People who know Moena in summer or winter and come back in autumn are often surprised. The same mountains, the same trails, the same village – but with a different silence, a different light, and a concentration of events and flavours you don’t find in other seasons.
Until a few years ago, autumn in Val di Fassa was considered “off season”. Today, those who come at this time have understood something regular visitors already knew: September and October are the best months to be in Moena. Fewer people, lower prices, quiet trails and a display of colour that the Dolomites offer only at this time of year.
From mid-September the larches at altitude begin to turn an intense yellow. The real peak of autumn colour in Val di Fassa comes between mid-October and early November, when the valley, lakes and slopes take on warm shades ranging from yellow to bright red.
The larch is the symbol of this spectacle: the only conifer that sheds its needles, turning them to gold in autumn before letting them fall. On the slopes of the Latemar, the Catinaccio and Alpe Lusia, the larch forests in October become one of the most photographed sights in the Italian Alps.
To plan your visit:
Mid-September: the larches at altitude begin to change. The valley is still green, and the colour contrasts between valley floor and high altitude are already striking.
Late September–early October: the colour moves down the slopes. The mixed forests of larch and spruce light up. The ideal time if you want both: food events and the first autumn shades.
Mid-to-late October: peak autumn colour. Carpets of leaves on the trails, fully golden larches, sunrises and sunsets with heightened colours. Some huts begin to close, but the trails remain open.
The most important event of Moena’s autumn, and one of the most significant in all of Trentino, is the Puzzone di Moena PDO Festival, held every year in mid-September.
Three intense days of excursions to the places where the cheese is made, visits to the cowsheds during milking, guided tastings, masterclasses and cooking shows with starred chefs. Themed aperitifs, lunches and dinners punctuate the programme, along with workshops and cheese-making demonstrations.
The 2025 edition took place from 19 to 21 September. A few highlights:
On Friday evening, at the InAlto Alfio Ghezzi Dolomites restaurant on Col Margherita at 2,500 metres, the Enrosadira dinner takes place – created by Michelin-starred chef Alfio Ghezzi – paying tribute to Puzzone PDO with a view of the Dolomites at sunset. One of the most original food experiences in Trentino, available only at this time of year.
On Saturday: the Puzzone Trek – a full day led by a local guide, from Moena to Soraga via three tasty stops, with tastings along the way.
On Sunday: the most eagerly awaited moment, the Desmontegada. Cows, sheep, horses and goats adorned with flowers and bells return from the summer pastures of the San Pellegrino Pass, parading through the streets of Moena’s centre, accompanied by shepherds, farmers, bands and folk groups. In Ladin it is called Desmonteada – one of those events you see once and never forget.
You can find the programme for the next edition on fassa.com.
Around the Puzzone Festival, from 14 to 21 September, Sapori d’Autunno (Autumn Flavours) takes place – Moena’s food week involving the village restaurants: Foresta, Fuciade, Malga Panna, Ostaria Tyrol and Malga Roncac offer themed menus with seasonal flavours, from forest aromas and porcini mushrooms to game and alpine cheeses.
For Cavalletto guests, who have dinner included with half board, this week is also a chance to try lunches at the participating restaurants and compare autumn Ladin cuisine with what Chef Lele brings to the table every evening.
September and October are also mushroom season. The forests around Moena – spruce, larch and mixed woods – are among the most productive in Trentino for porcini, chanterelles and honey fungus. Anyone who wants to pick them needs the forestry permit required by Trentino regulations (available at the municipal offices) and must respect the daily picking limits.
Even without picking mushrooms, walking in the September woods means finding late wild blueberries and raspberries, and that scent of damp earth and resin that completely changes the character of a trail compared to summer.
The same summer routes – towards Malga Peniola, to the Fuciade hut, along the Rio Costalunga, on Alpe Lusia or at the San Pellegrino Pass – take on a completely different character in autumn. The ground is firm, the air is crisp, the light is lower and more slanted, and the colours of the forest make corners that seemed ordinary in summer worth photographing.
In autumn the trails are quiet and enriched by the bellowing of rutting red deer, one of the most evocative sounds of the season, heard mainly at dawn and dusk. Anyone walking quietly in the woods around Moena in September has a good chance of hearing it.
Some lifts stay open until early October – the Catinaccio cable car in Vigo di Fassa and the Col Rodella cable car in Campitello – letting you reach altitude without climbing on foot. Val San Nicolò and the Fuciade basin are especially beautiful at this time, with larches framing the pastures and wooden tabià barns that seem to catch fire in the light.
The shoulder season has significantly lower rates than August or Christmas week. For a hotel like the Cavalletto, which keeps its kitchen and all its services, spa included, open until the end of September, this means offering the same quality on more accessible terms.
Those who come in September also find a more intimate village: the shops are open, the restaurants work at a calmer pace, and Moena’s pedestrian centre has that slowness that is harder to find in summer. It’s the time when the village goes back to its residents – and visitors become guests in the truest sense of the word.
| Date (2025, indicative for the following year) | Event |
| 14–21 September | Sapori d’Autunno – food week in Moena’s restaurants |
| 19 September | Puzzone Festival – Enrosadira dinner with chef Alfio Ghezzi on Col Margherita |
| 20 September | Puzzone Trek, zero-km market in Piaz de Ramon |
| 21 September | Moena Desmontegada – parade of livestock returning from the pastures |
| Second Sunday of September | Val di Fassa Bike – MTB race starting from Moena |
| Late September–October | Peak colour of the larches at altitude |
Thinking about an autumn stay in Moena? Check September availability at Hotel Cavalletto – in the centre of Moena, with the spa included and the kitchen open in the shoulder season too.
