Reservation needed in Dolomites for June?

hi, normally it is not a trouble to find place in June or July... August is the month to worry ahead. cheers

Kelly, We spent several days in Merano, near Bolzano. Great hiking and cute little city. There were lots of possibilities for rooms as Merano was/is a spa town surrounded by some fabulous hiking trails that wind around vineyards and orchards just a few steps up from the town. Many of the houses along the trail offer rooms to rent and are listed on the town's website as agriturismos. This area (Merano) is wonderful but not as steep and dramatic as the Dolomites IMO.

Def. reserve in advance. There are not many hotels/lodging in gen in the Dolomite area which is a much better spot to stay in over Bolzano IMO.
To me Bolzano is for an overnight of the highway as a convenience. The beauty is in the Dolomites.

Bolzano and Castelrotto are gateways to the Dolomites, but they are not in the Dolomites. Bolzano is a charming city with fairly expensive accomodations. Castelrotto a lovely village with limited choices (but some very good ones if you reserve in advance). If you want to actually stay IN the Dolomites, say in Val Gardena, Val Badia, Alpe di Siusi, etc., these places are all ski areas with lots of accommodations on offer. Although we have always reserved in advance I have no doubt that in June, before the tourist crush, you could just show up and the Toursit Information center would help you find something. But if you are traveling by public transport, not by car, this could be difficult.

Hi Kelly, We travel usually to the Dolomites in "shoulder season" and still prefer to reserve a room in advance. As Lola stated, both Bolzano and Castelrotto are nice, but neither is "in" the Dolomites. Bolzano is a city further from the Dolomites than Castelrotto. Castelrotto is a small village on the outskirts of the Dolomites. Even if your traveling by public transportation, I'd stay in the Val Gardena. The 3 towns/villages in the Val Gardena are Ortisei, St. Christina and Selva. Each is just 5 minutes or so to go from one to the next, so really any of the 3 makes a good place for your 2 nights. www.val-gardena.com We stayed at and can recommend the Garni Ariston in St. Christina, Val Gardena. www.garniariston.com If you have a car, we prefer the scenery in the Alta Badia, which is the next valley over from the Val Gardena. The Val Gardena and the Alta Badia are seperated by the spectacular Gardena Pass, which is one of our favorite "scenic drives". In the Alta Badia we've stayed and can recommend the Ciasa Montanara in La Villa, Alta Badia. www.montanara.it That all said, the Val Gardena does have more to offer as far as places to stay, restaurants, shops, etc. Hope this helps. Paul