Trip to Lago di Braies: Where to park, stay, and hike

A trip to Lago di Braies is one of the nicest you can take during a vacation in the Dolomites. Yes, some of you will argue that the place is too well-known and that there are crowds of tourists, parking lots are full, etc. Anyone who has been following me for a few years knows that we avoid exactly such massively visited places.

However, if you know when to go to the lake, you can enjoy even a popular place like the Italian Lago di Braies without large crowds of tourists.

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Lago di Braies - Dolomites / dovolenkarka.cz

Lago di Braies / dovolenkarka.cz

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Lago di Braies – Dolomites

Let me take you to a fairytale mountain landscape, where majestically towering mountains hide this treasure of the Dolomites, especially known for its beautiful turquoise color, which changes depending on the season and lighting conditions. During our walk, the color of Lake Lago di Braies changed several times.

Lago di Braies / dovolenkarka.cz

The lake is also known as Pragser Wildsee. It lies at an altitude of around 1500 m and is the largest natural lake in the Dolomites. It is located in the province of Bolzano, in northeastern Italy, near the town of Bruneck. This magical lake is surrounded by majestic mountain peaks, which reach up to 2,800 meters above sea level.

It is surrounded by forests that provide pleasant shade even on hot summer days. The lake itself is a natural monument and is located within the Fanes – Sennes – Prags Nature Park.

Get inspired for more trips:

15 tips for trips in the Dolomites

Getting to Lago di Braies and parking

The lake was the first stop on our June road trip through Italy. This time we set off from our parents’ place in the Karlovy Vary region, and thanks to the unlimited speed on the German highways, the journey passed pleasantly quickly. We reserved a table for lunch at our favorite Pizzeria Petra, not far from Bruneck, where we also go skiing in winter.

Pizzeria Petra is unique in that it has been baking excellent gluten-free pizzas for many years. In fact, this is one of the reasons why we like to return to this part of the Dolomites so often. Although this year we discovered many other perfect gluten-free pizzerias during our trip around Italy, more on that some other time…

Pizzeria Petra – Traveling gluten-free / dovolenkarka.cz

During lunch, we check the weather forecast, which predicted thunderstorms in this area in the morning, and we are happy to find that the clouds have dissipated, so we will also make it to Lago di Braies. Since we like to stay in Valdaora or Anterselva during spring skiing, Kája and I visited the lake ourselves a long time ago in the spring. However, it was a premiere for Nikol, and that’s why we were happy that the weather had improved.

Hotel Lago di Braies / dovolenkarka.cz

For those of you who are inspired by this trip tip, please note that our trip took place on a Friday afternoon in early June 2023. When planning this trip in the high season, it is good to expect a much larger crowd of tourists, especially in August, when most Italians and other European countries have summer holidays and company-wide vacations.

The ideal times to visit the lake are early morning or late afternoon. If your main goal is this lake, I recommend staying directly at Lago di Braies.

As for parking, as you drive up the road from Lake Valdaora, you will come across several paid parking lots. We traditionally drove up to the highest one, closest to the lake. Most likely due to the original weather forecast, or thanks to the June date, the upper paid parking lot was almost half empty after lunch. We park comfortably, take our backpack and set off for a pleasant walk around Lake Lago di Braies.

Road closure to Lago di Braies – entry permit and transport to the lake

For 2025, it is also valid that from 10.7. to 10.9.2025 you can only get to the Pragser Tal valley between 9.30 a.m. and 4 p.m. by public transport, on foot, by bike or after presenting an online reservation or a valid transit permit.

For a comfortable visit during public holidays, such as Easter, Liberation Day and Labor Day, we recommend using public transport.

Otherwise, you can reserve parking space P1 in advance on these days and use the shuttle service to the lake:

19.04. – 20.04.2025

25.04. – 27.04.2025

01.05. – 04.05.2025

Outside these dates, you can get to the lake and especially to parking lot P4, but this does not guarantee that you will park here without any problems. I therefore recommend going here ideally before the start of the main holiday season and outside of weekends. If you can’t make it any other time, choose early morning or afternoon hours to arrive.

We were here most recently at the beginning of June 2023 and we parked without any problems. Most of my photos in this article are from this time.

If you want to visit Lago di Braies even in the period from 10.7. – 10.9. 2025 and the time from 9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., you need to book accommodation in a hotel – see links above, or purchase a day ticket, which entitles you to enter and park at P4 – one of the closest parking lots to the lake.

As part of this reservation, you will also receive a voucher that you can use in one of the dining places by the lake: “The voucher guarantees you a reserved parking space in the P4 parking lot at Lake Lago di Braies, including a food voucher. It can be redeemed in gastronomic establishments in Lago di Braies: In restaurants: Emma’s Bistro, Panorama Restaurant & Chalet.

Please also note that motorhomes, caravans and other types of cars are not allowed to camp.”

Ticket reservation directly on the official website:

Trail around Lago di Braies

Around Lake Lago di Braies there is a popular hiking trail that offers a unique experience combined with admiring the beauty of the Dolomites. The route is approximately 3.5 km long and is a leisurely walk, which is also ideal for families with children and older fit pensioners.

As I wrote above, the trail starts at the parking lot near the hotel, from where you can already see the lake directly. We set off around the popular house, where boats are rented and where there is currently the highest concentration of tourists waiting to get their turn. If you want to capture some of the photos – videos directly from this pier from the rental shop, you must also rent a boat, otherwise access will not be allowed. Renting a boat for 1 hour currently costs around 30 euros.

Lago di Braies / dovolenkarka.cz

We leave the boat ride for another time and set off to the left along the trail. Here, we still admire the view of the wooden house, the lake and the mountains from a gentle hill, which create the breathtaking scenery that is so popular. The concentration of tourists is really high here, so we continue across a small wooden bridge, where the path begins to climb slightly.

The path leads through the forest and again provides slightly different, breathtaking views of the turquoise blue surface of Lago di Braies and the majestic mountain peaks that surround it. After a few hundred meters, the path begins to descend again back to the lake and continues along its southern shore back to the starting point.

Lago di Braies / dovolenkarka.cz

Here we stop for a while, as the sky above the lake is clearing, and that directly in the place with the most beautiful beaches, which are practically deserted. So we warm up for a while and enjoy the fact that only a few hundred meters away from the wooden house at the beginning of the lake, the concentration of tourists is incomparably lower.

During the walk around Lake Lago di Braies, you will also have the opportunity to see various types of local fauna and flora, and if you are lucky, you may also come across some mountain ibex that live here.

Lago di Braies / dovolenkarka.cz

In another part of the trail there are picnic tables, toilets and here more visitors are already relaxing on the shore. However, we continue and after a few minutes we come back to the hotel and the chapel. According to the cranes and other construction equipment, it is more than clear that when you go here in the coming years, there will (most likely) be other new hotels near Lago di Braies.

If you get hungry along the way, there are several refreshment stands here, or you can go for some Italian specialties directly to the local restaurants.

Lago di Braies / dovolenkarka.cz

The hiking trail around the lake is well marked and not difficult, so it is suitable for all age categories. Don’t forget to bring your camera with you so you can capture these wonderful sceneries that the trail offers. With a stroller, count on getting comfortably only in the first part around the wooden house, the hotel and around the shore near the church.

Lago di Braies / dovolenkarka.cz

Parking at Lago di Braies / dovolenkarka.cz

We pay for parking and head towards Sella Ronda, where accommodation for the first night in the Dolomites will be waiting for us.

Accommodation near Lago di Braies

If you are going to the Dolomites for several days and one of your main excursion destinations is this place, I recommend accommodation directly at Lago di Braies. The hotel in season offers stays from 3 nights including breakfast or half board:

Lago di Braies in winter

You don’t have to go to Lago di Braies only in the summer season. The lake is no less beautiful in winter, especially if it has just snowed. Personally, we first got to know this lake a long time ago in winter, when we went here on a trip from the nearby village of Valdaora, where we were staying as part of our ski holiday on Kronplatz.

The advantage is also the fact that if you would like to stay at the Hotel Lago di Braies, in winter, outside the main season, stays are possible from one night. The roads are usually maintained, but count on the fact that with heavy snowfall, transport may be limited.

Be sure to pack chains in your equipment and from our own experience we know that a folding shovel is also useful if it snows and you need to dig out the car.

Hotel Lago di Braies

Stay conveniently in the wider area:

If the accommodation directly at the lake is occupied, or you would like to stay for fewer nights, find accommodation directly in the vicinity of Braies:

Whether you go to Lago di Braies for a day trip or plan a longer vacation here, we wish you a successful trip!

Your vacationers

You might also be interested in:

Lago di Braies – Dolomites

Getting to Lago di Braies and parking

Road closure to Lago di Braies – entry permit and transport to the lake

Trail around Lago di Braies

Accommodation near Lago di Braies

Lago di Braies in winter

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