Skied Arabba & Marmolada on a very snowy Sella Ronda day and an epic Great War Tour day. The snow on the Sella Ronda day gave us a tantalising glimpses of the ski hill. The sun was out on the War tour day, but the cold & need for speed meant that we couldn't spend enough time in this fantastic resort.

Long, long runs into Arabba and Malga Capela below Marmolada make it a totally different ski experience to the other Dolomites resorts I have skied. Snow quality was excellent, but trying to find the bus stop to Alleghe & Civetta was a pain.

I once ate dinner in Miky's Grill in Arabba (on a different trip) & loved it. Worth checking out in an otherwise quiet town.

Make sure you pee before going up to the top of the Marmolada glacier. Its a long trip up & down.

Need to go back and ski it all at a more relaxing pace.
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Skied here in February 2018 on a bitterly cold day as part of the Great War ski tour. The Marmolada glacier was just about the final straw for my melting thighs!

Would be interesting to ski here on fresh legs and explore the off piste.
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Returning to Arabba Marmolada on a blue sky, -15 degree day, with chalky snow conditions across the entire resort was sheer bliss compared to the relatively lacklustre conditions of the 2016/17 season.

What we love about Arabba Marmolada is the quality of the snow (the Dolomites best) and the diversity in the terrain. Piste trails for all levels, including some great advanced trails - sadly lacking in many other resorts. The off-piste and freeride terrain has everything from the glacier, to open bowls, tight chutes and trees. Some good opportunities for a bit of adventure too.

Arabba Marmolada is mainly let down by some overcrowding on the Marmolada and Porta Vescovo cable cars, some of the major linking piste trails associated with the Sella Ronda plus the few old, slow chairlifts around Padon. That said, the ski lifts in general at Arabba have improved massively compared to a few years ago. To avoid any overcrowding issues on busy days, starting early, skiing through lunch & finishing earlier with a few Aperol Spritzers should alleviate the problems.

By nature of the terrain, Arabba Marmolada is not the most child friendly ski resort,however the easy links to Alta Badia provide ample access to friendly skiing.

The small snack bar/grill near the southern end of the Arabba Fly link chairlift served up some sensational scorched flesh that 'saved our bacon' in the painfully cold weather.

Our favourite Dolomites ski resort.
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Good area to ski but lift tickets is far more expensive than Cervinia. Area is very popular with Italians. Queue lines for base area lifts are long. Waiting time around 15-20 minutes. Ski rental near the lifts are also more expensive. Wide area to ski and snow machines enable the piste to be smooth. But will visit again.
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With its many faces, Arabba Marmolada has the best snow and advanced terrain in the Dolomites. In early January 2017, most Dolomites resorts were struggling for snow, but Arabba Marmolada was far & away the best due to its combination of natural snow, elevation, aspect and snowmaking system.

Sun drenched easier piste terrain from Passo Campolongo to Arabba and south of Passo Padon is juxtaposed against the steep north facing slopes from Porta Vescovo into Arabba and the huge Marmolada glacier. Broad bowls await towards the Belvedere & Val di Fassa ski resort. Easy links to Alta Badia ski resort provide endless beginner terrain.

On the Marmolada, the cable car ride, the Great War museum and the 12km long Bellunese run are fantastic. Some glorious off piste options await too. 

Mikys Grill at the bottom of the Burz chair in town turns on a delicious feast of grilled flesh. The village is quiet and a tad cold as its spends a lot of time in shadow during winter. Similarly, the village at Malga Ciapela at the base of the Marmolada is small & quiet. Staying in adjacent ski resort villages like Corvara or Canazei may appeal more to those wanting more 'buzz' in their village!

Arabba Marmolada is perfectly placed to complete both the Sella Ronda and Great War ski circuits.  Well worth a visit.


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My family spent 2 weeks in late January 2016 based in Arabba which we found made a good base for exploring the Dolomites as there are direct links to Corvara and Canazei via the Sella Ronda, the Marmolada via Passo Padon and a short drive over to Cortina.

Despite there not being great natural snow depth at that time (35-45cm), due to the excellent snowmaking and grooming capacity in the Sella Ronda network nearly all lifts, pistes, refugios and restaurants were open and we found that once you were familiar with the main routes between the resorts you could roam far and wide and still make it back to your home valley before last rides. There are also ski bus and taxi services between the resorts if you do leave your last run too late.

The skiing at Arabba itself was somewhat mixed with many of the more difficult runs and most off-piste on the Porta Vescovo (south) side closed due to lack of coverage, and with not much sun on that side at that time of year we tended to ski more on the north (Corvara) side, with Marmolada an option for some high altitude (3,200m+) skiing when the weather allowed. You can purchase local resort lift tickets (Arabba-Marmolada) or for a little more the Dolomiti Superski pass for greater coverage, but some more flexible options (youth passes, ski 5 of 7 days) would be appreciated.

The scenery is spectacular and mountains more like western USA than the northern and western European Alps. Arabba itself is a fairly compact town with all the basics such as restaurants, bars, ski shops & schools, mini markets, ice skating rink and a good range of accommodation from self catering apartments to 4 star hotels, but if you are looking for lively nightlife you may be better off basing yourself in Corvara or Val Gardina. Prices were quite reasonable and being Italy, the food and drink was nearly always excellent.
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Good off piste opportunities, great food, good possibilities for powder, and the powder stays long (if good weather condition it can stay for a week). Have been here two times, 2009 and 2011.
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