Public Transportation from Venice to Ortisei (aka St. Ulrich and Urtijei) in the Dolomites

We did it in late June of 2025. We took a train to Bolzano, changing in Verona and then a bus to Ortisei. The bus station is just around the corner from the train station. It was a very pleasant ride.

Coming back was not as smooth. There were supposed to be two buses coming at about 10 am. The first did not show up so the second was standing room only. It was very hot and a woman in the back fainted. We stopped to let her and her companion off.

I would not think that it would be as warm and crowded in October as in late June (but buses probably won’t run as often either).

BethFL has it right that the train - Venezia Maestre to Bolzano (some w change in Verona) and then the bus is the direct way to go. The regional website has lots of additional information.
https://www.suedtirol.info/en/en

If you want to take the time to go the scenic long way you can catch the Cortina express bus from Marco Polo Airport to Cortina d'Ampezzo (2 hours) and then another Cortina Express bus to Corvara - and then the local bus across the Grodner Joch to Ortisei.
https://www.cortinaexpress.it/en/destinations/venezia-aeroporto/

Thank you both for your insights. It eases my mind. After Ortisei, we will head to Florence, againg by public transportation.

We took public transportation to Ortisei in 2026 and 2025. We will go again in 2027 from Venice to Ortisei and from Ortisei to Florence ... your route. Our experience has been very positive.

Austrian Railways (ÖBB) has a direct train between Venice and Bolzano.
Currently, it is the ÖBB RJ84 (Venice-Munich train route) and departs Venice Santa Lucia at 11:35 and arrives at 14:31 in Bolzano.

If you want to leave Venice earlier, just take a Trenitalia train, but it will have a connection which is not a big deal.

Once you get to Bolzano, you take Line 350 bus to Ortisei (Piazza San Antonio).
Luggage goes under the bus, not onto the bus so I load our two carryon suitcases while my wife boards the bus and saves me a seat.
When you depart Ortisei (Piazza San Antonio), you can take the same Line 350 bus back to Bolzano. Our Hotel Guest Card covers the cost of the bus to Bolzano.
Note the Bolzano Bus Station is a short walk from the Bolzano Train Station.

Trenitalia & Italo have direct trains between Bolzano and Florence ... we rode one in 2025.

Coming back was not as smooth. There were supposed to be two buses coming at about 10 am. The first did not show up so the second was standing room only. It was very hot and a woman in the back fainted. We stopped to let her and her companion off.

BethFL, I believe you wrote about this in another thread from last year. I read it yesterday and given the heat wave that is all over Italy including the Dolomites, I am wondering how hot that bus is going to be in the mid afternoon going from Ortisei to Bolzano even in the middle of October. I’m trying to decide whether I should take either Bus 350 or 360 from Ortisei to Ponte Gardena rail station, and then taking the train to Bolzano which might be more comfortable and cooler inside.

Just an idea, but coming to Ortisei, we took the train to Ponte Gardena/Waidbruck and had a driver pick us up there and take us to our hotel. The bus is fine, but we find it so much easier at this point in our lives not to haul luggage on and off a bus and then trek to a hotel. The busses probably aren’t as full when you’re traveling, but just a thought. Enjoy your trip!

Someone else posted on this topic just a few days ago. I got terrible motion sickness (on the side of the road after the driver let me off the bus) coming back from Ortisei to Bolzano. This was in June, when it was quite warm, the bus was packed full, barely any a/c and the roads were very winding. Unfortunately, it kinda ruined the last leg of our trip because I felt sick for 2-3 days afterward.

My suggestion would be to take an early bus. It will be less crowded and not as warm. I also would bring Dramamine just in case.

We saw an almost empty bus at 8:30am but thought we would spend a little extra time taking some pictures. I did regret that.