How To Get To The Dolomites: Car, Bus, Train, Or Plane?

The Dolomites cover a vast area in the Northeastern Italy, in the Southern Limestone Alps. It’s kind of off the main public transport places, making them not so easy to get to. Of course, there are public transport options of getting there, but they’re not running that often. And there’s no airport really that you can fly in that’s gonna be straight in the Dolomites.

The easiest way how to get to the Dolomites is to fly to one of the relatively nearby airports, rent a car, and then drive.

If you’re within 10 hours drive in Europe, I recommend just driving your own car – that’s what we usually do. We’ve driven to the Dolomites from Piestany in Slovakia, from Prague in Czechia, and of course, when we lived in Italy, Sarnico.

So, how to get to the Dolomites?

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How To Get To The Dolomites, Italy

So, once you’re in Italy, you can get to the Dolomites by driving a rental car, taking a train or a bus. The time it takes to get to the mountains, of course, depends on where you’re basing yourself.

The biggest transport hubs and nearest airports around the Dolomites are as follows:

• Venice (Italy)
• Verona (Italy)
• Bologna (Italy)
• Milan (Italy)
• Bolzano (Italy)
• Munich (Germany)
• Innsbruck (Austria)
• Zurich (Switzerland)

As you see, some of these are not in Italy – the Dolomites being in the northern Italy opens up options to fly into Switzerland, Austria, and Germany.

The travel time from them to the Dolomites differs depending on where you’re based.

The most convenient of these are Bolzano, which is a gateway to the Dolomites, and Venice and Verona, as it takes approximately 3 hours to get from there to the Dolomites. Innsbruck is not so bad, either, but its being in Austria complicates things a bit. You can use public transportation from there to get to Italy and then rent a car.

You can use public transport to get to some parts of the Dolomites from these, but my recommendation still stands: it’s best to rent a car, as that’s honestly the best way to get around.

Closest Airports to the Dolomites

As I mentioned already, the closest big airports to the Dolomites are Bolzano, Venice Marco Polo, Munich, and Milan. Honestly, Milan and Munich are already quite far – it takes at least 4 hours to get from them to the closest parts of the Dolomites.

Venice Marco Polo Airport is the most convenient airport for getting to the towns in the Eastern part of the Dolomites, such as Cortina d’Ampezzo.

But there are some smaller airports that serve quite a few international destinations.

The best is Bolzano airport in the South Tyrol. It’s the gateway to the Western Dolomites. There are several flights available to Bolzano airport from different Italian cities, Germany, and even London.

Another convenient one is Verona Villafranca Airport (VRN). It covers 80 destinations in Europe. Verona is a great place to fly into if you want to go to the Western part of the Dolomites (Val Gardena, for example).

The rest of the airports are rather far already, and for me, it doesn’t make too much sense to fly into, for example, Milan Malpensa from where it takes like 5 hours to get to Cortina d’Ampezzo.

The Dolomites By Car

The best time of year to use this option: whole year | Which part of the Dolomites?: Any | Positives: Easy to use; freedom; comfortable | Negatives: More expensive, roads can get scary

A Dolomites road trip is always a good idea!

The Dolomites are served by big, normal highways (autostrada) so it’s not a problem to get there with a car.

The mountain roads are smaller and winding, of course. Some of them might even seem quite scary, haha. And if you want to travel around the Dolomites by car, you’ll have to use these small roads to get to the mountain passes. Honestly, it’s worth it.

Another thing is that all of the roads are well maintained, even if it’s snowing outside. Actually, when we got caught in a snowstorm, the roads in Italy were much better maintained than in Austria. We couldn’t leave Italy, where the roads were drivable, because – as we were told – Austrians couldn’t manage to clean the roads properly.

Most of the hotels in the Dolomites have parking available, so that’s not really a problem, either. Keep in mind that sometimes it’s at extra cost, though.

Even the almost carless area of Alpe di Siusi allows hotel guests to drive there by car.

I honestly recommend that you explore the Dolomites by car, as that’s just the most convenient option – and one of the best things to do there. Although we saw a lot of buses run frequently, it’s just not that comfortable, as you’re limited by their running times. So, for example, if you’d like to enjoy some location for sunset or sunrise, it will most probably not be possible.

If you need to get to the Dolomites by public transport, there are car rental companies available in the city of Bolzano. You can go there by bus or by train and then continue with a rental car. It’s definitely the better option if you’re arriving from somewhere abroad, as crossing the border in a rental car gets a bit complicated.

The Dolomites By Train

The best time of year to use this option: summer season (mid-/ late june to September) and winter season (December to early March) | Which part of Dolomites?: You’ll probably arrive in Bolzano, so West | Positives: Easy to use; cheaper than car | Negatives: limited times and stations available|

You can get to the Dolomites by train from various places in Italy, Austria, Switzerland, and Germany.

If you’re coming from Italy, you’ll likely have to transfer either in Verona or Venice Mestre station. From there, you can go to the biggest towns in the Dolomites, such as Bolzano, by train.

Cortina d’Ampezzo doesn’t have a train station but is well connected by bus – from Venice, you can take the Cortina Express straight to Cortina d’Ampezzo.

If you’re coming from other places in Europe, your train will likely cross the Brenner Pass and go to Bressanone (Brixen), Bolzano (Bozen), and Trentino (Trento). It’s an incredibly beautiful train journey!

And anyways, if you arrive in the Dolomites by train, you’ll have to either rent a car or explore by bus.

The Dolomites By Bus

The best time of year to use this option: summer season (mid-june to September) and winter season (December to early March) | Which part of Dolomites?: Any | Positives: cheap; lots of buses available | Negatives: the trip gets limited by public transport timelines |

It’s possible to arrive to the Dolomites by bus from many places around, such as Venice, Munich, Innsbruck, Bergamo, and many more.

Some companies that run bus transfers (both private and public) to the Dolomites are FlixBus, Suedtirol Transfer, Cortina Express, Alto Adige Bus, and ATVO transfer from Venice. The company depends on where you’re coming from and where you’re going.

High seasons – summer and winter – are better for using public transport, though, so keep that in mind when considering this option.

We were surprised by how many buses we saw running in the Dolomites. You can get pretty much anywhere by bus (like Lake Carezza, which has a bus stop right next to it)! It’s not just the best places to visit that have bus stops – if your hotel is somewhere off the beaten path, it might have a bus stop next to it.

One great thing about using public transport – it might even be for free. In the region of South Tyrol/Südtirol/Trentino-Alto Adige, for example, you can get a Südtirol Guest Pass FOR FREE and get a lot of perks. That includes free rides on local buses, some cable cars and regional trains, entrance to museums, and a lot of additional things. You can get the guest pass online, but ask your accommodation or the local tourist office for the full list of things that your specific pass covers.

Anyways, bus is a convenient way both how to get to the Dolomites and how to get around.

But be sure to pack your motion sickness pills if you get sick on the road – many bus drivers are quite… fast in the turns.

Private Transfers to the Dolomites and Guided Day Trips

I already mentioned some private transfer options in the bus section. For example, some bus companies that offer private transfers to the Dolomites are Alto Adige Bus and Cortina Express.

And there are day trips to the Dolomites from Venice, Lake Garda, and other places available, too.

For example, this tour from Lake Garda goes to the passo Pordoi, Fiemme Valley, Canazei and Moena. After lunch, it continues to Val Gardena and Ortisei.

Or this one from Venice goes to the Santa Croce lake, Pieve di Cadore, Lake Auronzo, Lake Misurina, Cortina d’Ampezzo, Vittorio Veneto drive, and then Valdobbiadene in the Prosecco Hills with a wine tasting.

And a great thing is that some hotels in the Dolomites- especially family and sport’s hotels – offer transfers, as well as guided tours.

There are lots of options available, for many tastes.

In conclusion

As I said, in our opinion, the best way to go to the Dolomites is by car, especially if it’s your first trip. It just gives much more freedom for exploration without relying on public transit. Of course, if you need to rent a car, it increases the total cost of the trip, but still, the freedom is definitely worth it.

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