Traveling with two other couples in September and we will be renting a vehicle(s) in Venice and driving to the Dolomites for 3 days. I know a van is not the ideal choice for driving the windy roads in the Dolomites, but we would prefer to be together. Anybody with experience with this? Is it feasible? Thanks!

Have you considered the train and local buses? I wouldn't have any issues driving a compact/mid sized car in the mountains, bit I personally would not be comfortable driving a 7 passenger van there.

Depends where you drive -the drive from Venice to say Campo d'Ampezzo is fine and then use local transports but as janis says maybe just all take the train?

Look at some detailed maps and see what types of inclines there are - I think you can drive many places without fear.

Trains and local buses will not allow you to see the best of the Dolomites in just 3 days. Even in your own vehicle(s), you'll have to make some tough choices of what you want to see. I highly recommend you do some research into the sights and driving distances and then have a general plan decided before you go. If any are history buffs, there are several WWI sights and museums.

If your question is whether you could navigate the roads in a 7-passenger van, the answer is yes. There are commercial tours that utilize large vans and buses. Cycling groups usually have large vans for support and luggage. Lots of people drive camper vans.

You can go to Google Images to see what the roads look like. Search the passes, like Passo Giau, Sella, Pordoi, Falzarego, San Pellegrino, the Rosengarten.

All of your comments helped! Since we will have the van for further travels after the Dolomites, we can use it to get there but on days that we will be doing lifts and hiking, we will use the public transportation, which sounds very good -- and I assume will still be viable in late September. Thank you!

Hi, I just came across this thread. We will be doing the same thing and are considering renting a 7-9 passenger van to explore the dolomites - did you find driving the van okay? Just wondering if you encountered any issues and whether it would be better to split up onto 2 smaller cars instead? Thanks for the help!

You don't say how big your group is.

IMO, it's always better for large groups to have multiple cars. I find being forced to reach consensus on every aspect of a day (what time to leave, where to go, when/where to stop for lunch, when to quit for the day, etc.) can become a source of irritation even among the most congenial travelers. Some people like early mornings, some like to go-go-go, photo enthusiasts like to make stops/detours for the 'best' views, some like dinner on the early side, etc. If you haven't traveled with this group before, you may not know all of the personal preferences and habits.

For what it's worth... We just returned from a week in the Dolomites (our second one week trip there). We drove through the Sella, Pordoi, San Pellegrino, Falzarego and other passes, as well as some of the major valleys (Fassa, Gardena, Funes). My husband is a very, very confident driver who likes to drive and enjoys the challenge of winding, mountainous roads with switchbacks, etc. I asked him if he would have considered doing so in a large-ish passenger van rather than the Audi A3 hatchback that we had, and his response was: "Not at gunpoint."

As a post above mentions, there is very good public transportation within the various valleys. If you can get your van to a base easily enough, then you can use buses to get around to various lifts and such.

I would research the public transportation timetables before deciding whether you could see what you want to see in the time you have.

Thank you both for the tips! I really appreciate the help

Patrice - I've driven through the dolomites several times in 9 passenger vans. I'd offer a few observations:
1. I would not recommend using public transportation in the dolomites. The reason we drove to begin with the first time 10 years ago is because I was advised on this very forum that public transportation would be a terrible way to tour the dolomites. There might be bus routes through the mountains but I'd think they would greatly hamper your ability to move around and stop when you want to.
2. I had NO trouble driving through the dolomites with 9 passenger vans. Unless you're a terribly fearful driver you should have no trouble at all. People are making it sound like you're driving on a cliff side road in Afghanistan for crying out loud. They drive BUSES on these roads. Would I prefer to speed through the mountains in a sports car...of course. But I certainly wouldn't fall back to public transportation for fear of attempting this.

The tip above about looking at Google street view is a good one. That will let you see how the roads look where you plan on driving. I can't deny that you might be the type of person who would be fearful of the drives....but I'd say if you're too scared to drive a van in the dolomites then you'll likely be too scared to drive a car in the dolomites. Only you will know that after looking at the roads.

Pic of our chariot



Pic of one of the cool stops we made to do a little hiking. With your own vehicle you choose where you want to stop. On a bus you stop where everyone else stops.


*****IMPORTANT EDIT******
I'm now realizing I'm blending trips in my mind. I've driven in the dolomites twice. The pics above were the second time with the van. The first time wasn't in a van...it was in a BMW 5 series car with stick shift. I had a blast in the BMW...and my wife got so sick that it ended our day much earlier than I had hoped. The second time in the van was a VAST improvement for her. You tend to slow down in a van which made her feel a lot safer.