To celebrate Emi’s 50th birthday, we originally planned to travel to Patagonia. But after an overseas flight earlier in the year, we decided one was enough for 2026. Instead, we chose the famous Dolomites—part of the Alps in Northern Italy. And since Emi loves camping, we opted for a glamping adventure in a caravan.

We rented the van from Road Surfer. The pick-up process took forever because we had to personally verify that all the systems worked. I understand why—if it’s your first time managing a caravan, you want to learn how everything works while an expert is right there to assist. We had a few questions for the employee anyway, so it all worked out well.

 

The van drove like a dream. After navigating the narrow mountain roads, I think I’d even feel comfortable in a slightly bigger van with a taller roof and a small onboard bathroom. But definitely not a big Class C! The front and rear parking sensors really helped fitting into tight spaces.

 

A Quick Note on Place Names

The Dolomites sit in Italy’s South Tyrol province, which belonged to Austria before WWI. Most locals speak both German and Italian. Because of this, every place has two names—one German, one Italian. Most restaurants serve both cuisines, and the architecture leans heavily German. So, sometimes I’ll use both names, and sometimes I’ll just stick to one. Yeah, I know it’s a bit confusing!

 

Our first stop was Seiser Alm (Alpe Di Siusi) Camping. This luxury campground boasts a heated pool, nice showers, bathrooms, dishwashing machines, a bar, a restaurant, and even an automatic pizza machine—all on-premise. While the pitches are pretty small, our early booking secured us a spot with plenty of privacy, tree coverage, and a covered picnic table.

 

On our first full day, we hiked the Giro Laranza trail. This beautiful path winds through forests, offering spectacular views of the Seiser Alm meadow and the huge, jagged peaks of the Schlern (Sciliar) mountain. Along the way, we encountered a herd of grazing alpacas. Cherry trees lined one section of the trail, their branches heavy with ripe fruit. Of course, I had to sample a few. I really enjoyed this off-the-beaten-path trail. Having a path almost entirely to yourself is incredibly relaxing.

 

Rain, Fuses, and Victory Food

The next day, it poured. It literally rained all day. To top it off, we hit a snag with the caravan. The control panel froze on an error message about the heating system (yes, I selected the wrong mode), which prevented us from lowering the pop-up roof. We couldn’t drive anywhere.

 

After a couple of hours of troubleshooting and a video call with Road Surfer support, we pulled a fuse and—voila—fixed it. We decided to celebrate our little victory with lunch at a nearby lodge. I ordered the Saltimbocca alla Romana: a tenderized veal cutlet with fresh sage leaves and prosciutto, smothered in a dark, peppery sauce. After our stressful morning, this meal tasted like paradise. Crowned with an affogato for dessert, I was right back in chill vacation mode.

 

We decided to drive to Bolzano to visit the archaeology museum. However, the only available parking required a 20-minute walk. That doesn’t sound like much, but in the pouring rain, we just weren’t feeling it, so we drove back to camp. The only bright spot was watching the river roar, engorged with whitewater rapids from all the rain.

 

The following day, we rode the Seiser Alm Aerial Cableway up to the Compatsch (1857m) plateau. We hiked to a mountain hut for lunch. This was my first time experiencing a Rifugio, and now I’m hooked; I want to hike to every single one of them. The food tasted incredible, but the stunning view stole the show. What a wonderful day.

“This is My Church”

Next, we drove to Zanser Alm to hike the Adolf Munkel Trail. I think this was the best hike of my life. Our route passed three Rifugios (well, two were open, and the third opened the next day since we were slightly ahead of peak summer season). The series of stunning, jagged granite peaks (Odle/Geisler Group) stand like a row of cathedral spires towering over 3,000 meters. This is my church. I fucking love this shit. 😂

Besides the Rifugios, the sheer amount of time you spend looking at these stone behemoths makes this hike spectacular. For over half the trek, the view completely mesmerizes you. It was a tough one, though. We were exhausted by the end, but it was worth every ounce of effort.

 

We desperately needed a rest day. We spent it relaxing at camp, catching up on laundry, and sipping cocktails at the campground’s fancy bar. I tried a grapefruit spritz. Very tasty—I think I actually prefer it to an Aperol Spritz.

 

Our time in the Seiser Alm region eventually came to an end, and we moved to our next campground on the east side of the Dolomites: Lake Toblacher. We explored the area with a short hike around the beautiful lake, which features two bars and restaurants.

Two Wheels and Olympic Towns

No trip of ours is complete without spending time on two wheels. We rented mountain e-bikes to ride from Toblacher to Cortina. It was one of the best bike rides of my life—which says a lot considering all the great rides I did around the U.S. while living in a travel trailer a few years back. It was my first time on an electric mountain bike, and holy smokes, is it fun! Beautiful mountains lined the route, alongside a meandering glacial stream so clear and blue.

Naturally, we stopped for lunch at a mountain hut. Afterward, we enjoyed an all-downhill coast into Cortina, host of the 2026 Winter Olympics. It’s a nice town, but a bit too luxury for our tastes. We caught an easy 40-minute bus ride back to Toblacher to cap off another epic day.

 

Wanting to avoid the heavy crowds at Tre Cime, we rode the chairlift up to Cinque Torri instead. Gorgeous. It offers 360-degree views of jagged peaks, including Marmolada, the tallest peak in the Dolomites. We hiked up to Rifugio Nuvolau, the oldest mountain hut in the region, where I tried a local orange liqueur served hot. Whoa, it was strong! It certainly made for a fun trek back down the mountain.

We stopped at Rifugio Averau for lunch, where I had a Milanese pork fillet (much like a German schnitzel). It tasted amazing. By the time we descended to the Cinque Torri rock formation to explore the open-air WWI museum, we were completely toast and only checked out a couple of exhibits. The chairlift ride back down became a highlight of the day—floating in the air with mountain views stretching out before us made the whole day feel special.

On our final day in the mountains, we opted for a relaxing walk around Lake Misurina, which featured more stunning views, including Tre Cime. Afterward, we had lunch at Han’s in Toblacher. We skipped the pricey first and second course plates and opted intead for the excellent salad bar and pizzas.

Navigating Italian Dining & Gas Stations

Speaking of firsts and seconds, this trip introduced us to the Italian way of dining: pasta or soup for the first course (primo), and a meat or fish dish for the second (secondo). Because each course felt like a full meal in itself, we just ordered one plate each. Emi typically chose the pasta, and I went for the meat.

 

I’ve written about this in other posts, but once again, I have to praise European gas station restaurants. Despite the food-court-style service and casual setting, the food quality rivals most city restaurants. It offered a great break during the 4.5-hour drive back to Bergamo to return the caravan.

 

We spent our final night in Bergamo before flying home the next morning. Dropping back down from high elevation, we really felt the heat. We walked around the Città Alta, the historic upper neighborhood, but the stifling weather cut into our enjoyment. However, we loved the botanical garden. It looks tiny at first, but as you head toward the exit, it just keeps going. My favorite part was the greenhouse packed with cacti and otherworldly desert plants.

For dinner, we escaped Italian cuisine and tried majadito tostado at Rincón Cruceño, a Bolivian restaurant. The dish featured Latin-flavored rice with dried meat, fried plantains, and yucca. I wanted a mountain of those plantains—they were so good! Our waitress, the granddaughter of the chef, mentioned that Bergamo holds one of the largest Bolivian populations in Europe. Fascinating.

The Recap

In my opinion, the Dolomites give any US National Park a run for its money—and I don’t admit that lightly. Most U.S. parks feature one or two gems. Maybe three. But the Dolomites offer endless natural beauty. Every time you cross into a new valley, majestic mountains surround you. Every pass you climb reveals another set of peaks and lush alpine plateaus. It’s a total sensory overload.

 

To top it all off, enjoying wonderful food and drinks in the middle of the wilderness at a Rifugio is the ultimate icing on the cake. With world-class cycling, hiking, mountaineering, and winter skiing, the Dolomites have it all. The only downside is the lack of wildlife, but unfortunately, that’s the case for much of Europe’s wilderness.

We can’t wait to come back again, and again, and again. I don’t think I could ever get enough.

 

Bye for now… next up, a weekend of summer concerts in Figueira da Foz, Portugal!