Aperitivo in Cortina d'Ampezzo: Where to Go & What to Order

What aperitivo means and what you get with the drink

Aperitivo is a pre-dinner drink: you order a spritz, a glass of prosecco or a cocktail, and it comes with something savoury to pick at, from crisps to a plate of cured ham. It is not a meal, and nobody expects you to stay for one. The point is the pause, which in Cortina comes with Dolomite views on one side and a terrace on the other.

Cortina's bars fall into a few types. Some are all-day institutions where you stand at a deep counter with a beer, others are proper cafés with table service and a terrace, and a third group sits up the mountain or at the bottom of the pistes. Where you go decides both the pace and the bill, so pick by the mood you want rather than by the longest list.

Where aperitivo gathers: Corso Italia, Piazza Roma and Largo delle Poste

The centre is compact enough to walk end to end, which is why most aperitivo spots cluster in three pockets. Corso Italia is the main pedestrian spine and the natural first stop, and it is also where you will spend most time if you are eating your way around the centre. Piazza Roma sits just off it, at the heart of things, while Largo delle Poste, at the top of the centre, holds a cluster of small, busy bars.

That means you can plan an evening on foot: start on the Corso, drift to Piazza Roma, and finish in the Largo delle Poste bars. The bars along these streets run through the day, so an early-evening drink does not depend on catching a narrow window.

Bar Sport on Corso Italia: the all-day institution

Bar Sport on Corso Italia is the classic Cortina aperitivo stop, busy from morning until evening and comfortable in both moods. Come in ski gear and lean on a distinctly Dolomitic counter with a pint, or dress up and take a seat on a terrace with a gin and tonic. It is a reliably central address that works for a mixed group.

Hotel De La Poste on Piazza Roma: the spritz without the ceremony

The bar inside Hotel De La Poste on Piazza Roma is now called VilleVenete Lounge, and despite the setting it is more approachable than its reputation suggests. You can settle in for a spritz with friends without it turning into an occasion, and the crisps the bar puts out are memorable. If you want a central table with a bit of atmosphere rather than a mountain view, this is the trade to make.

LP26 and Villa Sandi at Largo delle Poste

Largo delle Poste at the top of the centre has two reliable aperitivo addresses almost next door to each other. LP26 is a prosciutteria that helped make the sit-down spritz a Cortina habit, and the pairing to ask for is bollicine, meaning sparkling wine, with San Daniele. Villa Sandi, on the same square, has a small, carefully kept bar inside and a loggia outside, and it is the choice when you want a premium cocktail rather than a simple glass.

Both work as an early stop before dinner, and either can absorb a group without a booking fuss. Choose LP26 when you want a plate of ham with the drink and Villa Sandi when the drink itself is the point.

A more casual stop: TOP on Viale Cesare Battisti

TOP on Viale Cesare Battisti is a paninoteca that comes alive as the light fades, and it draws Cortina people rather than visitors. Order a craft beer and a well-filled panino, meaning a filled roll. It is the liveliest version of aperitivo here.

Aperitivo at altitude: Col Druscié and the mountain terraces

The most distinct aperitivo decision in Cortina is whether to take it up the mountain. A modern cable car runs from the Stadio del Ghiaccio in the first leg of the Freccia nel Cielo, the lift toward the Tofana, and stops at Col Druscié. From there the Masi Wine Bar looks down over the Druscié pistes, a black run and a blue one, from about 1,770 metres. The cable car is what makes an early-evening drink up here possible.

The Masi bar is a mountain terrace opened by a Valpolicella cellar, so the pour here is Valpolicella and Amarone, a rich red from Valpolicella. Come for the view and the ride as much as the glass, and treat the excursion as the evening's event rather than a quick stop before dinner.

For something closer to pavement level, Baita Fraina in Largo Poste Bassa pours rarer references by the glass from boards that list what is open, served with snacks to match. Wine is the drink here, so keep to one before dinner and move on. If you eat before you drink, the casunziei at the heart of our mountain pasta guide are the plate to know.

Coffee, pastry and aperitivo at Cortina's pasticcerie

Cortina's pasticcerie double as cafés, and the café-bar format is the same as elsewhere in Italy: you can order at the counter, pay at the till, then hand your receipt to the barista. Many have a terrace or a room where the same address covers breakfast, an afternoon caffè and an early-evening drink.

Ordering, paying and sitting down: coperto, table service and the bar counter

There are two ways to take an aperitivo in Cortina, and the price you see will reflect which one you choose. Standing at the bar counter is the cheaper, faster option: order and pay inside, then carry the drink out if there is space. Taking a table on a terrace or plateatico, the paved outdoor seating area, buys you time and a view, with table service and any cover charge added. Neither is wrong; the decision is whether you are paying for the drink or for the seat.

For mixed groups, the counter and the table serve different people: the terrace if you want to sit and talk, the counter if you are moving on. Order drinks together at the till if you are at the counter, and fix the round before you sit if you are not. The etiquette also relaxes according to dress: Cortina's bars run from ski gear at the counter to dinner dress on the terrace, and the same address often handles both.

What to drink: spritz, prosecco and the local pour

The spritz is the familiar Italian order, a lightly bitter mix of a bitter liqueur, sparkling wine or water and ice; you will find Aperol versions and other bitters on the same menu. Sparkling wine by the glass, called bollicine on Italian menus, is the other everyday choice and the natural partner to a plate of cured ham. Neither drink is strong, which is why aperitivo suits an early evening rather than a long night.

For a proper cocktail rather than a simple glass, head to the premium bars around Largo delle Poste, with Villa Sandi the address to aim for. Beer drinkers are covered too: Bar Sport and TOP both pour craft beer, and a panino fills the gap if dinner is going to be late.

When to go and how it shifts with the seasons

Aperitivo starts in the early evening and runs up to dinner. In Cortina the evening has two versions: après-ski at the foot of the pistes and in the rifugi, the mountain huts, when the snow is on, and terraces and pavement tables in the milder months.

Skiers come in from the slopes and head straight for a drink, which makes the late afternoon busy and the early evening noticeably calmer. If you want a quiet table, aim for the hour after that rush; if you want the buzz, go with it. Both directions are easy to reverse if you have picked a spot with a counter as well as a terrace.

Which aperitivo suits your evening

If you have one aperitivo in Cortina, take it on Corso Italia for the all-day convenience, or in the Largo delle Poste for a proper drink and a plate of ham. If you want the evening to be the memory and not just the drink, take the cable car up to Col Druscié and drink it at altitude.

Decide by your clothes and your appetite: ski boots suit a glass at the foot of the pistes, dinner plans suit a counter spritz, and a full evening suits Largo delle Poste. The rest is a matter of the view.