The rainbow lake under the Latemar: the boardwalk viewpoint, parking and the underpass, when the water is highest, and the Catinaccio huts above it.
Updated: 2026-07-22
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Effort
None: a fenced boardwalk stroll
Time needed
20-40 min at the lake
Getting there
Parking garage by the SS241, underpass to the shore
Best light
Midday for the colours; early summer for full water
Lago di Carezza (Karersee in German) is a small lake with an unreasonable colour: emerald over white spring-fed sand, with the Latemar towers stacked behind. Ladin legend says a wizard shattered a rainbow into it, and on a still day that is roughly what it looks like.
It is a viewpoint stop rather than a hike: the lake is fenced to protect the shore, and everyone watches from a boardwalk loop above the water. Twenty minutes is enough; combining it with the Catinaccio huts above turns a photo stop into a mountain day.
Park in the multi-storey lot on the main SS241 road and take the pedestrian underpass to the shore path: the classic frame with the Latemar reflection is from the northern boardwalk, minutes from the tunnel. Access to the water itself is closed; the fence is why the lake still looks like this. Regional buses from Bolzano toward Val di Fassa stop at the lake in season.
The water level is snow-fed and drops through the year: late spring and early summer show the full basin, late summer can be visibly lower and still beautiful. Midday sun makes the colour glow; dawn gives mirror stillness.
The Paolina chairlift, a few minutes up the road at Carezza, lifts you to Rifugio Paolina on the flank of the Catinaccio (Rosengarten) group: from there an easy balcony path rounds the Roda di Vaèl tower to the rifugio of the same name. Sleep at either and you are inside the rock garden the lake only photographs, with the Vajolet towers and the Catinaccio traverse a day away in our planner.
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Staffed huts closest to this spot. Sleeping up here is how you get the sunrise and the empty trail.
No: the shore is fenced and the water is off-limits to protect the lake. The viewing boardwalk above the northern shore holds the classic Latemar-reflection frame, a few minutes from the parking underpass.
Late spring to early summer, when snowmelt fills the basin, and around midday for the strongest colour. The level naturally drops through late summer. Early morning gives the stillest reflections and the thinnest crowds.
As a stop, yes, but the real walking is above it: the Paolina chairlift reaches Rifugio Paolina, and an easy balcony trail continues to Roda di Vaèl in the Catinaccio group. Both huts host overnights that connect to the Vajolet towers.
Heading for Lago di Carezza? These guides cover the practical side of walking and sleeping in the Dolomites.
