I'm think of traveling here for a few days after visiting Venice for a few days. I'd appreciate any info. The Hotel Uhrerhof, a few miles away, has really caught my eye.

Can anyone tell me what the area is like? I've seen pictures of the old town which looks very charming. I've been to enough villages though to know sometimes quaint squares can be surrounded by sprawl and modern buildings.

And how about the drive from Venice to Ortisei? Is it challenging, steep or curvy?
I thought I was a good driver until I visited Ireland. My hubcaps from that rental car are still probably spread throught the Irish countryside. I've learned you can't be a good driver in the US because its too easy.
Several years ago, my credit card wouldn't insure drivers in Ireland, Italy or Israel,
so that tells me about driving in some parts of Italy.

I've chosen this area mainly because of the hotel.

Hi Celfan -

Yes - that hotel looks lovely, doesn't it? It's at Bulla, about 3-4 miles/ 10 mins from Ortisei.

Ortisei is a typical Tyrolean resort with a lovely traffic-free centre and is my favourite place to stay in the Dolomites.

Don't worry, there is no modern sprawl. The planners here in the South Tyrol (- unlike many of the other Alpine resorts in Italy) - have had the sense to control development very carefully to retain the character of the village.

The drive from Venice via Cortina is one of the most spectacular drives in Italy. The most scenic route from Cortina is:

FALZAREGO Pass - (Lagazuoi*) - VALPAROLA Pass - San Cassiano - Corvara - Colfosco - GARDENA Pass.

There are plenty of hairpins but it's not particularly steep. The roads are good.

I wouldn't call it challenging - the only challenge is to watch the road and not be blown away by the awesome views.

Ortisei and Val Gardena are quite lovely. It makes an excellent base for some scenic drives throughout the Dolomites, as well as walking, of course.

Have a look:

http://www.valgardena.it/?pagid=120
(photos)

http://www.valgardena.it/?newlang=eng&pagid=4

http://www.ortisei.com/english/gallerie1.html

Let me know if I can be of more help ...

Steve

Thank you for getting back to me Steve.
At this point I'm not sure Ill have a car, which would make the Uhrerhof impractical as the taxi is 18 euros each way into town. I'm torn between train travel and a car. Ortisei looks perfect though, I'm excited about going there.

I would highly recomment Hotel Uhrerhof...we stayed there for 2 nights in May of 2006. Here is the review I put on TripAdvisor.com about Uhrerhof:

"We stayed at the Hotel Uhrerhof-Deur in May 2006. I can honestly say that this hotel is one of the nicest hotels that I have ever stayed in. The large rooms were spotless, modern and quaint at the same time. In fact that is a good way to describe the entire hotel. As you walk through the building you see hundreds of examples of the extraordinary care the Zemmer family has taken to make you feel at home and at the same time there are many modern updates from the bathroom fixtures to the automatic glass front door that make the stay very convenient. Dunya made sure that every part of our stay was a pleasure while her mother’s decorating and her father’s cooking topped off the experience. The Uhrerhof-Deur is not a real easy place to find. After winding through the mountains for an hour outside of Bolzano you come to the tiny town of Ortisei where you once again begin winding up through the mountains. At one point the road almost becomes one lane. For my wife the experience of driving to the hotel wasn’t all that great but once you get there you see that the precarious drive has placed you on the side of a mountain with an incredible view. Each morning we looked across the valley at some type of mountain sheep grazing on a small grassy clearing on the side of a mountain…truly a magical moment. The food was incredible and great care was taken to ensure that our vegetarian diet didn’t limit our enjoyment of the experience. Although a bit out of the way the Uhrerhof-Deur is a truly magical place and one we hope to visit again some day."

Celfan and DanB,

I would highly recommend the Ortesei area! We skied out of Cortina for a week several years ago and the scenery is spectacular. Ortesei in particular was charming. I've always wanted to return for hiking in the summer, but have been busy exploring other parts of Italy in the meantime.

Buon viaggio!