Marmolada Glacier Cable Car & Queen of the Dolomites Museum
The Marmolada, at 3,343 m, is the highest mountain in the Dolomites and the only one still capped by a true glacier — a fact that makes the three-stage cable car from Malga Ciapela (32 km from Arabba) both a thrilling excursion and a poignant encounter with a rapidly changing landscape. The summit station houses a remarkable museum carved directly into the ice.
The Cable Car Journey
The Funivia Marmolada ascends in three stages from Malga Ciapela at 1,446 m to Punta Rocca at 3,265 m, passing sheer granite walls streaked with ice melt. Each intermediate station offers a different perspective: the second stage deposits you at a mid-mountain terrace where the full sweep of the Veneto Dolomites unfolds to the south.
The final station at Punta Rocca sits just below the true summit ridge. On a clear day the view extends to the Adriatic Sea and, northward, to the Austrian Alps — a horizon so vast it is genuinely disorienting.
The Ice Museum and Glacier Walk
Tunnelled into the glacier itself, the Museo della Grande Guerra Marmolada documents the extraordinary 'City of Ice' — a network of tunnels, barracks and artillery positions built by Austro-Hungarian soldiers inside the glacier between 1916 and 1918. Artefacts, dioramas and original photographs are displayed at sub-zero temperatures; bring a warm layer even in midsummer.
Outside, a short guided walk (crampons provided) takes you across the glacier surface — an increasingly rare experience as the ice retreats. Guides from the local Alpine guide association lead two-hour tours that combine glaciology with WWI history.
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