# The Dolomites are nine separate listed systems > The Dolomites were listed in 2009 as a serial natural property of nine mountain systems across five provinces, around 142,000 hectares, not one range. URL: https://myitalia.it/nature/dolomiti Last updated: 2026-09-02 The Dolomites are not one range on the World Heritage list: they are 9 separate mountain systems, inscribed together on June 26, 2009, spread across 5 provinces and totaling around 142,000 hectares. ## Nine systems, inscribed as one property The Dolomites entered the World Heritage list on June 26, 2009 at the Seville session, as a serial natural property made of 9 systems, distributed between Veneto in the province of Belluno, Friuli-Venezia Giulia in the provinces of Pordenone and Udine, the autonomous province of Bolzano and the autonomous province of Trento. Serial means the property is a set of discontinuous areas that share an argument, not a single boundary drawn around a region. Between one listed system and the next there is unlisted land with roads, villages and ski lifts on it. That is the single most useful thing to know before planning a trip. Asking whether you will be in the Dolomites UNESCO site is a different question from asking whether you will be in the Dolomites. ## The list, system by system The 9 systems are Pelmo and Croda da Lago, the Marmolada, Pale di San Martino with San Lucano, Dolomiti Bellunesi and Vette Feltrine, the Dolomiti Friulane and d'Oltre Piave, the Northern Dolomites, Puez-Odle, Sciliar-Catinaccio with Latemar, the Brenta Dolomites and the Bletterbach. Together they cover around 142,000 hectares across the 5 provinces of Bolzano, Trento, Belluno, Pordenone and Udine. The Bletterbach is the outlier of the group: a gorge rather than a peak, listed for the rock sequence exposed in its walls. The naming varies slightly between official sources, and the provincial allocation of individual systems needs refining against the nomination file before anyone treats the list above as closed. The number, 9, does not vary. ## Veneto holds five of the nine 5 of the 9 systems fall in Veneto, all of them in the province of Belluno: Pelmo-Croda da Lago, the Marmolada, two portions of Pale-Dolomiti Bellunesi, and the Dolomiti Friulane. That is why Veneto carries the largest share of the property, a fact that surprises people who associate the Dolomites with Alto Adige and its German speaking valleys. The best known photographs are often taken from the Belluno side of a boundary. Nomenclature differs here too: what Veneto calls Pale-Dolomiti Bellunesi appears elsewhere as Pale di San Martino and Dolomiti Bellunesi. Same rock, different administrative habit. ## Trentino, Alto Adige and Friuli 4 of the 9 systems fall in Trentino: the Marmolada, Pale di San Martino with the Vette Feltrine, Catinaccio and Latemar, and the Brenta Dolomites, the group that sits apart from the rest of the chain. In Alto Adige the listed systems include Puez-Odle, Sciliar-Catinaccio and Latemar, the Northern Dolomites and the Bletterbach. In Friuli-Venezia Giulia there is one, the Dolomiti Friulane and d'Oltre Piave, spanning the provinces of Pordenone and Udine. Systems straddle borders, which is why the same name appears under two administrations. The Marmolada is counted by both Veneto and Trentino, and that is not an error in either list. ## One property, one foundation, four administrations Management is in the hands of the Fondazione Dolomiti UNESCO, constituted on May 13, 2010 by the provinces and regions involved, less than a year after the inscription. A single foundation over 4 administrations is the practical answer to a serial property that crosses three regions and two autonomous provinces with different languages, different tourist boards and different planning law. One figure is missing from this page on purpose: the total listed surface is not declared on the official pages we could open, and the whc.unesco.org site refuses automated reading, so the around 142,000 hectares above comes from Italian institutional sources rather than from the nomination itself. See [Veneto](/regions/veneto), [the province of Bolzano](/regions/provincia-bolzano) and [mountains in Italy](/themes/mountains). ## FAQ ### What exactly is the Dolomites UNESCO site? A serial natural property inscribed on June 26, 2009 at the Seville session, made of 9 separate mountain systems across 5 provinces: Belluno, Pordenone, Udine, Bolzano and Trento. It totals around 142,000 hectares and is not a single continuous area. ### Which parts of the Dolomites are actually UNESCO listed? The 9 systems are Pelmo and Croda da Lago, the Marmolada, Pale di San Martino with San Lucano, Dolomiti Bellunesi and Vette Feltrine, Dolomiti Friulane and d'Oltre Piave, the Northern Dolomites, Puez-Odle, Sciliar-Catinaccio and Latemar, the Brenta Dolomites, and the Bletterbach. ### Which region has the largest share of the Dolomites? Veneto, with 5 of the 9 systems, all in the province of Belluno: Pelmo-Croda da Lago, the Marmolada, two portions of Pale-Dolomiti Bellunesi, and the Dolomiti Friulane. Trentino holds 4 systems and the Bletterbach sits in Alto Adige. ### Who manages the Dolomites World Heritage site? The Fondazione Dolomiti UNESCO, set up on May 13, 2010 by the provinces and regions concerned: Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, the autonomous province of Bolzano and the autonomous province of Trento. The listing itself dates from June 26, 2009. ### Are the Brenta Dolomites part of the UNESCO site? Yes, they are one of the 9 systems and they fall in Trentino, together with the Marmolada, Pale di San Martino with the Vette Feltrine, and Catinaccio-Latemar. The Brenta group sits apart from the rest of the chain. ## Sources | Fact | Source | Confidence | Valid until | |---|---|---|---| | Le Dolomiti sono state iscritte nella World Heritage List UNESCO il 26 giugno 2009 a Siviglia come bene naturale seriale composto da nove sistemi, distribuiti tra Veneto (provincia di Belluno), Friuli-Venezia Giulia (Pordenone e Udine), Provincia autonoma di Bolzano e Provincia autonoma di Trento. Il 13 maggio 2010 le Province e le Regioni coinvolte hanno costituito la Fondazione Dolomiti UNESCO per gestirlo. | [Regione del Veneto](https://www.regione.veneto.it/web/economia-e-sviluppo-montano/dolomiti-unesco); [Commissione Nazionale Italiana per l'UNESCO](https://www.unesco.it/it/unesco-vicino-a-te/siti-patrimonio-mondiale/dolomiti/) | high | 2029-12-31 | | Le Dolomiti sono patrimonio mondiale UNESCO come bene naturale dal 2009, articolate in nove sistemi montuosi distinti che sommano circa 142.000 ettari su cinque province (Bolzano, Trento, Belluno, Pordenone, Udine); i sistemi che ricadono in Alto Adige comprendono Puez-Odle, Sciliar-Catinaccio-Latemar, le Dolomiti settentrionali e il Bletterbach | [Commissione Nazionale Italiana per l'UNESCO](https://www.unesco.it/it/unesco-vicino-a-te/siti-patrimonio-mondiale/dolomiti/); [Provincia autonoma di Trento](https://www.provincia.tn.it/Argomenti/Focus/Riconoscimenti-UNESCO-in-Trentino/Dolomiti-Patrimonio-dell-Umanita) | medium | 2099-12-31 | | Dei nove sistemi delle Dolomiti UNESCO, cinque ricadono in Veneto, tutti nella provincia di Belluno: Pelmo-Croda da Lago, Marmolada, Pale-Dolomiti Bellunesi (due porzioni) e Dolomiti Friulane. E' la ragione per cui il Veneto e' la regione con la quota maggiore del bene dolomitico. | [Regione del Veneto](https://www.regione.veneto.it/web/economia-e-sviluppo-montano/dolomiti-unesco) | medium | 2029-12-31 | | Dei nove sistemi che compongono il bene UNESCO Dolomiti, iscritto nel 2009, quattro ricadono in Trentino: Marmolada, Pale di San Martino con le Vette Feltrine, Catinaccio-Latemar e Dolomiti di Brenta, l'unico gruppo dolomitico separato dal resto della catena | [Provincia autonoma di Trento](https://www.provincia.tn.it/Argomenti/Focus/Riconoscimenti-UNESCO-in-Trentino/Dolomiti-Patrimonio-dell-Umanita) | medium | 2099-12-31 | | Il Friuli-Venezia Giulia ha una quota del bene UNESCO Dolomiti: le Dolomiti Friulane e d'Oltre Piave sono uno dei nove sistemi iscritti nel 2009 e coinvolgono le province di Pordenone e Udine | [Commissione Nazionale Italiana per l'UNESCO](https://www.unesco.it/it/unesco-vicino-a-te/siti-patrimonio-mondiale/dolomiti/); [Provincia autonoma di Trento](https://www.provincia.tn.it/Argomenti/Focus/Riconoscimenti-UNESCO-in-Trentino/Dolomiti-Patrimonio-dell-Umanita) | medium | 2099-12-31 | ## Image https://media.myitalia.it/media/nature.dolomiti.1600.jpg Author: Wolfgang Moroder. License: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tofana_di_Rozes_parete_sud_Dolomiti_Ampezzo.jpg ## Other languages - it: https://myitalia.it/it/natura/dolomiti.md - es: https://myitalia.it/es/naturaleza/dolomiti.md - fr: https://myitalia.it/fr/nature/dolomiti.md - de: https://myitalia.it/de/natur/dolomiti.md