Trail map
Published by 3 Zinnen AG; this copy via 3 Zinnen AG. The current official map is at 3 Zinnen AG.
Routable 3D map
The whole lift and piste network of 3 Zinnen Dolomites is routable in the app: difficulty limits, live lift and piste status, alternative ways to the same place, and a 3D view of the terrain.
Open in SkiAllDayThe verdict
3 Zinnen Dolomites is the ski area around Sesto (Sexten), in South Tyrol's Alta Pusteria, named for the Tre Cime di Lavaredo peaks that dominate the view but are never skied. The brand markets 115 km across five separate ski mountains; only Helm, Stiergarten and Rotwand actually share lifts, a network the operator's own aggregator figures put at 86.4 km and our routing graph measures at 44.6 km. The reward is Italy's steepest groomed run and a quiet corner of Dolomiti Superski with real cross-country skiing alongside it; the reach is smaller than the headline number suggests.123
Goes well for
- Skiers who want a smaller, quieter corner of Dolomiti Superski: one lift-linked network of 86.4 km rather than a mega-resort, with the same lift-pass access to the other eleven areas if they want it
- Confident and advanced skiers: the Holzriese piste off the Rotwand and Croda Rossa stations is marketed as Italy's steepest groomed run, at a 72% gradient
- Cross-country skiers: the Alta Pusteria trail network threads the valley floor between Dobbiaco, San Candido and Sesto and hosts the Dobbiaco-Cortina marathon every February
- Anyone interested in the First World War Dolomite front: the Freilichtmuseum Rotwand, an open-air museum whose Anderter Alpe and Elferscharte sectors document the 1915-1917 mountain war, sits directly above the Rotwand piste network
Goes badly for
- Anyone booking on the marketed 115 km figure expecting one continuous ski area: Haunold/Monte Baranci, the Val Comelico area at Padola, Rienza and Prags are separate hills sold on the same brand and reached by road or the SALTO ski bus, not by piste
- Budget skiers: a 2026/27 day ticket for the lift-linked network alone is 75-83 EUR depending on the season, and the full Dolomiti Superski pass that also covers Cortina and the Sella group runs 80-89 EUR
- Anyone hoping to ski the Tre Cime themselves: the peaks that give the resort its name are a summer hiking and climbing destination with no lift or piste anywhere near them
Key facts
Every card opens. The headline number is the answer; underneath is how it was measured and where it came from.
Elevation 1,095m vertical · 1,130–2,225 m
| Village | 1,310 m4 |
|---|---|
| Lowest piste | 1,130 m2 |
| Highest lift-served point | 2,225 m2 |
| Vertical drop | 1,095 m |
Figures describe the lift-linked Helm/Stiergarten/Rotwand/Kreuzbergpass network, the area this page covers. Skiresort.com gives its base as 1,130 m, at the Vierschach/Versciaco valley station, and its top as 2,225 m, the Helm/Monte Elmo summit station; the operator's own trail map rounds these to 1,132 m and 2,225 m. Sesto (Sexten) itself, the main base village, sits higher up the valley at 1,310 m per Wikipedia. The separate Haunold/Monte Baranci sector above San Candido tops out lower, around 1,600 m, and is not part of this elevation range.
Pistes 86.4km 44.6 km measured from the network
- Easy 40.4km 47%
- Intermediate 37.6km 44%
- Difficult 8.4km 10%
Marketed vs measuredThe 3 Zinnen Dolomites brand markets 115 km of piste across five separate ski areas, shown together on one operator trail map and sold on one ticket: the lift-linked Helm/Monte Elmo, Stiergarten and Rotwand/Croda Rossa network above Sesto (with the small Kreuzbergpass sector), plus Haunold/Monte Baranci above San Candido, the Val Comelico area at Padola, Waldheim near Moso and the Rienza/Prags sector near Toblach and Lake Braies. None of the last four touch the main network by piste; the operator's own map shows them linked only by the free SALTO ski bus, and it sells Haunold and Val Comelico on a separate day ticket from the main area, which is the clearest evidence they share no lift. A 10-person Vierschach-Helm gondola and a lift connection toward Val Comelico have been reported as planned for 2026/27, but the operator's own current-season price list still prices Haunold and Val Comelico apart from the main network, so this page treats them as unconnected until that changes. This page covers only the lift-linked network: skiresort.com measures it at 86.4 km (40.4 easy, 37.6 intermediate, 8.4 difficult); our own routing graph finds 44.6 km of connected piste inside it, plus an isolated 1.2 km fragment with no ski link to the rest, most likely a nursery slope.
Lifts 19 4 types in the fleet
- Gondola 6
- T-bar/J-bar 6
- Chairlift 5
- Magic carpet 2
Counts describe the lift-linked Helm/Stiergarten/Rotwand/Kreuzbergpass network only. The wider 115 km brand runs about 31 lifts in total once Haunold, Val Comelico, Waldheim and the Rienza/Prags sector are added, none of which share a ski connection with this network.2
Season November – April winter season
| Winter season | late November – early April |
|---|---|
| Lift hours | 08:30-17:30 |
Day pass EUR 75 adult, main season
| Adult | EUR 755 |
|---|---|
| Youth | EUR 525 |
| Child | EUR — |
| Multi-resort passes | Dolomiti Superski covers 12 ski areas across the Dolomites, including Cortina d'Ampezzo and the Sella Ronda, on one pass. A 2026/27 Superski day pass runs 80 EUR in regular season and 89 EUR in high season, a premium of 5-6 EUR over the 3 Zinnen Dolomites-only ticket for access to the whole region, per Italian ski-press reporting on the new season's prices. The 3 Zinnen Mountain Card, for pedestrians only and not valid for skiing, covers uphill and downhill rides on the Helmjet, Vierschach-Monte Elmo, Drei Zinnen and Croda Rossa cable cars plus the Monte Baranci and Col d'la Tenda chairlifts. Season passes for 2026/27 are tiered by purchase date: 800 EUR for an adult booked by 8 November 2026, 900 EUR by 24 December, 990 EUR after. |
2026/27 winter prices as fetched from the operator's own price list earlier on 2 September 2026. Regular-season adult day ticket (13 Nov-19 Dec 2026, 10-30 Jan 2027, 7 Mar-4 Apr 2027) is 75 EUR; high season (20 Dec 2026-9 Jan 2027, 31 Jan-6 Mar 2027) is 83 EUR. Junior (born 2009-2018) pays 52/58 EUR and a senior (born 1961/1960 or earlier) pays 69/76 EUR across the same two periods. Children aged 3-7 ski free when an accompanying adult buys a ticket; there is no separate published child price. Monte Baranci and the Val Comelico area at Padola are sold on their own, cheaper day ticket (59 EUR regular season, 65 EUR high season for an adult), separate from the main network ticket below. By the time of a later check on the same date, the operator's site had replaced this static price table with a redirect to the shared Dolomiti Superski ticket shop, alongside a notice that the Italian Competition and Market Authority's commitments for Dolomiti Superski had just been accepted; the figures above could not be re-opened directly on dreizinnen.com as a result. The high-season adult/junior/senior figures (83/58/76 EUR) and the top season-pass tier (990 EUR) match schneehoehen.de's independently listed 2026/27 table exactly, which is the basis for treating the set as current rather than reverting to last season's regular-price figures (72 EUR adult, 50 EUR junior, 65 EUR senior for 2025/26), which some aggregators are still showing uncorrected.
Nearest airport 120 km Bolzano
| Bolzano | 120 km by car |
|---|---|
| Innsbruck | 140 km by car |
| Treviso | 150 km by car |
| Venice | 170 km by car |
From the A22 Brenner motorway, exit at Bressanone/Brixen and follow the SS49 east through the Puster Valley to San Candido, then the side road up to Sesto: about 65 km and a little over an hour from the motorway exit.
The mountain
These figures come from measuring the resort's actual piste and lift network rather than from its brochure. Measured from the SkiAllDay routing graph on 2 September 2026. Where the resort publishes a figure of its own, that figure is the one shown.
Piste km per lift km
1.25
Piste km opened by each kilometre of lift line. It measures how sparse the lift network is, not how good it is: a high figure means long runs off few lifts, so more skiing between rides but more traversing and more people funnelled onto each lift; a low one means dense lift service, quick laps and short waits, at the cost of repeating the same runs.
measuredLift minutes per ski hour
80 min
Time riding up for every hour spent descending, from the graph’s own traversal times.
measuredLongest continuous descent
6.2 km
The longest run of linked pistes that never rides a lift.
measuredReachable on easy runs only
42%
Share of piste a skier can reach from the base without ever descending something harder than an easy run.
measuredNorth-facing terrain
45%
Piste facing N, NE or NW, from the bearing of each descent. Shaded aspects hold snow longest.
measuredVertical on that descent
1,107 m
measuredUphill on surface lifts
10%
Share of climbing served by drag lifts and platters, weighted by vertical rather than by lift count.
measuredPiste above 2,500 m
0%
measuredMedian piste altitude
1,701 m
Half the piste length lies above this height and half below, weighted by length.
measuredMean piste gradient
21%
Length-weighted across every piste. Comparable between countries in a way that piste colour is not.
measuredPiste measured
45.8 km
Summed across the whole ingested graph, which includes the 44.6 km connected Helm/Stiergarten/Rotwand/Kreuzbergpass network plus an isolated 1.2 km fragment with no ski link to it, most likely a nursery slope. See the piste-length note above.
measuredLift length measured
36.5 km
Summed across the whole ingested graph, including a short lift serving the isolated 1.2 km fragment; the connected network alone runs about 34.5 km of lift line.
measuredHow steep is it, really
Piste colour is set by each resort under its own rules, so a red in one country is a blue in another. Measured gradient is comparable everywhere.
- 13% 0–10%
- 40% 10–20%
- 22% 20–30%
- 19% 30–40%
- 6% 40%+
Guide
One brand, five ski areas, one lift-linked network. Helm/Monte Elmo, Stiergarten and Rotwand/Croda Rossa share lifts above Sesto; Haunold, Val Comelico, Waldheim and the Rienza/Prags sector are separate hills on the same ticket, reached by road or ski bus.
Five names on one map, one network of lifts
The 3 Zinnen Dolomites trail map shows five ski areas at once: Helm/Monte Elmo, Stiergarten and Rotwand/Croda Rossa around Sesto, plus Haunold/Monte Baranci above San Candido, the Val Comelico area at Padola, the small Waldheim sector near Moso, and Rienza and Prags near Toblach and Lake Braies. Only the first three share a lift system. The other four appear on the same map and the same brand's 115 km headline, but the operator's own map marks the routes between them with the free SALTO ski bus rather than a piste, and Haunold and Val Comelico are sold on a separate day ticket from the main network. A lift connection toward Val Comelico has been reported as planned for the 2026/27 season; as of the current price list it had not gone ahead.6257
How Helm, Stiergarten and Rotwand actually connect
Helm and Rotwand were separate ski mountains until 29 November 2014, when two new eight-seater gondolas, the Drei Zinnen and the Stiergarten, opened along with two new pistes of about 5 km each, joining them into one network through the Stiergarten meadows in the middle. The old Helm-Sexten cable car, opened in 1981 with 75-person cabins and upgraded to 82-person cabins in 2000, ran for almost 40 years before it was replaced by the 10-person Helmjet Sexten gondola in autumn 2020. Our own measurement of the resulting network finds 44.6 km of connected piste, against skiresort.com's 86.4 km for the same area.7238
The steepest groomed run in Italy
Skiresort.com splits the 86.4 km network as 40.4 km easy, 37.6 km intermediate and 8.4 km difficult, roughly even between beginner and intermediate terrain with a smaller black share. The operator's own map singles out the Holzriese, which drops from both the Rotwand and Croda Rossa stations, as Italy's steepest groomed piste at a 72% gradient. A J-bar lift and a piste on the Stiergarten sector, installed in 2023/24, carry the name of Heinrich Harrer, the Austrian mountaineer who later led the first ascent of the Eiger's north face in 1938 and worked as a ski instructor and mountain guide in Sesto before the war.6279
Named for peaks you don't ski
The Tre Cime di Lavaredo (Drei Zinnen), the three limestone towers that give the whole region its name, rise to 2,999 m at the Cima Grande and are one of the most photographed rock formations in the Alps. They are a summer hiking and climbing destination reached by trail from the Auronzo or Locatelli refuges, not a skiable peak: no lift or marked piste runs anywhere near them, and they sit south of the ski area entirely. What skiers actually see from the Rotwand and Helm lifts is the view toward them across the Sexten Dolomites, not terrain on them.10
A front line preserved above the pistes
The Sexten Dolomites were a front line between Italy and Austria-Hungary for two and a half years of the First World War, and the Sextner Rotwand itself, at 2,965 m, is one of the peaks that saw fighting. The Freilichtmuseum Rotwand, an open-air museum whose Anderter Alpe and Elferscharte sectors preserve trenches, gun positions and observation posts from that front, is reachable on foot from the Rotwand lift station in summer. It is a hiking-season site, not something a skier passes on the piste, but it explains why so much of the terrain here is named for military history rather than for skiing lines.101112
Cross-country runs through the same valley
The Alta Pusteria valley floor between Dobbiaco, San Candido and Sesto carries one of South Tyrol's larger cross-country networks, and the region hosts the Dobbiaco-Cortina race every February: a point-to-point marathon along the former Dolomites railway bed through the Val di Landro, run since 1977, with a 42 km classic race and a 35 km skating race held on separate days. It is a separate discipline from the alpine network above it and uses none of the same lifts, but it is a genuine part of what this area is known for rather than a footnote.13
| Skier | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-country skier | excellent | Alta Pusteria's valley-floor trail network and the annual Dobbiaco-Cortina marathon make this one of the stronger cross-country bases in the Dolomites, independent of how much alpine terrain is actually connected.13 |
| Second-week skier | good | 37.6 km of the network is graded intermediate, and the Helm and Stiergarten sides offer long, unhurried cruising with fewer crowds than Cortina or the Sella Ronda on the same Dolomiti Superski pass.2 |
| Confident intermediate | good | The Holzriese, marketed as Italy's steepest groomed piste at 72%, and the Kreuzbergpass and Rotwand black runs give a confident intermediate plenty to step up to inside one lift-linked network.26 |
| Family with mixed abilities | good | Monte Baranci above San Candido is a dedicated family and night-skiing hill, sold on its own cheaper ticket from the main network, plus training slopes bookable directly through the operator. It is a genuine strength, but it means a family with mixed abilities is often buying two tickets rather than one.51 |
| First-timer | fair | Skiresort.com rates 40.4 of the network's 86.4 km easy, a generous share on paper. Our own routing measurement of what a beginner can actually reach without crossing harder terrain is below; either way, a first-timer is better placed in the marked beginner zones around Sesto than trying the Rotwand or Croda Rossa side.23 |
| Advanced skier | fair | 8.4 km is graded difficult, concentrated on the Rotwand and Croda Rossa side, with the Holzriese as the standout. It is a real test but a small share of the network, so an expert will exhaust the challenging terrain faster than at a bigger Dolomiti Superski area.62 |
| Budget skier | poor | A 2026/27 adult day ticket for the main network alone is 75-83 EUR, and the full Dolomiti Superski pass that also reaches Cortina and the Sella group is 80-89 EUR. Neither is cheap by Alpine standards, and the separate Monte Baranci/Val Comelico ticket adds cost for anyone wanting the family hill too.5 |
By car
From the A22 Brenner motorway, exit at Bressanone/Brixen and follow the SS49 east through the Puster Valley to San Candido, then the side road up to Sesto: about 65 km and a little over an hour from the motorway exit.
By train
The Pustertal railway (Franzensfeste-Lienz) stops at Innichen/San Candido, at 1,176 m, where the Italian line meets the Austrian one to Lienz. A local bus covers the remaining distance to Sesto's lifts.
Where to base yourself
| Sesto (Sexten) | The main base village for the Helm/Stiergarten/Rotwand network, at 1,310 m |
|---|---|
| San Candido (Innichen) 8 km | The valley's railway town, 1,175 m, and the base for the separate Haunold/Monte Baranci sector |
| Dobbiaco (Toblach) 12 km | Base for the smaller Rienza cross-country and family area, and the junction where the Alta Pusteria valley meets the road to Cortina |
What skiers say
-
In peak weeks, clear the Vierschach gondola and Stiergarten transfer before about 10:00, or delay the Vierschach upload until around 12:30.14
A February 2024 alpinforum.com Fasching-week trip report recorded 15-20 minutes at Vierschach followed by roughly 10 minutes at Stiergarten, while Vierschach had no queue around 12:30.
-
Ski the Drei Zinnen/Tre Cime piste early, before connection traffic scrapes its steep middle section.1516
A February 2026 r/skithealps thread and a February 2025 alpinforum.com report both describe it deteriorating quickly once connection traffic crosses it; the 2025 report found weaker skiers sideslipping the steep section until it was polished.
-
Use Rotwand/Croda Rossa after lunch when Helm and the main links are busy.1718
A January 2023 alpinforum.com report and an earlier one describing a day in December 2013 both note that Rotwand becomes quieter in the afternoon because it is shaded, and that on busy weekends it has historically been quieter than Helm.
-
On Christmas-week day trips, start at Signaue rather than joining the first Vierschach surge.19
A December 2018 SkiForum trip report over the Christmas week found Signaue almost empty at opening but noticed the linked area filling around 11:30.
-
Drive to Vierschach/Versciaco or Signaue for free parking rather than paying at the Helmjet base in Sexten.20
A February 2026 alpinfans.com discussion reported both outer car parks free and the Helmjet car park chargeable, and recalled all three access lifts opening at 08:30.
-
If using Vierschach in a peak week, aim to be parked by about 08:30 because its spaces fill rapidly.14
A family in the same February 2024 alpinforum.com Fasching-week report arrived after a 20-minute drive at roughly that time and already found the parking pressure noticeable.
-
Base near any Pustertal railway station and enter at Vierschach, where the platform is beside the gondola, instead of driving into the resort.2122
Two undated snowHeads threads report half-hourly trains and the same platform-to-lift convenience at Percha/Perca for Kronplatz, about 40 minutes away.
-
From Moos/Moso, reach Helmjet via the quiet Bruggerleite tow and farm-track link instead of waiting for the bus.17
A January 2023 alpinforum.com report describes it as roughly five minutes uphill from Moos church, then about five minutes from the tow to Helmjet; low snow can require briefly removing skis at a small road crossing.
-
At Passo Monte Croce, board the designated ski bus back to Signaue rather than the ordinary public bus.16
A February 2025 alpinforum.com report notes one skier boarded the wrong vehicle and unnecessarily paid 2 EUR; the return from Monte Croce is bus-dependent.
-
Lap the red Raut 13 to Vierschach early, using the left-hand easy bypass if you do not want its first steep wall.2316
The roughly 900-vertical-metre forest run has repeated rollers and carving terrain, per a February 2015 SkiForum trip report and a February 2025 alpinforum.com account; both find the adjacent black Raut Neu/13b usually quieter because most visitors avoid it.
-
Attempt Holzriese II only with sharp edges and genuinely grippy snow; skip it when hard or glazed.142423
Three separate trip reports, from SkiForum in 2015 and alpinforum.com in 2022 and 2024, consistently warn that a fall on its sustained wall can become an uncontrolled slide, while good packed snow makes both Holzriese variants excellent and uncrowded.
-
Move to Rotwand and the Porzen chair when sunny Helm starts softening.1617
Two alpinforum.com reports, from January 2023 and February 2025, describe Porzen as heavily shaded and bitterly cold, with sun reaching only its lower third; that exposure is also what preserves firm winter snow there.
-
On warm afternoons, finish with the Vierschach descent rather than the Sexten or Signaue valley runs.25
A February 2026 alpinfans.com report found the Sexten and Signaue descents becoming slushy after 13:00 while Vierschach held up best.
-
Give Padola's Col d'la Tenda chair at least a half-day rather than treating it as a token Giro stop.2426
The single chair gains over 700 vertical metres and serves long red and black variants; alpinforum.com reports from February 2018 and March 2022 both found virtually no queues and unusually good sustained skiing for a one-lift sector.
-
Treat the red Drei Zinnen/Tre Cime descent to Signaue as a black-ish run, especially once scraped.1614
Alpinforum.com reports from February 2024 and February 2025 both describe its long steep section repeatedly pushing intermediates into sideslipping, though the flatter lower section is excellent for carving.
-
Order the Hirtenmaccheroni at Hahnspielhütte rather than defaulting to the large base restaurants.15
A long-time Sexten visitor on r/skithealps (February 2026) singled it out as the resort's best food stop and specifically recommended that dish.
-
Use Rudihütte at Rotwand for a proper lunch when skiing that sector.27
Repeat visitors on alpinfans.com's 2025/26-season thread, posting in December 2025, describe its food as consistently excellent.
-
Do not reach Hennstoll expecting an early lunch because its kitchen starts serving around 11:30.25
A February 2026 alpinfans.com report describes one group losing a long chunk of its ski day waiting there for lunch service to begin.
-
Avoid the Helm self-service restaurant at peak lunchtime during Fasching; eat early, late, or carry food to Rotwand.14
A family in the same February 2024 alpinforum.com Fasching-week report repeatedly struggled for seats and waited for food at Helm; one of their smoother lunches was sandwiches at the Rotwand top station.
-
If Kronplatz is part of the trip, make sure the relevant days are on a Dolomiti Superski product rather than a 3 Zinnen-only pass.15
A February 2026 r/skithealps thread noted that Kronplatz is a separate ski area with its own mixed-day ticket offers; product names and inclusions change, so verify the current version before buying.
-
Do not book for close-up views of the actual Tre Cime di Lavaredo because the ski area barely shows them.2814
An undated snowHeads thread and a February 2024 alpinforum.com report both find only a partial, distant view of the peaks near Stiergarten/Drei Zinnen; the dominant panorama is the Sexten Dolomites and their sundial peaks.
-
Do not expect enough connected mileage to occupy a strong skier for a full week without repetition.2115
An undated snowHeads thread and a February 2026 r/skithealps thread both note that visitors commonly cover most of the core area in a day or two; both suggest the direct train to Kronplatz or adding Haunold and Padola rather than expecting Sella Ronda scale.
-
Do not send a nervous intermediate straight down piste 11 into Sexten at peak time; return via Stiergarten instead.14
The same February 2024 alpinforum.com report notes that after its branches merge, piste 11 can be heavily crowded; the direct Kristlerhang is black and the narrow red switchbacks may become scraped and no easier.
-
Snowboarders should not mistake the Giro delle Cime's UNESCO and Popera links for normal downhill pistes.23
The February 2015 SkiForum trip report found both scenic but explicitly warned that they can be tiring for snowboarders, with flat sections and pushing.
-
Do not plan this resort as a lift-served freeride destination.29
A February 2026 r/skithealps thread from a powder-seeking visitor found little beyond a short hike beside Monte Elmo and a few modest tree lines, adding that reliable powder is uncommon in the Dolomites generally.
-
Treat the complete Giro delle Cime as an all-day outing and start from Vierschach by about 09:00.23
The February 2015 SkiForum route report measured roughly 34 kilometres, 5,600 vertical metres and seven hours including lunch; verify the current bus and last-lift times before setting off.
-
Allow about two hours to reach Padola from Vierschach if travelling through Helm, Stiergarten, Rotwand and the Monte Croce links.24
A March 2022 alpinforum.com report found that leaves little time for repeated morning laps if Padola is the real objective.
-
On the outward Giro, ski the UNESCO and Popera tracks and take the short Valgrande–Padola bus, but on the return stay on the bus through Monte Croce to Signaue unless you deliberately want to repeat the skiweg.23
The same February 2015 SkiForum report notes the return bus journey is much longer than the outward transfer, and that stopping at Monte Croce recreates the slow link unnecessarily.
-
Choose the Giro for scenery and a sense of travel, not because it maximizes skiing time.233020
A February 2015 SkiForum account and a December 2023 snowHeads thread both praise the quiet UNESCO track and Padola, while a February 2026 alpinfans.com discussion calls the approach an unrewarding traverse and recommends driving directly; snowboarders and mileage-focused skiers are likelier to agree with the latter view.
History
-
1878
The Sextener Rotwand, the peak the ski area's Rotwand sector is named for, receives its first ascent on 20 July, by Michel Innerkofler and Roland von Eötvös.31
-
1915
The Sexten Dolomites become a front line between the Kingdom of Italy and Austria-Hungary; fighting around the Rotwand and the Tre Cime continues for two and a half years.1011
-
2009
The Sexten Dolomites, including the Tre Cime and the Rotwand, are inscribed as part of the Dolomites UNESCO World Heritage Site.11
-
2014
Two new eight-seater gondolas, the Drei Zinnen and the Stiergarten, open on 29 November, along with two new pistes of about 5 km each, connecting the previously separate Helm and Rotwand ski mountains through the Stiergarten meadows.7
-
2020
The Helmjet Sexten, a 10-person gondola, replaces the 1981 Helm-Sexten cable car after almost 40 years of service.78
-
2023
A J-bar lift and a piste on the Stiergarten sector are named for Heinrich Harrer, the Austrian mountaineer who worked as a ski instructor and mountain guide in Sesto before leading the first ascent of the Eiger's north face.7
Nearby and comparable
- Kronplatz
The other major South Tyrol area on the western side of the Puster Valley: bigger, higher and a single connected mountain rather than a five-name brand, on the same Dolomiti Superski pass.
- Sellaronda
The famous four-valley circuit further west in the Dolomites, reachable on the same Dolomiti Superski pass but a separate drive from Sesto.
- Alpe di Siusi
A gentler, largely intermediate area on the same pass, a better choice for a first-timer than the Rotwand and Croda Rossa side here.
- Ski Civetta
A quieter Dolomiti Superski area to the south, in the Veneto, similarly overshadowed by the bigger Sella Ronda circuit on the same pass.
- Cortina d'Ampezzo
The best-known Dolomiti Superski name and host of the 2026 Winter Olympics, an hour or so east by road and covered by the same regional pass.
Questions
How many piste kilometers does 3 Zinnen Dolomites actually have?
The brand markets 115 km across five separate ski areas shown on one map: the lift-linked Helm/Monte Elmo, Stiergarten and Rotwand/Croda Rossa network, plus Haunold, Val Comelico, Waldheim and the Rienza/Prags sector, none of which share a piste with the main network. Skiresort.com measures the lift-linked network alone at 86.4 km, and our own routing graph finds 44.6 km of connected piste inside it, plus an isolated 1.2 km fragment.263
Are the Tre Cime (Drei Zinnen) peaks themselves skiable?
No. The Tre Cime di Lavaredo are three limestone towers reaching 2,999 m at the Cima Grande, reached in summer by hiking trail from the Auronzo or Locatelli refuges. No lift or marked piste runs on or near them; skiers see them from the Rotwand and Helm lifts as a backdrop, not as terrain.10
What is the Giro delle Cime, and does it stay on skis the whole way?
It is a roughly 35 km signed circuit linking Helm, Stiergarten, Rotwand, the Kreuzbergpass and the Val Comelico area, using around 11 lifts. It is not a single continuous descent: the operator's own route directs skiers onto the free SALTO ski bus to cross between the Val Comelico area and the rest of the circuit, so part of the tour is a bus transfer rather than skiing.62
How do you get to 3 Zinnen Dolomites, and which airport is closest?
By road, exit the A22 Brenner motorway at Bressanone/Brixen and follow the SS49 through the Puster Valley to Sesto, about 65 km and just over an hour. By rail, the Pustertal line reaches Innichen/San Candido, with a local bus on to Sesto. The nearest airport is Bolzano at 120 km, followed by Innsbruck (140 km), Treviso (150 km) and Venice (170 km).3233
What does a day ticket cost, and is the Dolomiti Superski pass worth it?
A 2026/27 adult day ticket for the 3 Zinnen Dolomites network alone is 75 EUR in regular season and 83 EUR in high season. The full Dolomiti Superski pass, covering 12 areas including Cortina d'Ampezzo and the Sella Ronda, costs 80-89 EUR a day, a 5-6 EUR premium over the single-area ticket. Monte Baranci and Val Comelico are priced separately again, at 59-65 EUR.5
Is 3 Zinnen Dolomites good for cross-country skiing?
Yes. The Alta Pusteria valley floor between Dobbiaco, San Candido and Sesto carries one of South Tyrol's larger cross-country trail networks, and it hosts the Dobbiaco-Cortina race every February, a point-to-point marathon along the old Dolomites railway bed run since 1977, with a 42 km classic race and a 35 km skating race held on separate days.13
References
Every claim on this page carries a numbered marker linking here, and every reference links back to the passages that used it. Numbers not yet checked against a source are marked like this.
- 1. ^ a b 3 Zinnen Dolomites ski resort
- 2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n 3 Zinnen Dolomites - Helm/Stiergarten/Rotwand/Kreuzbergpass
- 3. ^ a b c d SkiAllDay routing graph, computed from OpenStreetMap
- 4. ^ Sexten
- 5. ^ a b c d e f Tickets and prices, winter 2026/27
- 6. ^ a b c d e f 3 Zinnen Dolomites piste map and Giro delle Cime sheet, 2025/26
- 7. ^ a b c d e f Innovations, 3 Zinnen Dolomites - Helm/Stiergarten/Rotwand/Kreuzbergpass
- 8. ^ a b 3 Zinnen: Das alte Helmbahnl hat ausgedient
- 9. ^ Heinrich Harrer
- 10. ^ a b c d Tre Cime di Lavaredo
- 11. ^ a b c Sextner Dolomiten
- 12. ^ Freilichtmuseum Rotwand
- 13. ^ a b c Dobbiaco-Cortina cross-country race
- 14. ^ a b c d e f g Skiurlaub Hochpustertal Faschingswoche 2024 (10.-17.02.2024)
- 15. ^ a b c d Insights into Silian Hochpustertal/The three peaks
- 16. ^ a b c d e 3 Zinnen - Pustertal (IT) - 03.02.2025
- 17. ^ a b c Drei Zinnen 2022/23
- 18. ^ Sextener Dolomiten - Vier an einem Tag / 30.12.2013
- 19. ^ Quattro giorni a spasso x Natale: 23-26 dicembre 2018.
- 20. ^ a b Drei Zinnen 2025/26
- 21. ^ a b Drei Zinnen
- 22. ^ Kronplatz tips
- 23. ^ a b c d e f Giro delle Cime: dalla Val Pusteria a Padola Val Comelico in 103 foto - febbraio 2015
- 24. ^ a b c Dolomiti Superski Nordorst - 28.2. bis 5.3.2022
- 25. ^ a b Drei Zinnen/ Kronplatz
- 26. ^ Dolomiti Superski (Corvara) | 26.01. - 02.02.18 | Wundervolle Zeit
- 27. ^ Drei Zinnen 2025/26
- 28. ^ Drei Zinnen
- 29. ^ Off Piste at 3 Zinnem
- 30. ^ Dolomites Weather/Snow Report (& useful links) 2023/24
- 31. ^ Sextener Rotwand
- 32. ^ Getting to Sesto
- 33. ^ Innichen railway station
Page last updated 2 September 2026.