If you're trying to decide whether to choose Austria, the Dolomites or the Italian coast for your next family holiday... my advice? Don't choose. Do them all.

The Dolomites had been on our list for a while, but visiting with two young children meant we weren't looking to spend our days completing long hikes.

We wanted the incredible mountain scenery, but we also wanted a holiday that actually worked with a two-year-old and a four-year-old.

So when we spent three full days in the Dolomites, we based ourselves in Sesto (Sexten) and planned our days around some of the area's most famous sights — Tre Cime di Lavaredo Lago di Braies.

Here's exactly how we spent our three days, what worked well with the kids and what we'd do differently next time.

Our Day-by-Day Itinerary

🏔️Day 1: Tre Cime with kids

We started our Dolomites adventure with one of the area's most famous sights: Tre Cime di Lavaredo.

We booked our parking in advance for 8.30am, although we arrived closer to 9–9.30am after having breakfast at the hotel. By then, it was already very busy, so if you're visiting with kids and have some flexibility, I'd consider either arriving earlier or going later in the day.

Rather than attempting the full Tre Cime loop, we kept things manageable for our two- and four-year-old. We walked from the first rifugio to the second, then continued up to the viewpoint before taking our time at the top. The boys were happy clambering over rocks, making rock piles and generally exploring, and our two-year-old walked a surprising amount of the route himself.

Our walk was around 6km in total, and we found that taking it slowly worked really well. On the way back, we took a quieter path near the little chapel, which gave us lovely views from a different angle and was much less busy.

We stopped for food at the rifugio by the car park before driving back towards Sesto, with a stop at Lago di Dobbiaco on the way.

Family verdict: One of the absolute highlights of our Dolomites trip. You don't need to complete the full loop to have an amazing day here, and with young children we'd definitely recommend taking your time rather than trying to fit too much in.

👉 Read our full guide to Tre Cime with kids →

Day 2: Lago di Braies

Day two took us to Lago di Braies, one of the most famous — and most photographed — lakes in the Dolomites.

It was a completely different experience from Tre Cime. Rather than being a mountain hiking day, this was more about enjoying the lake, taking in the scenery and exploring at a much more relaxed pace with the boys.

The lake is every bit as beautiful as you'd expect from the photos, with the turquoise water surrounded by the dramatic Dolomite peaks. It's one of those places where you can understand immediately why it's so popular.

One thing we really wanted to do was hire one of the traditional rowing boats. We queued for around 45 minutes to get one, which with two young children could easily have been a recipe for disaster — but honestly, it was worth the wait.

Being out on the water gave us a completely different view of the lake, and it ended up being one of the highlights of the day.

We weren't looking to turn the visit into a long hiking day either. We took our time, enjoyed the lake and let the boys explore rather than trying to squeeze too much into the day.

That was something we found worked really well throughout our Dolomites trip — we didn't need to be constantly doing something for the kids to enjoy being there.

Family verdict: Definitely worth including on a Dolomites trip with young children. It's incredibly scenic, and although the rowing boat queue was long, we'd do it again.

👉 Read our full guide to Lago di Braies with kids →

Day 3: Monte Elmo

For our final full day in the Dolomites, we headed to Monte Elmo (Helm).

We took the cable car up and then hiked all the way to the summit, which gave us another proper mountain experience and some incredible views across the Dolomites.

Once we'd reached the top, we made our way back down towards the cable car station. This is where we spent some time exploring the mountain playground and barefoot trail, which gave the boys something completely different to enjoy after the hike.

It worked really well for us because we could combine a proper mountain walk with time for the kids to play and explore. After two days of visiting some of the Dolomites' big-name sights, it also felt like a nice way to finish the trip without trying to cram in another major attraction.

Family verdict: One of our favourite family days in the Dolomites. The hike gave us the mountain experience we wanted, while the playground and barefoot trail meant the boys had something that was just for them too.

Where we stayed: Family Resort Rainer, Sesto

We based ourselves in Sesto (Sexten) for our four nights in the Dolomites, staying at Family Resort Rainer.

We chose it partly because we wanted somewhere that worked well for the boys as well as being a good base for exploring the mountains. And it definitely delivered on that.

There are indoor and outdoor pools, a dedicated kids' pool and a huge playground, so there was plenty for the boys to do when we weren't out exploring. There's also childcare available, although we didn't use this during our stay.

The hotel is very much set up around families, so it was nice to come back after a day out and still have things for the boys to do rather than feeling like we had to head straight back out again.

We also stayed half board, which was a big plus for us. After a full day exploring the Dolomites, the last thing we wanted was to get back in the car and find somewhere to eat with two tired children. Having dinner at the hotel made the evenings much easier.

And the location worked well for our trip too. We were able to use Sesto as our base for exploring Tre Cime, Lago di Braies and Monte Elmo, rather than moving hotels during our stay.

For us, that combination of location + family facilities + somewhere the kids actually enjoyed spending time made it a really good fit for this trip.

👉 Find out more about Family Resort Rainer