Home/Hiking Trips/Rhaetian Alps Hiking Tours
Hut to Hut Hiking
Level 2
5 - 7 days / 4 - 6 nights
Malé in Val di Sole
Hiking in the Italian Alps is an emotional and fabulous experience regardless of which region you choose and despite they differ in many aspects. Beyond the well-known Dolomites, there are other mountain groups with sublime landscapes and uncontaminated nature, where the solitude is the only master, and meeting other hikers is rare. The Rhaetian Alps are one of these regions. It remains largely undiscovered even today. In fact, even in Europe very few know the Rhaetian Alps what makes these mountains a true paradise for seasoned hikers seeking wilderness.
At MONT Trekking, we organize hiking tours in the five major mountain groups of the Rhaetian Alps. Our itineraries cover the Ortler-Cevedale group with its Stelvio National Park, Bernina, Texel, Adamello and Brenta Dolomites. The Brenta is also part of our Dolomites hiking collection. The Rhaetian Alps are the highest region of the Eastern Alps and home to one four-thousander - the peak of Bernina. The massif of Bernina is shared by Italy and Switzerland and is one of relatively better known mountains in the Rhaetian Alps. It hosts the Bernina Express train line on its Swiss side - a high-altitude railroad and UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2008.
The massif of Bernina culminates with the 4050 meter-high Pizzo Bernina standing in front of numerous snow-capped summits of the Ortler-Cevedale group. In Italy, Ortler-Cevedale is known as a land of lakes and glaciers. It accommodates the Italy’s largest oasis of wilderness - the Stelvio National Park. It is a vast natural reserve with a great diversity of landscapes and unique heterogeneity of flora and fauna. Stelvio features all types of alpine terrain including coniferous forests, alpine pastures, lakes, rocky ridges and perennial glaciers. Quiet and peaceful, the park is surrounded and protected by the high peaks of Ortler-Cevedale, the best known mountain range in South Tyrol besides the Dolomites.
In the south, Stelvio and Ortler-Cevedale leave space to another large natural reserve - the Adamello-Brenta Nature Park. It covers two mountain groups, Adamello and Brenta Dolomites. Adamello accommodates the largest glaciers preserved in the Southern Alps and is a destination for experienced hikers. The Brenta Dolomites group is one of the Dolomites’ off-the-beaten-track hiking destinations.
Most of our hiking tours in the Rhaetian Alps start from small villages and distant alpine valleys. Such locations are not a destination for mass tourism. This reality helps them preserve their traditions and culture. Each valley in the Rhaetian Alps is unique.
Val di Sole, the base camp location for the Huts and Farms of Stelvio Hiking Tour, is primarily agricultural. Cows and sheeps graze freely on the meadows of Val di Sole. During the summer, the local farmers produce traditional dairy products in the mountain cottages at higher altitude. Hikers can taste them while on their hiking tour. The mountains surrounding Val di Sole are rich with mineral water springs. These waters feature an elevated concentration of carbon dioxide. They are ferruginous and are known for their therapeutic properties.
The Valtellina valley is particularly renowned for food and wine. Bresaola and Pizzoccheri originate from Valtellina. It is the base camp location for our Bernina Hiking Tour. Valtellina and its mountains offer a very broad range of choices for hiking in terms of difficulty. There are hundreds of kilometers of hiking trails of all levels of difficulty and good via-ferrata paths.
The famous alpine town of Merano is the base camp of our High Ortler Traverse. Merano is well known among connoisseurs of wine. It hosts the annual Merano Wine Festival, one of the best known cultural events of South Tyrol not limited to wine.
We organize several hiking tours in the Rhaetian Alps and are constantly working to design new itineraries. Rhaetian Alps hiking tours let you explore the uncontaminated environment of the Eastern Alps on solitary trails running through distant mountains where wildlife triumphs over human beings. In the most remote areas, it is not unusual to spot some of the most beautiful alpine animals and birds including the alpine ibex, chamois and lammergeier. Away from the crowds, hikers in the Rhaetian Alps are immersed in nature and can enjoy the solitude.
Rhaetian Alps are good for both guided and self-guided hiking. Despite their trails are never crowded, they are marked and maintained perfectly. Hut-to-hut hiking tours in the Rhaetian Alps are rather demanding. Good mountain experience is therefore required. There are not many huts in the Rhaetian Alps, and most of them are at high altitude - above 2500 meters. Most huts are property of the local sections of the Italian Alpine Club, which appoints hut managers. The huts in the Rhaetian Alps provide all services typical of an alpine hut, including accommodation and meals. Accommodation options are often limited to dormitories shared by 6-10 guests. On the other hand, the most remote huts are rarely occupied at 100%. The smallest private rooms are often for 4 guests. Whenever possible, we reserve them for private use. The huts in the Rhaetian Alps are known for their hospitality - the feedback we receive from most of our guests.
Hikers appreciating wilderness and solitude will like hiking in the Rhaetian Alps. We designed our hiking tours so that they let you enjoy the uncontaminated nature and sublime landscapes, and to get in contact with local culture and traditions.