Geographical heart of the Dolomites at 1,224 m and the oldest winter-sports resort in the eastern Alps, it is famous for a fashionable appeal and magnificent scenery. Here is a sophisticated, purely Italian day- and night-life (an expensive one too) where designer shops, discos and cabarets replace the thigh-slapping, beer-slurping stube culture of ‘Sud Tirol’.

The 1956 Winter Olympics gave Cortina exciting installations. The two artificial rinks in the Olympic Ice Stadium are unique. The Olympic ski-jump’s referee tower, the Monte Cristallo cable-cars and the Olympic bob-sleigh run exhibit a startling surrealism. There are hundreds of ski-runs at Cortina, bus services to about 30 Italian and Austrian cities and many walks and climbs, clearly defined and punctuated with refuge huts.

Mountaineering and rock-climbing in the Dolomites are not for beginners. Long-distance footpaths should be treated with respect. The crossing of the Varella, north from Cortina towards Brunico, is a fabulous, testing walk.