Dolomites in April

I haven't driven in Europe so will allow others familiar with that area to address possible driving conditions and mountain views--though I bet there are some videos on YouTube that would give you a give you a good idea of the latter. Frankly, I don't remember what mountain scenery I saw from down in the valley versus the buses I took up into the Dolomites.

I can tell you that Bolzano/Bozen (larger) and Bressanone/Brixen (smaller) have very pretty historic centers. I remember reading positive comments about Merano as well but haven't been there. The small town of Chiusa/Klausen is very atmospheric.

The archeological museum in Bolzano has a very well-done exhibition on Otzi, the Iceman.

Which driving routes will you follow before and after the Dolomites? The area is widespread and the drives are by no means easy. In April, you may experience some road closures.

Thank you both. Sorry, I was going to mention our route - we will be coming down from Garmisch and afterwards going to Varenna. I had planned to just take the autostrada route around the south by Verona and Milan, although I am considering taking the SS42 across, which I was going to post about separately. We will certainly stop in a few towns briefly but the point of going this route is to see the mountains. We won't have time to venture too far east, but I know there are some places southeast of Bolzano as well. I'll want to stay on main roads. Basically looking for the easiest to get to views (from the A22) of the classic Dolomites.

Dolomites are west of A22 and you are going east, so any detour is going to make your trip longer. A second factor are pass closures, well possible in April; so you can't decide now but you need to have a look again a couple days in advance.
The easier and most glorius itinerary could be getting out of A22, driving to Ortisei and Val Gardena, up to Sella pass, down to Canazei, drive all the Fassa and Fiemme valley and rejoin A22 at Ora. It would take about four hours without long stops. Passo Sella is generally open but you should better be proficient in winter driving. Very close view of the Sassolungo mountain group.
A simpler itinerary could be getting out of A22 at Bolzano nord, drive the Costalunga route that is lower in elevation. Stop at Carezza lake for a view of Catinaccio mountain group, than either go back to Bolzano or drive Vigo - Moena and Fiemme valley again to Ora.

Too early by a couple of months.

Thank you. Yeah, that is probably the worst time to go. We were planning on going in September but had to reschedule; and we were planning on coming down from Salzburg but had to rearrange that as well. We also had to shorten our trip a couple days, but I could take a day away from Como to do that longer drive. But not sure it's worth it if there is too much snow to stop and hike. I'm thinking of just driving up to Sella pass or thereabouts and back the same way. But I'll look at that other option you mention.

I would think most of the main roads would be open for ski resort access, although since most places will be closed by then I'd assume the snow wouldn't be too bad (or they'd stay open). I'm proficient in winter driving and am supposed to have an Audi, but without winter tires I still wouldn't want to attempt it if there's snow on the road.

The few hotels that are open seem to have lousy cancellation policies. I'll have to find one with a reasonable cancellation policy; if the weather's bad I would be better off just skipping the Dolomites and going from Germany to Como another way. But I've always wanted to see the Dolomites.

The advice so far is very helpful. Maintaining a flexible schedule is good in case of bad weather.

Sorry to be a downer. We learned first hand when we went car camping and hiking in late May. Lots of the businesses were closed as it was between ski season and summer season. The hiking was reasonable only on lower slopes (that year anyway) and the residual melt water guaranteed wet feet.

I can't speak to the state of the roads in April. We once stayed in Vipiteno for a few nights. As you approach Vipiteno from the north, make a right on to the SS44 and head to Merano, a fabulous little town. The drive is windy, scenic and not as busy as the
SS508.

The Dolomites are actually east of the A22.

Yes, where I am in Utah trails I think it's similar, with lingering snow and lots of spring runnoff through May, so I figure we probably won't be doing any hiking.

I've heard good things about Merano before, I'll have to look it up. I would love to spend a week just driving all the roads there, but my wife isn't too fond of windy roads unless she's driving.

If you are going from Garmisch to Varenna, have you considered driving all the Engadine valley to St. Moritz and then Maloja pass? I drove it maybe 20 years ago, it was a very long day (say 8 hours, some Swiss sections are very slow), I would not try it with snow or bad weather as it could take forever, but it is still a fond memory. It would be the shortest itinerary, if not the fastest.

Thank you, yes, I was looking at that as an alternative if the weather in the Dolomites isn't good. I had heard of the Engadine valley but didn't realize that's where it was. It doesn't look like it would be too bad and Google says only 5 hours even now in the middle of winter. But still a long day, although I imagine it would be beautiful. I have a friend with a cabin near St Moritz that I might consider stopping at for a night.

Well, mother nature was kind to us. We arrived in the Dolomites on 4/20 to mostly clear skies and nice temperatures. No snow or mud. We decided to stay in the Val di Funes. The entire valley is beautiful and a lot smaller than I expected, but you can only see all the peaks at the very end in Santa Maddalena. The classic pictures you see are taken from locations across the valley that you had to hike up to and my wife wasn't up to it. But we found an even closer view you could drive to. It was even more beautiful than in the pictures.

The road up is very narrow and winding in parts. We stayed in St. Pietro, a town right before St. M. The road to our B&B was one lane at times and I'm glad we didn't encounter anyone coming the other direction.

We went straight to Lake Como without seeing anywhere else in the Dolomites, but it's hard to top this area. Unfortunately I decided to take the autostrada route to Varenna as it looked faster and easier, but the last section from Bergamo up was very tedious. I wish I would have taken the drive through the Alps.

Thank you for the update!
The highway from Verona to Bergamo and the road from there to Lecco / Varenna sure is tedious. But so is the drive from Bolzano to lake Como via Passo Tonale and Aprica: you see mountains, but it is very slow going (village after village), and there are only a few stretches that are really scnic. You did not miss much!

Ok thanks, that makes me feel better!