---
title: "Passo Giau"
type: "pass"
lang: "en"
elevation_m: 2236
region: "Veneto"
locality: "Cortina d'Ampezzo"
valleys: "Cortina d'Ampezzo and Selva di Cadore"
url: "https://dolomites-guide.com/dolomites-passes/passo-giau/"
description: "Passo Giau, at 2,236 m, links Cortina and Selva di Cadore. Summer bus 53 climbs to it, and Rifugio Nuvolau is reached on foot or by the Ra Gusela."
---

# Passo Giau

Passo Giau links Cortina d'Ampezzo and Selva di Cadore. How to reach it by summer bus from Cortina, what starts from the pass on foot, from the Ra Gusela via ferrata to Rifugio Nuvolau, and when to go.

- Elevation: 2236 m
- Region: Veneto
- Locality: Cortina d'Ampezzo
- Valleys: Cortina d'Ampezzo and Selva di Cadore

Passo Giau (Giau Pass), at 2,236 m (7,336 ft), links Cortina d'Ampezzo and Selva di Cadore. In 2026, Dolomiti Bus opened a summer bus line to it from Cortina, and the pass is the starting point for the climb to Rifugio Nuvolau, on foot or by the Ra Gusela via ferrata.

## What can you see from Passo Giau?
From the pass you look down over the Ampezzo valley and see the Gusela del Nuvolau, the Croda da Lago, the Lastoi de Formin and Monte Cernera. From the car park, on trail 443, the jagged walls of Ra Gusela are on your left, the Croda da Lago and the Lastoi de Formin on your right.

For a wider panorama, trail 436 leads to Forcella Giau, after a descent and a climb back up. From there Monte Pelmo faces you; behind you stand the Odle, Ra Gusela, the Averau, the Lagazuoi, the Fanes group and the Tofane.

![The Passo Giau road below Croda Negra and Averau](/images/giau-croda-negra-averau.webp "The pass road, between Cortina and Selva di Cadore.")

## How do you get to Passo Giau?
**By bus**, since summer 2026: Dolomiti Bus line 53 (Cortina - Passo Giau - Pescul) ran from 8 June to 9 September 2026, with five departures a day to the pass from Cortina (Scuole stop), via Pocol.

- Beyond the pass, the line serves Rifugio Piezza and Fedare before Pescul.
- The 2027 summer dates are not published yet: check them before building your day around the bus.
- Timetables: [Dolomiti Bus summer lines](https://dolomitibus.it/it/news/linee-estive-2026-in-bus-tra-le-valli-bellunesi/272) (in Italian).

**By car**, the pass lies on the road between Cortina and Selva di Cadore. On 4 July 2027, the day of the [Maratona dles Dolomites](https://www.maratona.it/en/), check traffic conditions with the organiser before planning your day at the pass.

## What can you do from Passo Giau?
From the pass there are two ways up to [Rifugio Nuvolau](/mountain-huts/rifugio-nuvolau/): on foot along the trails, or by the Ra Gusela via ferrata.

**On foot, without the via ferrata**, follow trails 452, 464 and then 439: allow about 2 hours 15 minutes to the hut.

**Via the Cinque Torri**, trail 443 starts from the pass car park and runs along the east side of the Gusela del Nuvolau, almost level at first, then in steep zigzags just before Rifugio Cinque Torri. From there, trail 439 climbs to the Nuvolau in about 1 hour 30 minutes: allow between 2 hours 15 minutes and 2 hours 45 minutes from the pass.

On the 439, [Rifugio Scoiattoli](/mountain-huts/rifugio-scoiattoli/) and [Rifugio Averau](/mountain-huts/rifugio-averau/) make good stops: the climb from one to the other is short and easy, about 30 minutes, and from the Averau the Nuvolau is less than an hour away. The full loop, out via the Cinque Torri and back by the 464 and 452, takes 5 hours and is for experienced hikers: keep it for a day when you have time to spare.

**By the Ra Gusela via ferrata**: from the pass, trail 443 then 438 lead to the start of the ferrata, which climbs to the hut. This is a via ferrata, not a stroll: only set out if you have the equipment and the experience. Route description: [Cortina Cinque Torri](https://5torri.it/EN/f3-Via-ferrata-Ra-Gusela).

![Ra Gusela seen from Passo Giau, where the via ferrata starts](/images/giau-ra-gusela.webp "Ra Gusela, from where the via ferrata climbs to the Rifugio Nuvolau.")

Rifugio Nuvolau is open only in summer: outside the season, carry food and water for the whole day. For more hikes around Cortina, see our [Cortina d'Ampezzo hiking guide](/blog/cortina-dampezzo-hiking-guide/).

![Rifugio Nuvolau on its summit, above Passo Giau](/images/giau-rifugio-nuvolau-summit.webp "Rifugio Nuvolau, open in summer only.")

## When should you go to Passo Giau?
**From June to early September**, especially without a car: that is the season of line 53 (8 June to 9 September in 2026) and of Rifugio Nuvolau, open in summer only.