Dolomites? Florence & Western Ireland

I spent about a week in the Sud Tirol last year. On several days I took trips up into the Dolomites by public transportation. That part is doable, but I'd plan such side trips for full days if you're staying in Bolzano (nice city, by the way), so you can get to one of the lovely mountain areas and have time to absorb it all rather than having to rush back down. On the day you transfer from Florence it looks like you'll be on the train for at least 3-1/2 hours, then there's the time to get checked into your hotel. I don't think you'd be able to do much of a Dolomite day-trip on that day. Probably best to enjoy Bolzano itself. You'll also lose a major chunk of the day you fly from Dublin to Florence.

Exactly how many days do you have?

So exactly how many days do you have?

Don't stay in Bolzano! Go one hour further and stay in Ortisei in the Val Gardena. You wil be right in the mountains.

It's best to plan in number of nights, so here is how I would lay out your proposed itinerary. Since you said 11 days, I'll assume 10 nights.

Arrive Dublin, immediately transfer to flight to Florence - 3 nights Florence (Firenze in Italian)

Florence to Ortisei - Non-stop high-speed train from Firenze Campo di Marte at 10:03 arrives Bolzano at 13:14. Bus #170 to Ortisei (catch it in front of the station; pay the driver) arrives 15:23. Put your luggage under the bus yourself (you'll see others doing it) and retrieve it in Ortisei. 4 nights Ortisei.

Ortisei to Dublin - Here's the hard day: It will take more than 8 hours to get back to Dublin. Rome2Rio.com suggests a bus to Innsbruck and then a flight to Dublin, OR a bus to Milan and a flight. This will require some additional research. 3 nights Dublin

So it is possible to do this itinerary. The question is, will the savings of flying in-and-out of Dublin be wiped out by the money you have to spend going to-and-from Italy, if Italy is really where you want to visit?

Thank you for your suggestions. I have read through many comments regarding the Dolomites and Ortisei sounds ideal. The issue for me is the trip from Ortisei to Dublin. I could possibly spend just two days in Florence, but it looks like a long day getting to an airport from the mountains! The other issue is my time in Ireland - I really want to see the Western Side. That looks like a 3-4 hour train ride from Dublin. I will have to address that in the Ireland post.

Innsbruck is a small airport with no direct flights to Dublin, the closest airports with direct flights should be Verona and Munich. So, still a long travel day.