Driving in the Dolomites: the complete guide

Most Dolomites roads are good, two-lane mountain roads. A handful are narrow, steep or crowded enough to spoil a day if you meet them unprepared. This guide covers what to expect on the road, the rules that catch visitors and how to pick calmer routes.

The four kinds of road you will meet

• Wide two-lane roads: valley roads and the big passes such as Passo Falzarego, Passo Campolongo or Passo Pordoi. Buses and campers pass each other without stopping.
• Narrow two-lane roads: two cars pass slowly, a bus and a car often do not. Typical for Passo Gardena, Passo Sella and Passo Giau.
• Roads that are one and a half lanes: you will pull in for oncoming traffic. Examples: Passo delle Erbe, Passo Duran, Passo Manghen.
• Single-lane roads: passing places or traffic lights only, like the upper Staller Sattel.

Every road page on this site shows the width, a difficulty score and a verdict. The route planner avoids narrow and hard roads when a reasonable alternative exists.

Italian rules that catch visitors

• Dipped headlights outside towns, day and night, on all roads outside built-up areas.
• Speed limits: 50 km/h in towns, 90 on ordinary roads outside towns, 110 on main dual carriageways, 130 on motorways (110 in rain). Mountain roads are often signed lower.
• Alcohol: 0.5 g/l, and zero for drivers who have held their licence for less than three years.
• ZTL zones: historic centres such as Bolzano, Trento and Verona have camera-controlled limited traffic zones. Entering without a permit means a fine sent to your home, often months later.
• Parking colours: blue lines are paid, white lines are free (check the signs for time limits), yellow lines are reserved.
• Winter equipment: from 15 November to 15 April you need winter tyres or chains on board. In South Tyrol and Trentino this applies to all roads outside built-up areas; in Veneto and elsewhere it applies where signed.

Who gives way on a narrow mountain road

Italian law (Codice della Strada, art. 150) is clear. When two vehicles cannot pass, the one going downhill stops and pulls over, into a passing place if there is one. If the driver going uphill has a passing place right beside them, they use it. If someone has to reverse, vehicle combinations (car plus caravan or trailer) and vehicles over 3.5 t have priority, and buses have priority over trucks. Between similar vehicles the downhill driver reverses, unless it is clearly easier for the other one.

In practice: watch far ahead, stop early at a wide spot and let the bus through. Nobody expects you to reverse 200 m around a hairpin.

Getting there: tolls and vignettes

From Germany or Austria most people come over the Brenner. Austrian motorways need a vignette, and the Brenner motorway A13 has its own toll on top. In Italy the Brenner motorway is tolled by distance; pay by card at the exit. From the Brenner the A22 takes you to Bressanone, Bolzano or Trento, and the valley roads take over from there.

When traffic is worst

July and August, between about 10:00 and 16:00, are the busy hours on the famous passes. Weekends add hundreds of cyclists and motorcyclists on the Sella group roads. Start before 9:00 or drive after 17:00 and the same passes feel half as hard. Some passes close completely to cars on event days: see Dolomites pass closures in 2027: bike days, Maratona and the Gardena plan.

Seasons

The main passes around the Sella group stay open in winter but can close for a few hours after snowfall. The high, remote ones (Passo dello Stelvio, Passo Gavia, Passo del Rombo, Staller Sattel) close for the winter. Dates for each road: When are the Dolomites passes open? Season dates road by road.

Where to go next

• Nervous about mountain driving: Easy, beautiful Dolomites drives for nervous drivers.
• Want to know which passes to skip: The hardest Dolomites passes, and calmer ways around them.
• Travelling in a motorhome or with a caravan: The Dolomites by camper or with a caravan: banned roads, limits and rules.
• Planning Lago di Braies, Tre Cime or the Seiser Alm: Lago di Braies, Tre Cime and Seiser Alm by car: closures, bookings and tolls.