Alps and Dolomites 2018 - a road trip with kids through Austria and Italy

Ten wpis po polsku

The pizza arrived at our table in Merano, the kids took a few bites and exchanged knowing looks. The verdict was clear: Mum makes better pizza. It is one of the moments we still remember from our 2018 summer holiday, along with snow by the roadside in the middle of July, World War I tunnels cut into the rock and a 3.5 km summer toboggan run in Tyrol.

In July 2018 we packed our golden Ford Tourneo Custom and spent ten days driving with the kids through Germany and Austria to the Italian Dolomites, then back to Poland through Tyrol and Bavaria. On the way we drove three high Alpine roads, the Grossglockner, the Pordoi Pass and the Timmelsjoch, saw Lago di Carezza and stayed at a few campsites we still remember fondly. You can watch the short videos from this trip in the individual posts or all in a row on our Alpy / Dolomity 2018 playlist on YouTube.

At a glance

• Dates: from Monday 16 July (we left in the evening) to Wednesday 25 July 2018, 10 days.
• Countries: Poland, Germany, Austria and Italy.
• Route: overnight through Germany to Zell am See, over the Grossglockner road to the Dolomites, then through South Tyrol and over the Timmelsjoch pass to Imst, and home through Bavaria.
• Distances: the whole route was about 2,500 km. The drive from Zell am See over the Grossglockner to the campsite near Cortina was about 250 km, and the last four days from South Tyrol back home were about 1,200 km.
• Where we slept: in our tent at five campsites in Austria, Italy and Germany.
• We travelled with our four kids, and the youngest was still riding in a pushchair.

Route

Poland - Germany (overnight drive) - Austria (Zell am See, Grossglockner) - Italy (Cortina d'Ampezzo, Monte Lagazuoi, Pordoi Pass, Vigo di Fassa, Lago di Carezza, Merano, Völlan) - Austria (Timmelsjoch Pass, Imst, AREA 47) - Germany (Lechbruck am See) - Poland

We drove to Italy through Austria and East Tyrol and came back a different way: over the Timmelsjoch pass into the Ötztal valley and on through the Allgäu. That way every stage showed us something new, and the longest drives were the first night and the last day.

Day-by-day plan

Days 1-2 (16-17 July): overnight to Zell am See

We left on Monday at about 8 pm and drove through Germany overnight while the kids slept. At about 10 am we were in Zell am See, pitched our tent at Camping Seekamp and spent the rest of the day by the lake (Zell am See and Grossglockner - an Alpine start to our summer holiday).

Day 3 (18 July): the Grossglockner and on to the Dolomites

The Grossglockner High Alpine Road took us above 2,500 m, and from the Wilhelm Swarovski Observation Point we looked out over the Pasterze Glacier. In the evening, after about 250 km, we reached Camping Cortina in the Dolomites through East Tyrol (same post).

Day 4 (19 July): Monte Lagazuoi

From Passo Falzarego we took the cable car up Monte Lagazuoi, relaxed on inflatable sofas with a view of the Dolomites and hiked down through World War I tunnels and gun positions. The way down took us about 2.5 hours (Monte Lagazuoi - World War I tunnels in the Dolomites).

Day 5 (20 July): the Pordoi Pass and Lago di Carezza

We drove over the Pordoi Pass (2,239 m), down into the Val di Fassa through Vigo di Fassa, and walked around the emerald Lago di Carezza (Sass Pordoi, Lago di Carezza and Pizza in the Dolomites).

Day 6 (21 July): Merano and the campsite in Völlan

In Merano the kids demanded real Italian pizza and then gave it a tough verdict. We spent the night at Alpin Fitness Waldcamping Völlan near Lana (same post).

Day 7 (22 July): the Timmelsjoch Pass and Imst

We crossed back into Austria over the Timmelsjoch pass, between patches of snow, and looked into the motorcycle museum at the Hochgurgl toll station. About two hours after leaving the campsite we were at aktivCamping Imst, where guests get free entry to the public pool (Timmelsjoch, Imst and the Journey Home).

Day 8 (23 July): the Rosengartlschlucht gorge and the toboggan run

With a pushchair, which was not our best idea, we walked up the Rosengartlschlucht gorge to Family Park Hoch-Imst and rode down the Alpine Coaster summer toboggan run (same post).

Day 9 (24 July): AREA 47 and Lechbruck am See

Before leaving Austria we went swimming at the AREA 47 water park at the entrance to the Ötztal valley, with a discount from the campsite coupon booklet. For the night we reached Via Claudia Camping in Lechbruck am See in the Bavarian Allgäu.

Day 10 (25 July): the drive home

The campsites near the border were full, so we drove straight home, with a break for sausages on our camping stove by Lake Raduszeckie near Krosno Odrzańskie. By the evening we were home.

Kids' favourites

From the very first day the kids were drawn to water. After the night drive to Zell am See they wanted to go to the lake straight away, and in Imst they loved the public pool just over the campsite fence, with water slides, including an 80-metre one, and a paddling area.

In the mountains they were most impressed by things you do not see back home in Poland:

• a real glacier, the Pasterze, with snow and ice in July,
• the tunnels on Monte Lagazuoi: the older ones asked how the soldiers ate and slept inside the rock, and the younger ones treated them as a big adventure,
• the rocky landscape of the Pordoi Pass, which kept them glued to the windows,
• the colours of Lago di Carezza and the question of why the water is so colourful,
• patches of snow by the road on the Timmelsjoch pass in the middle of summer.

After dragging the pushchair up the gorge, the ride down the summer toboggan run in Hoch-Imst was great fun for the kids and for us. And the biggest surprise was the pizza in Merano, which the kids rated lower than the homemade one.

Practical info

Vignettes and road tolls

On our route you pay tolls in Austria and Italy, but not in Germany (as of November 2026):

• Germany: cars use the motorways for free, the toll is only for vehicles over 3.5 t.
• Austria: you need a vignette for motorways and expressways. A digital 1-day vignette costs 9.60 EUR and a 10-day one 12.80 EUR. If you buy a 1-day or 10-day vignette online, it can be valid straight away.
• The Grossglockner road has its own toll: a day ticket for a car costs 46.50 EUR, or 36.50 EUR after 6 pm. It covers the car with the driver and up to 8 passengers, so a big family does not pay per person. You can buy it at the toll station or online.
• Timmelsjoch Pass: a car costs 20 EUR one way and 28 EUR return, paid in Hochgurgl on the Austrian side.
• Italy: on most motorways you take a ticket when you enter and pay for the distance when you leave, in cash or by card. A few sections have a fixed toll without a ticket.

Border checks and documents

EU citizens can travel with a passport or ID card, and every child needs their own document. Germany is checking all its land borders, including those with Austria and Poland, until 15 March 2027, and Poland is checking its border with Germany until 30 March 2027, so keep the whole family's documents at hand (as of November 2026).

When the passes and cable cars are open

The high Alpine roads and cable cars only run in season (as of November 2026):

• Grossglockner: usually from early May to early November, in 2026 from 25 April to 1 November. From June to August the road is open from 5:30 to 21:00, with last entry at 20:15.
• Timmelsjoch: from spring to autumn, depending on the weather (in 2026 from 13 May), daily from 7:00 to 20:00, and closed at night. Trailers longer than 4.5 m are not allowed on the Italian side.
• Monte Lagazuoi cable car: in summer 2026 it ran from 6 June to 18 October.
• Sass Pordoi cable car: in 2026 from 14 May to 1 November, daily from 9:00 to 17:00.

Campsites we stayed at

• Camping Seekamp in Zell am See, a few hundred metres from the Zeller See: clean and well kept.
• Camping Cortina near Cortina d'Ampezzo: our base for trips in the Dolomites.
• Alpin Fitness Waldcamping Völlan in Völlan (Foiana) near Lana, about 10 km from Merano: quiet, among the trees. In 2026 it was open from 28 March to 1 November.
• aktivCamping Imst: no pool of its own, but guests get free entry to the public pool right next door (as of November 2026).
• Via Claudia Camping in Lechbruck am See on the Lechsee lake: large but quiet, with no phone signal in 2018 but fast wifi.

In July, in peak season, the campsites in Germany along our way to Poland were often full, so for the last night it is worth having a booking or a backup plan.

More about Italy, Germany and our other trips

The places from this trip, plus our May week at Lake Garda and a day in Venice, are in our guide to Italy with kids, and the night in the Allgäu and other places in Germany are in our guide to Germany with kids. A year earlier, in summer 2017, we spent 23 days driving about 5,000 km through the Balkans to Albania: Balkans 2017 - a road trip with kids through seven countries.