Ortisei with kids travel guide: all you need to know + why you’ll love this family friendly Alpine town

All you need to know to plan a stay in Ortisei with kids: why go, best family hotels, family hikes, farms, restaurants and more.

Ortisei (Urtijëi in Ladin, one of the local languages) is a picture-perfect, pretty, charming mountain town in the Dolomites, in northern Italy.

While the whole Dolomites’ area is very well served, Ortisei and Val Garden embraced tourism earlier than other localities, and the result is that now the town is among the most upscale and easy places to visit in the Dolomites with kids.  

I have been coming to the Dolomites all my life and while my heart belongs to a different, smaller valley a little north of Ortisei (when you spend over 40 summers in one place, you get biased!), I find Ortisei exceptionally well suited to overseas visitors with kids and recommend it regularly as one of the best places in the Dolomites for a first visit.

In Ortisei, you find beautiful nature, great accommodation options, lots of cable cars to get high up without having to tackle strenuous hikes (unless you want to!) and also restaurants, shops and kids’ entertainment such as farms and pools.

I was in Ortisei again last summer, with my kids and parents. Based on our many visits this is my guide to Ortisei with kids. I hope you find it useful!

I am most familiar with Ortisei in summer and, therefore, focus on summer activities in the area (I don’t ski!). The recommendations for hotels snap restaurants, however, stand for winter visits too.

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Why visit Ortisei with Kids

Ortisei is very pretty, and offers easy access to splendid mountain landscapes and huts.

Val Gardena as a whole established itself as a tourism destination before many other towns in the area, and it is, therefore, a mature, fully serviced place.

Ortisei is more extensive and has more of an urban feel than others; the walkable city center with restaurants, cafes, and shops makes it easy to enjoiy for those who prefer a non rural environment

For instance, if you stay in Ortisei town, you can take a pleasant pre-dinner walk  around town or get aperitivo without having to take the car.

Ortisei is close to Bolzano, which means it is easier than other locations to include in an Italy itinerary.

Why not to visit Ortisei with kids

Ortisei is an upscale, expensive destination, so it is not my first choice for visitors on a budget.

Nearby Castelrotto (stunning! I personally prefer it!) is gentler on the budget without having to compromise on comfort or scenery.

Ortisei doesn’t have sweeping views from the town itself (it’s at the bottom of the valley) but offers access to them by cable cars and chairlifts. 

I find it therefore best suited to people who are not afraid of heights and are happy to avail of these services.

The best things to do in Ortisei with kids

The top activities for kids in Ortisei have to do with the beautiful nature surrounding the town.

There is not need to pre-book or pre-plan your time: these are just ideas but you can very much make up your plan as you go! The only thing to book well in advance in the area is accommodation (see recommended addresses below).

Walk, see the animals, eat and enjoy the views on stunning Alpe di Siusi.

Alpe di Siusi is a high mountain plateau just above Ortisei and one of the most beautiful, kid-friendly places you can visit to get sweeping mountains views without having to tackle strenuous hikes.

Alpe di Siusi is very much a vision of Alpine meadows and pretty huts, many of which have playgrounds and animals for the kids to play and meet.

You can easily come here several days in a row and try different walks, you can get bikes or even just relax in one of the many mountains restaurants for the day.

There are a few ways to reach the plateau from Ortisei but my favorite is by bus or cable car via Castelrotto.

You can read here >>> my family guide to Alpe di Siusi

Take the cable car up Seceda

Seceda is maybe the best known spot in the area, and with good reason.

Seceda is one of those rare places where you can be super close to the peaks, get stunning views and feel very high up in the mountains without having to hike much at all!

Getting to Seceda from Ortisei is exceptionally easy.

From the town center, you get the gondola up and then the chairlift and, once up, you can enjoy the scenery, hike, relax and eat to your heart content at one of the many huts / mountain restaurants in the area.

Get active at Col de Flam adventure park

Cold de Flam adventure park is just what you thin it is: a fun adventure park with treetop trails and zipline!

The park is easy to reach from Ortisei city center (no car needed) and has treetop trails suitable for kids age 4 and up as well as more complex routes for teens and adults and active areas such as a really cool trampolining spot https://www.coldeflam.it/index_en.php

This is a fun place when kids want to be active yet may not feel like a hike.

Enjoy the pools at Mar Dolomit

Mar Dolomit is a great family friendly complex with pools and restaurants that is perfect for those days when the kids do not want to hike or wind down after a morning on the trails

For little kids, Mar Dolomit has an outdoor paddling pool, indoor baby pool with slide, then indoor and outdoor lap pool for older kids, sauna for the adults and restaurant.

Info on the official site >>> https://www.mardolomit.com/en/

Go hiking

Hiking is THE thing to do in this area and there are many hikes that area also doable with kids, given the right conditions.

The best hiking areas and trails for kids in Ortisei area are PanaRaida trail ( themed adventure trail for kids with play stops, sensory stops, playground and even geocaching), Val d’Anna Nature Walk, also equipped with Kneipp stops, several of the hiking trails on Alpe di Siusi such as the easy walk to Baita Tuene, restautan Gostner Schweige, Malga Tirler, hikes up Resciesa funicular and up Seceda.

Luis Trenker Walk playground

Ortisei has a lovely playground along the Luis Tenker walk. The playground has climbing frame with bridges, slide, a fun wooden train and sand pit.

Get the Funicular up to Alpe Resciesa

Alpe Resciesa is an area of great natural beautiful and mountains scenery just above Ortisei and connected to it by the fun Resciesa funicular.

The funicular climbs all the way up to the Alpe, above 2000 met above sea level, where you find a lovely chalet, fantastic views and option of easy mountain hiking >> https://www.resciesa.com/en/Default.asp

Enjoy the pretty Ortisei town center

Ortisei has a very pretty town center with pedestrian, walkable streets, cute houses, delightful cafe and many shops.

The town has the fairytale appearance typical of this part of the world and is a fantastic shopping destination for mountain gear and designer brands in general.

Explore the local wooden craft and souvenir shops

Woodwork is a local craft and the local shops have many pretty wooden toys, sculptures and home items kids usually love to look at buy.

As well as wooden toys, popular items and souvenirs to buy here are cooking utensils, pretty textiles, Christmas tree decorations, figurines and cookery books.

Where to eat in Ortisei: best family restaurants

Ortisei has lovely family friendly restaurants.

The cuisine of the area is very different from that of the rest of Italy and sud-Tyrolean in character (think Wiener schnitzel, knoedels, apfel strudel etc) and it is very common to find kids menus here too.

The Dolomites are the only places in Italy where I recommend booking a hotel with half board (breakfast and dinner) but if you are in an rental or want to explore, these are good addresses in town.

>> Turonda Pizza, Strada Johann Baptist Purger, 5, 39046 Ortisei (BZ) Map https://maps.app.goo.gl/YZGCb3TQfjzkAW7RA

>> Mauriz Keller (pizza, local specialties), Strada Rezia, 32, 39046 Ortisei (BZ) Map https://maps.app.goo.gl/szcyu7juuAEaLBeLA

>> Ristorante Pizzeria Mar Dolomit, Promeneda, 2, 39046 Ortisei (BZ) Map https://maps.app.goo.gl/mUGchrbDvE7bQuGM8

As well as restaurants, Ortisei has many lovely bakeries and pastry shops for bread and baked goods to for, hot chocolate, a slice of cake, juice or Aperol spritz for the parents.

We particularly enjoy Caffe’ Adler, perfect for a drink, slice of cake, light lunch or bowl of fresh fruit right in the twon center.

Top Family-Friendly Hotels in Ortisei

Alpenheim Chamring Spa and Hotel A beautiful hotel with family suites for up to 5 people , pool, restaurant on site, spa and lovely mountains views despite being super close to the town center.

Hotel Angelo Engel Lovely hotel with pretty garden, pool, stube, restaurant on site and family rooms for up to 6 people

Cavallino Bianco Family Spa Grand Hotel Cavallino Bianco is one of the most famous family hotels in the country, tailored specifically to families with children and pretty much THE place that most of all contributed to making Ortisei so popular with families.

 The hotel offers an extensive range of services for kids, including age-specific clubs, an indoor play area, a swimming pool, and organized activities. 

This is a place to see and to be seen and is very popular with wealthy Italian families as well as overseas tourists. The location right in the town center makes it exceptionally convenient in summer and winter.  

Cute places in and near Ortisei Where Kids Can See Animals

Petting Zoo at Monte Pana Close to the PanaRaida family trail, this petting zoo is home to ponies, rabbits, and other small animals. It’s an easy stop on a family day out, and children can spend time with the animals while parents relax nearby.

Malga Marinzen, just above Castlerotto (a short bus ride away from Ortisei), easy to reach by chairlift or by an easy hike

Tschötscherhof Farm A traditional mountain farm located a short drive from Ortisei, in Castelrotto https://www.tschoetscherhof.com/it/agriturismo-maso.html

Food shopping and shopping for baby essentials in Ortisei

Ortisei is very much a town with all the services you expect including grocery stores, supermarkets (such as spar in the town center) and pharmacies where you can find all baby and toddler essentials, medications, outdoors essentials and more.

Ortisei with kids: pin this!