Cortina d'Ampezzo

The year 1156 is considered by historians to be Cortina d’Ampezzo’s official birth date, when a nobleman from Treviso sells a Cadorino  property located in the territory of Ampezzo.

A parchment stored in the municipality’s archive, another official certificate of Cortina d’Ampezzo , carries the date of 1208.
Cortina d’Ampezzo became a summer resort already in the late 1800’s. In fact Cortina then belonged to the Austro-Hungarian Empire and  Viennese nobles and wealthy professionals  came to the Dolomites for their summer holidays.

First of all we want to remember the French geologist and mineralogist Deodat de Dolomieu who was fascinated by these mountains that changed colors at sunrise and sunset taking on an amazing pinkish hue. He discovered and studied these unique rocks, and the same incredible peaks were named after him.

The first topographical map of the Dolomites, used for years by travelers and mountaineers from all over Europe,  was drawn by a Viennese tourist named Paul GROHMANN  in 1875.

In Cortina’s center you find memorials dedicated to both these outstanding figures.

In the 1930’s the first cable cars were built, connecting the center of town with the ski lifts in Pocol and Faloria.

Winter tourism takes off after the Olympic Winter Games which  were held in 1956. Sports facilities were constructed that we can still admire today: the Ski jumping trampoline, the Olympic Ice Stadium and the Bobsled run which was closed only a few years ago.

Today we boast 140 km. of snowy, perfectly groomed slopes  from December to March and 59 lifts: cable cars, chairlifts, and ski lifts all part of the Skipass consortium which permits you to ski , even on a daily basis, on all the lifts without time limitations or number of runs. This system was invented in 1965/66 by an engineer from Cortina and then exported worldwide.

Cortina, as well as all of the Dolomites, was recognized in June 2009 by UNESCO World Heritage.

The Ampezzano dialect now spoken only by our elders, belongs to the group of Ladin dialects spoken in the five neighboring valleys : Fodom, Val Badia, Val Gardena and Val di Fassa.

Even today, the customs and traditions in agro forestry and pastoral management  are handed down from father to son; the oldest resident families  are identified with a “household name” and the tools used for farming activities were marked with a special sign, different for each family.

Our agency called EL SIGNAL DE CIASA – carries in itself a deep meaning: the logo identifies  “our” family.

We could add so much more, but we hope you are curious enough to discover and further explore our beautiful valley during a pleasant vacation in Cortina!

This is why life in Cortina is worth being  experienced  and enjoyed.