Hi All. Every post I can find on this subject steers the asker towards bus>cable car> bus to get from Bolzano up to the Alpe. Were I to be traveling alone, I'd do this in a heartbeat, but I'll be with a road-weary wife and 12 year old. Our hotel in the Alpe says they can only arrange for a taxi if we can give them 24 hours notice of which train we will be on. Knowing better than to bank on our preceding travel being perfect, and how fried we will all be, do those who've done this trek still advocate for taking public transport? Anyone taken a taxi from Bolzano to an Alpe hotel? Thanks in advance!
Posted by
Washington DC
27168 posts
I'm not sure you'll be able to get all the way up to the Alpe di Siusi by taxi. I think I read something to the effect that the road is closed when the lift is running, but I confess I'm not sure what road that referred to, and I suppose there might be an exception for taxis doing drop-offs in any case.
My instinct is to say you should be able to get a taxi easily enough upon arrival in Bolzano (assuming it's not at a weird time of day), but the truth is that I almost never take taxis, much less for that distance, so I could be wrong.
You'll be paying for the round-trip distance.
Exactly where are you trying to get? Via Michelin refuses to calculate a driving route to Alpe di Siusi or to Compatsch, suggesting those may be you-can't-there-from-here-by-car situations. Maybe I'm using the wrong destination. Did your hotel indicate a taxi could deliver you to their door as opposed to the bottom of a lift?
Posted by
California
143 posts
Half the fun of going to Alpe di Siusi is taking the cable car!
Also the road from Bolzano is very narrow and twisty. I was on the bus and it was a little hairy!
Posted by
Forest Grove, OR
11338 posts
We take a taxi from Bolzano to Ortisei every trip. We tell the driver (we use the same guy every year) what train we are on. He monitors it and meets us at the taxi stand. We used to take the bus -- and have done the bus to lift to AdS -- but we don;t relish schlepping luggage on the bus any longer so we splurge on the taxi.
Do you have an idea what train you will be on? Where are you coming from? Perhaps let your hotel arrange it if you give them the train you plan to be on. IF you don't get on that train, you can call the hotel. They know that stuff happens.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32213 posts
Steve,
I took the Bus from Bolzano to Castelrotto and as I recall it was about a one hour trip. I was travelling solo so didn't mind using public transport. The Cable Car station to Alpi di Siusi is in the same general area. That would probably be a bit of an expensive taxi trip.
Where are you coming from prior to arrival in Bolzano?
Posted by
Seattle, WA
16333 posts
I am curious why you think you cannot plan on arriving in Bolzano on a particular train. Where will you be traveling from? Is this your first stop in Europe? And how far is your hotel (which hotel?) from the cablecar station on Alpe di Siusi?
Sorry for all the questions, but it would help people to,provide better answers if they know the details.
I suspect one reason the hotel wants to arrange the taxinis they can provide a better rate for you if they pre-book it in advance. Plus they can arrange for whatever permit or documentation is needed to drive into the "no cars" zone on the Alpe (this is a privilege accorded to hotel guests so they can reach their lodgings). A. Taxi taken from the stand at the station might well be more expensive, and possibly would. It be authorized to drive intomthe Alpe restricted zone.
We have taken the bus from the train station up to Alpe di Siusi, and while the service is quite reliable and very comfortable, it is not quick or easy. There is a bus change at Castelrotto to get to the Alpe, and they drop you at the Compatsch stop and you have to walk from there. Some are fairly close, but others are not.
'Since that trip, we have rented a car in Bolzano for our Dolomites stay. We fly into Munich the day before, and overnight at a hotel we like near the Hauptbahnhof. We take the train to Bolzano the following morning, using tickets purchased well in advance on bahn.de to get a good discount. We will be doing that again next September (2022).