugio Col Verde at 2,000 m (6,561 ft), an intermediate cable car station to Cima della Rosetta (2,743 m / 8,999 ft) east of the main summit of the resort and the entire Pala Group, Cimon della Pala (3,184 m / 10,446 ft). Visitors can also access Cima della Rosetta by cable car in winter as well as summer. However, it has no slopes — it is too steep for skiing. When viewed from the village, the other three famous peaks are Dente del Cimone (2,680 m / 8,792 ft), Cima Corona (2,768 m / 9,081 ft), and Pala di San Martino (2,982 m / 9,783 ft).
Ces is the second ski area west of the village in the Fiemme Mountains, named after its central peak, Punta Ces (2,227 m / 7,306 ft). From Ces, you can go down to the namesake Malga Ces (‘farm’ in Italian) in Valbonetta, which also has a separate ski lift leading to and from it from the village. Or on the other side of the mountain in the adjacent Val Cigolera.
Tognola is the third and the highest ski area with a maximum altitude of 2,383 m (7,818 ft) at the namesake Tognola behind which is Val Tognola. From this peak, you can also descend to the Malga Tognola of the same name and ascend by ski lift or directly on skis to Rifugio Tognola and Alpe Tognola (2,220 m / 7,283 ft) or Cima Tognola. From here, you can admire the other two mountains of the Pala Group farther south of the village — Campanili di Val di Roda (2,791 m / 9,156 ft), Sass Maor (2,812 m / 9,225 ft), and Cima della Madonna (2,723 m / 8,933 ft).
Punta Ces and Cima Tognola are the only connected areas of the resort, and you can make a big loop from the village.
From San Martino di Castrozza, you can reach Passo Rolle by ski bus (separate from the other areas in the group). Passo Rolle is the resort's fourth and most distant ski area. The travel time is about 30 minutes. There are also several hotels, one Rifugio, and Malga Rolle.
Ski Lifts and ski runs diverge in all directions from the pass, including its highest ski peak — Cima Tognazza (2,207 m / 7,240 ft) in the Fiemme Mountains (there is another Cima Tognazza (2,235 m / 7,332 ft) right next to Alpe Tognola). The pass itself is best known for Colbricon (2,604 m / 8,543 ft) and the lakes of the same name nearby, which can be reached on foot in summer, and Cima Cavalazza (2,326 m / 7,631 ft) on the way to them.
From the pass, one can also see the more northern peaks of the Pala Group, including Cima della Vezzana (3,192 m / 10,472 ft), Cima dei Bureloni (3,130 m / 10,269 ft), and Monte Mulaz (2,906 m / 9,534 ft) towering above the Val Venegia.
San Martino di Castrozza village (I mean, Punta Ces and Cima Tognola areas) is not connected to Passo Rolle by lifts and slopes, which means that after reaching the pass, you can not ski down on a marked route. A plan to connect the pass to the main village is already under construction. Approved in 2021, the new lifts and slopes should be open for the 2025–26 season.
This planned upgrade is only one of many at the resort. Completed projects include the two-seater chairlift to Cima Tognola. Servicing the main peak of the resort, crews replaced the lift with a new Leitner quad for the 2022-23 season.
There are 21 ski lifts in total: 1 aerial tramway to Cima Rosetta, 3 gondolas, 13 chairlifts, 4 T-bars, as well as 3 moving carpets for children — all powered by 100% renewable energy.
The resort’s slopes are primarily of medium difficulty level (red, according to the standard European marking system) with 32 km / 20 mi of piste (53%). The easy (blue) slopes account for 16 km / 10 mi (27%), and the difficult slopes (black) are 12 km / 7 mi (20%).
The longest and most famous piste is the “Fantasia 2000” slope with a length of 5 km (3 mi), which runs from Tognola (2,383 m / 7,818 ft) down to the starting point of the Tognola gondola lift (1,411 m / 4,629 ft). Other popular runs are Tognola Uno, Cristiania, Cima Tognola, Colbricon, Paradiso, Colverde, and Rekord.
In total, the slopes of San Martino di Castrozza — Passo Rolle Ski Area cover a distance of 60 km (37 mi). In comparison, Val Gardena has 178 km (111 mi) of slopes and 79 ski lifts. However, San Martino di Castrozza is larger than Gitschberg Jochtal, Latemar, Sulden am Ortler / Solda all’Ortles, Plose, and others.
Slopes
Ski lifts
Other features and services
Besides alpine skiing, 30 km (19 mi) of groomed cross-country ski trails are distributed between five areas with three ski centers where you can rent cross-country skis. In addition to San Martino di Castrozza village (9 km / 6 mi) and Passo Rolle (2 km / 1.2 mi), these are Imer (3 km / 1.8 mi), Passo Cereda (15 km / 9 mi), and Calaita Lake (8 km / 5 mi).
There are also more than 20 snowshoeing trails for all categories of travelers.
The longest (and quite difficult) is San Martino di Castrozza — Calaita Lake (20 km / 12 mi). There is a nice view of the range from the lake, which few people have the opportunity to see.
Another difficult but scenic snowshoe route is the ascent to Cima Rosetta from Col Verde cable car station (30 km / 19 mi round trip). It is also the namesake of the annual trail-running race Rosetta Verticale. Motivated mountain folk can extend it by crossing the entire Pale di San Martino Plateau and hiking to Cima Fradusta (2,939 m / 9,642 ft) above the namesake glacier — the only large glacier in the whole Pala Group.
I completed this route in the summer — the ascent to the summit is quite gentle, but the whole way will require a lot of strength. It also involves an overnight stay at Rifugio Rosetta. According to their website, it is open in winter during Christmas and on weekends until the ski lifts close. For overnight stays, reservations are required. The route to Fradusta adds another 27 km (17 mi).
I suggest the Val Venegia Ring (13 km / 8 mi) in an uncrowded, picturesque valley for shorter, less demanding routes. Malga Rolle — Colbricon Lakes (4 km / 2 mi) is short enough to be accessible to children. There is also a good loop in Cal Canali, another side valley of Valle di Primiero. The route travels from the Ritonda locality to Malga Pradidali and Malga Canali (8 km / 5 mi).
More than 50 km (31 mi) of snowshoe trails exist at San Martino di Castrozza — Passo Rolle Ski Area. For more information about the exact itineraries, visit the Visitor Center in San Martino di Castrozza village.
San Martino di Castrozza is also one of the best areas in the Dolomites range for backcountry skiing, often called “off-piste skiing” in Italy and Europe.
First, there are three freeride routes near the ski resort: Forcella Ceremana (8 km / 5 mi), Pale Plateau (7 km / 4 mi and 9 km / 6 mi), and Val Cigolera between Ces and Tognola areas (4.5 km / 2.7 mi).
Second, there are about a dozen of ski-touring and ski-mountaineering options, including:
Third, San Martino di Castrozza Ski Area is popular for ice climbing. The many streams and waterfalls of the territory give rise to fantastic ice architecture, ideal for this extreme sport. In particular, there are 20 waterfalls in Valle di Cismon, Valle di Vanoi, and the opposite of Val Noana. Climbers can also find ice routes in smaller Val de Stua and Val de Riva side valleys.
Depending on your comfort in the mountains, you may want a guide for these tours. The principal guide office in the area is Aquile di San Martino di Castrozza e Primiero. I recommend the Altopiano Verticale group of mountain guides from my hometown of Lamon - specifically Eric Girardini.
In San Martino di Castrozza — Rolle Pass Ski Resort, you can buy either a separate ski pass for the single resort or a Dolomiti Superski ski pass for the entire area. For the 2022–23 high season, the single resort pass costs €58 per day or €310 for six days. The Dolomiti Superski costs €74 per day or €360 for five days out of 6 (Flexipass 5/6) - only slightly more expensive than the individual pass.
It makes sense to buy a Dolomiti Superski pass if you plan to ride in other resorts, but don’t get ripped off if you just want to stick around the local area.
Be sure to visit the official tourist office of Primiero San Martino di Castrozza to find out more information, pick up a paper map, buy souvenirs, meet locals, and ask for advice.
Azienda per il Turismo San Martino Di Castrozza
Via Passo Rolle, 165, 38054, San Martino di Castrozza, Trentino (TN), Italia
Monday to Saturday, 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. (Sundays, 9:30 a.m.)
More than 50 traditional Tyrolean and Italian restaurants are scattered throughout the community.
Of course, I have yet to visit them all. I recommend the Rifugio Rosetta, where you will eat a hearty meal for a reasonable price. One good thing about the refugios is that they are far away from the hotels (unless you sleep there), which implies a walk (a return trip to burn off the extra calories). The same goes for two other rifugios in the Pala Group where I had lunch and an overnight stay — Pradidali and Treviso.
I also recommend Agritur Malga Canali, one of many local farms in the area. The food here is some of the freshest you will ever eat.
In San Martino di Castrozza village, many of the best restaurants are part of hotels like Ristorante Hotel Centrale. Other examples in the center or within walking distance are La Stube, Da Anita, Da Meto, and Ristorante Pizzeria Grill Drei Tannen.
The village also has at least one standard supermarket. Be aware that most businesses in town operate on a tight schedule with a midday break for the siesta. The village shuts down, and services can be hard to find.
The main accommodation option in San Martino di Castrozza is a classic hotel - there are more than two dozen in the village alone. The list includes the Hotel Centrale Hotel, the Majestic Dolomiti, Hotel Colbricon Beauty & Relax, Residence Hotel Langes, Hotel Cima Rosetta BW Signature Collection, and Hotel Panorama. Many hotels cater to an upscale clientele and have swimming pools and spas.
Alternatively, you can stay in many other (cheaper) types of accommodation: mountain chalets, farms, guest houses, and hostels. Dozens of options exist throughout the valley.
Unlike some larger ski resorts, San Martino di Castrozza is not a major destination for the bustling nightlife after skiing. However, the resort and the entire Primiero Valley regularly host a variety of music and other cultural, culinary, and sporting events that will keep you entertained.
In 2026 the Dolomites will host the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo.
The nearest ski resorts in Dolomiti Superski to San Martino di Castrozza are Alpe Lusia, San Pellegrino, and the Marmolada Group.
A little to the east of them is also the Civetta, the largest resort in the Veneto region.
South of San Martino di Castrozza are two small resorts where only local skiers go: Lagorai on the Brocon Pass and Monte Avena, part of Belluno Dolomites National Park. These resorts are not included in the Dolomiti Superski pass.
