Winter sports enthusiasts who have had a taste of the ski conditions of the eastern part of the Italian Alps might want to consider buying property in the Dolomites.

A holiday in the region during the winter months provides the chance to indulge in some challenging skiing, which can even require the professionals to raise their game.

However, the Dolomites can provide the venue for some enjoyable physical exertions even when the snow cover recedes, with hiking trails and mountain climbing taking the place of skiing and snowboarding during the summer months.

The Ski Regions

The Dolomites are themselves a ski region, forming the eastern end of the Italian Alps mountain range.

However, they contain a number of particularly popular resorts for winter sports enthusiasts.

Skiers and snowboarders looking to buy property in the Dolomites could find Cortina d’Ampezzo nears the top of their list.

The village has around 7,000 residents and is located 162 km from Venice and 692 km from Rome.

Surrounded by mountains, the area includes three peaks at more than 3 km above sea level.

Highest among these is Tofana at 3,243 m, according to statistics from the village’s tourism board, with Cristallo close behind at 3,218 m and Sorapis measuring 3,205 m.

The village itself is located 1,224 m above sea level and can be reached by air transfer or helicopter, as well as by road, rail and public transport in the form of buses and taxis.

Famous Faces

Venetian professional skier Giulia Monego is among the most famous faces currently hitting the slopes in the Dolomites.

She splits her time between property in the Dolomites and in her home town of Venice, where she was born in 1981.

However, it is not only the snow that attracts her to the eastern Italian Alps, as she also enjoys the summer pursuits of climbing and hiking.

"I have lived between the sea of Venice and the mountains of Cortina d’Ampezzo in the Dolomites since the first weeks of my life," she writes on her website.

"That’s why I started skiing very early and fell in love with all the aspects of the mountains."

US skier Susie Sutphin does not live full-time in the Dolomites, but spent some weeks there in 2009 with mountain living periodical Dolomite Sport.

She told the online publication that "back home we have training grounds; then the Dolomites are the Olympics".

The telemark skier added that two weeks in the Dolomites had allowed her to improve her skills on the slopes rapidly "because the terrain required me to improve".

Why the Dolomites?

Aside from the lengthy ski season and world-class slope conditions, property in the Dolomites offers a picturesque setting for winter sports enthusiasts all year round.

Since mid-2009, the region also now has been extended the protection of being considered a UNESCO natural heritage site, adding to the range of national and regional parks in the area.

The Parco Nazionale delle Dolomiti Bellunesi is among these, covering more than 215 sq km of hillsides, while the Parco Naturale Adamello-Brenta is even larger at 620 sq km.

With geography worth of such protection, the Dolomites are an ideal location not just for skiing, but also for free-climbing and, in summer, pursuits such as hang gliding.

Property in the Dolomites need not be based in the most populated areas, as the Italian State Tourist Board notes.

That is because the popularity of the region has led to a variety of further, smaller residential areas springing up around the larger centres.

According to the tourism organisation, "these resorts can be found in the valleys, on the gentle uplands and beside the famous Alpine Lakes".