Amy: After a lovely morning in Slovenia, we crossed the border into Italy, making a stop at the Lake Fusine area. The emerald lakes with their stunning reflections were breathtaking. Unfortunately, the weather turned rainy, so we took a less scenic but safer route to our first stop in the Dolomites: San Candido Innichen.
We stayed at Naturhotel Leitlhof, where we were warmly welcomed with a drink and their daily snack offering from 3 to 5 pm. The snacks were delicious, and we enjoyed a relaxing walk around the property and some time in their indoor/outdoor pool. Even with cloudy skies and a bit of haze, the whole setting had a magical, cozy feeling.
The next day was properly rainy and dense with fog, so hiking was off the table. We donned our raincoats and explored the town, checking out the shops and the Wachtler House, a historic villa built in an Alpine Art Nouveau style, before settling in for afternoon coffee and apple strudel. The area has a unique mix of Italian and Austrian influences, which made wandering the streets all the more interesting.
The clouds cleared enough in the evening for a beautiful sunset viewed from the outdoor pool. Though some of our Dolomites plans changed due to weather, the relaxing time and the amazing pool made up for it.
The following day, the skies were uncertain but we decided to take the more scenic route…and we’re so glad we did. The day turned out to be lovely, filled with views of pristine lakes reflecting majestic mountains, cows wearing their jingling bells, and towering rocky peaks. We drove over the Val Gardena pass toward our next hotel, the Continental, and the drive itself was a real highlight. Jon did a great job on the narrow mountain roads, with many cars, motorcycles, bikes, and buses making the drive an adventure.
That evening, we walked into Selva di Val Gardena for dinner. A glass of house red wine and some hearty pizza at Stübele Restaurant Pizzeria was exactly what we needed after a day of beautiful but occasionally tense driving. The weather was improving, though a few clouds still lingered.
In the morning, we decided to take the Dantercepies cable car to Passo Gardena. We enjoyed a good hike up the Cir Peaks to Crist de Crespeina, experiencing a mix of sun and clouds. We had tasty soup and beer for a light lunch at Jimmi Hütte Later, we returned to town to check out the shops and picked up some dinner at the Despar grocer.
Our last day in the Dolomites started with some clouds but we rode the Col Raiser cable car up anyway. It brought us to a beautiful mountain meadow and access to hiking in the mountains. We ended up taking a longer hike to reach the busy Seceda viewpoint. The Seceda cable car carries passengers up, requiring next to no effort, so it can get very crowded. It was a different experience hiking up to be met by crowds coming off the large gondola. The views were lovely when not obscured by clouds, with cows and goats grazing nearby, and paragliders soaring overhead.
After the hike, we drove from the Dolomites and returned the car to Innsbruck. We stayed at a hotel overlooking the train station, enjoyed drinks at the rooftop bar, and had a final dinner out at the Hotel Sailer where Jon treated himself to schnitzel, one of his favorites.
The next morning, our train back toward Switzerland was delayed around 75 minutes. This caused some unexpected train changes, but we eventually made it to our last stop, Lucerne. We had visited in 2019 and thought it would be a perfect final destination since it’s fairly close to Zurich airport by train. Despite arriving later than planned, we enjoyed a great evening in Lucerne. We walked the city wall and climbed its towers for some beautiful views, hen visited the touching Lion of Lucerne monument (one of Jon’s favorite spots).
To close out our final night, we strolled to the train station Coop grocery store to get food for a balcony dinner overlooking the iconic Chapel Bridge at the Hotel Des Alpes.
After a delightful morning on our balcony, we took the train back to Zurich the next morning and caught our flight home on Edelweiss Air.
As with our outbound flight, the Economy Max section was sparsely filled and folks spread out for the long, but direct flight. When a passenger experienced a medical issue, Jon and a retired pediatrician went to help when the flight crew put out a message for medical assistance. Jon helped the passenger for the remainder of the flight and did a handoff to the receiving paramedic once we landed in Denver. A tasty Swiss red wine was a gift from the crew for Jon’s assistance.
What a lovely trip to Central Europe…it was filled with stunning views, delicious food, and unforgettable memories.
Dates: September 9-15, 2025
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