The Dolomites are one large open-air museum of World War 1. There are numerous museums, but you can still visit real positions and trenches. On the Marmolada there is a free museum dedicated to a city that was built 60m under the ice and there are still old via-ferratas from that time everywhere. Certainly worth the visit!
1100 years ago, the border between Austria and Italy was on the spot where now lies the border of the provinces of Veneto and South Tyrol. Due to the tensions of the First World War, Italy decided to invade Austria via the Dolomites. This soon turned out to be more difficult than expected and the war soon became completely stuck on the famous mountain peaks.
The Marmolada is the most appealing site about the First World War that you can visit in the dolomites.
While the Italians had the peaks in their possession, the Austrians literally started digging in under the ice. In this way they built a city 60 meters deep under the glacier. Although there was heavy fighting, most people were killed by enormous avalanches.
The cable car takes you to Punta Serauta, where you can find the highest museum in the world. This museum gives you a picture of what life exactly looked like at the time.
On the Marmolada there is also a via ferrata open that dates from the time of the first world war. This is the longest ferrata of the dolomites and goes to the highest point at 3343m.
The bunkers and trenches around Cinque Torri are certainly worth a visit. These give a unique image and have also been the scene of numerous films. On the Lagazuoi you can do a nice tour through the tunnels of the open-air museum.
