Rifugio Quinto Alpini

Rifugio Quinto Alpini (also written Rifugio V° Alpini, full name Rifugio Quinto Reggimento Alpini – Bertarelli) is a mountain hut of the Milan Section of the Club Alpino Italiano (CAI), located at 2,877 m above sea level on the southern flank of Monte Zebrù in the Ortler Alps, above the Val Zebrù in the municipality of Valfurva, Province of Sondrio, Lombardy, Italy. It lies within the Stelvio National Park and serves as a base for hikers and alpinists exploring the Ortler-Cevedale group, with the glacier approach only about three minutes away. The hut offers around 50 beds in rooms of six to eight places, a family atmosphere, and Valtellinese cuisine; a small dependance, the Rifugio Bertarelli, sits slightly below and is used as a winter room. The hut was built in 1884 by the Milan Section of the CAI as the Capanna Milano, to open the central peaks of the main Ortler chain from the south. It was first enlarged in 1901. During World War I the building housed the sector command of Italian troops operating in the Val Zebrù and formed a cornerstone of the Italian Ortler front. In 1926 it was renamed in memory of the 5th Alpini Regiment that had served there, and in 1928 it was completely rebuilt. The nearby Rifugio Bertarelli, created from a former wartime barrack, is named after the alpinist Guido Bertarelli, an Alpini officer who fought on the Ortler front and later contributed substantially to the reconstruction of the Rifugio Quinto Alpini. Today the hut is a well-known starting point for classic Ortler-Alps objectives such as Monte Zebrù (3,735 m), the Thurwieserspitze (3,652 m), the Königspitze (3,851 m) and the Ortler (3,905 m), as well as for trekking, mountain biking, geotrekking and the Alta Via Ortles-Cevedale. It is reached from the west from San Nicolò Valfurva through the Val Zebrù in about four hours, with a shuttle service from the last car park to the Baita del Pastore, and it is linked by hut-to-hut routes to the Rifugio Pizzini-Frattola (2,706 m) and other neighbouring huts. The official website markets the hut as a destination for trekking, MTB, glacier ascents, loop tours and geotrekking, and offers gift vouchers. According to the official site, the hut is closed with a planned reopening in 2027, and from 16 September 2026 the winter room will remain closed for the whole winter due to extraordinary maintenance work.

The Rifugio Quinto Alpini was built in 1884 by the Milan Section of the Club Alpino Italiano under the name Capanna Milano, with the aim of making the central summits of the main chain of the Ortler Alps accessible from the south. It was first enlarged in 1901. During World War I, the hut housed the sector command of the Italian troops operating in the Val Zebrù and formed a cornerstone in the defence of the Italian Ortler front. In 1926 it was renamed in memory of the 5th Alpini Regiment that had been deployed there during the war. In 1928 the Rifugio V° Alpini was completely rebuilt. Slightly below it, the Rifugio Bertarelli was created from a former wartime barrack and named after the alpinist Guido Bertarelli, who had fought as an Alpini officer on the Ortler front during World War I and after the war made a substantial financial contribution to the reconstruction of the Rifugio Quinto Alpini. The hut remains a property of the Milan Section of the CAI and continues to operate as a mountain hut and restaurant at 2,877 m, with the Rifugio Bertarelli serving as a dependance and winter room. In the 2020s the official website announced a closure with a planned reopening in 2027 and the closure of the winter room from 16 September 2026 for extraordinary maintenance.

• 2026

  From 16 September the winter room closes for the whole winter for extraordinary maintenance.

• 1928

  Completely rebuilt; the Rifugio Bertarelli dependance created from a former wartime barrack.

• 1926

  Renamed Rifugio Quinto Alpini in memory of the 5th Alpini Regiment.

• 1915

  During World War I the hut housed the sector command of Italian troops in the Val Zebrù and anchored the Italian Ortler front.

• 1901

  First enlargement of the hut.

• 1884

  Built by the Milan Section of the Club Alpino Italiano as the Capanna Milano.

• Planned reopening of the hut, with bookings open for summer 2027.

Historic, family-run CAI mountain hut and alpine base in the heart of the Stelvio National Park, combining traditional Valtellinese hospitality with access to classic Ortler-Alps mountaineering.

• Mountain hut accommodation (approx. 50 beds, rooms of 6–8 places)

• Valtellinese cuisine restaurant

• Rifugio Bertarelli dependance and winter room

• Trekking, MTB, glacier ascents, loop tours, geotrekking

• Gift vouchers (Cuore di rifugio, benessere alpino, giro del Confinale)

1. 1Rifugio Quinto Alpini 2877 mt Alta Valtellina - Bormio, Livigno, Santa Caterina, Stelvio - Val Zebrù - Ristorante tipicorifugioquintoalpini.it
2. 2Rifugio Quinto Alpini – Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Rifugio Quinto Alpini – Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org