dolomites

Unless you have a car and can get going at the crack of dawn, I doubt it. It is 4 hours by train and bus to Cortina d'Ampezza.

This has come up on the Forum several times lately. As Sam says, it is a long way to go for a day trip. You’d have almost no time to enjoy the destination as you’d be spending a long time getting there. You could rent a car and drive, but having driven from Verona to Sesto (near the Austrian border) myself, I can tell you it is not a relaxing drive. Enjoy Venice instead. Consider a day trip to the islands in the Lagunes and lunch at Trattoria Maddalena for a real treat. Reservations recommended.

We spent four nights in Ortisei in the Dolomites, a minimum. Stunning scenery. Mix of Austrian and Italian cultures.

garcia,

That trip is not really feasible due to the travel times involved. Travel by Bus from Venice to Cortina d'Ampezzo is about three hours each way, which doesn't leave much time for sightseeing. Some of the buses may only have a few trips each day, so you'd have to make sure that you'd be able to get a bus back to Venice that day.

Best leave it to another trip when have more time. It is beautiful area.

You can book an escorted tour of the Dolomite's that leaves from the Cruise ship terminal. The rough itinerary for the one we took was Venice- Pieve di Cadore - Lake Misurina - Cortina d'Ampezzo - Venice with a stop for lunch at a mountain guesthouse.

This was a long-ish day in a van (small group tour) but if it's the only way to see the countryside while on holiday in Venice it's worth considering.

Just google Dolomite Mountain Day Trips and you should find plenty of options.

If you rent a car, then yes. It's just a couple of hours to drive to Cortina d'Ampezzo, which is a very beautiful little town nestled in between spectacular mountains. They just won their bid to host the Olympic Games in 2026!
I would suggest walking around town (it's not that big), having lunch, circling out with your car to the Drei Zinnen - another gorgeous group of peaks - and then heading back to Venice. The scenery you will pass through is stunning and you won't regret spending a day doing this. It will give you a nice sense of the area.
It will involve some mountain driving but the roads are in excellent condition and there really is no other range of mountains quite like the Dolomites. You'll want to come back to see other parts of it!
It's easy to pick up a rental car at the rental car center at the Venice airport. If you get there early and get going you can pull this off.