Lake Garda

This is the most complete tourist guide of Lake Garda that you can find on the web: places to visit, things to do and specialties to taste told by tour guides of Lake Garda that, with decades of experience in the field, have decided to share with you all their knowledge and experience.

Oncoming Tours

Lake Garda extends for more than 50 km (30 miles) from north to south and is divided between three Italian regions (Veneto, Lombardy, Trentino) and three provinces (Verona, Brescia, Trento). The main villages on the eastern coast are no more than half an hour's drive from Verona.
Lake Garda is one of the main Italian and European tourist destination and certainly contributes to make the province of Verona an important vacation hub. There are so many places to visit, experiences to try and things to do, products to taste, that if you have little time for your visit, we recommend that you rely on a tourist guide of Lake Garda to accompany you on a personalized tour.

If you prefer to do it yourself we will be happy if you find the information we provide here useful to better organize your stay.

Lake Garda Itineraries

Here are some of our best itineraries to get to know and enjoy Lake Garda at its best.
They are suitable for individual visitors, small and large groups, students on school trips.
They are itineraries of 2-3 hours to take place in half a day or, combining more than one, as full day tours. Perfect to do together with a tourist guide who will take care of everything.

Each proposal is completely customisable according to your requests and needs. Do not hesitate to contact us to plan together with our tour guides of Lake Garda your excursion.

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Villages and Towns

Below is an in-depth guide of some of the most representative towns and villages of Lake Garda and the sites and monuments to see in each of them. By combining few of them you can design your half-day or full day itineraries.

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How to get to Lake Garda

Lake Garda is located in the center of Northern Italy almost equidistant from Venice and Milan, Trento and Mantua.

By Train

You can easily reach lake Garda by train traveling on the Milan-Venice railway. The two main stations are Peschiera in the south-east and Desenzano in the south-west. Both stations are close enough to the town centers to reach them on foot or by taxi. Check train timetables.

Boat Services

Lake Garda has a boat public transport service that connects all the towns and villages on the coast. Starting from any point it is therefore possible to reach any other destination with a pleasant navigation. There are direct lines that make only few stops, others that stop at each town.
Between Toscolano Maderno and Torri del Benaco there is a ferry service for cars that allows you to go from one side of the lake to the other with your car. Check lines and timetables.

By Car

From the motorway you can reach Lake Garda from the exits of Peschiera, Desenzano, Sirmione on the A4 route, or Affi and Rovereto Sud on the A22 route.
The lake is completely surrounded by the Gardesana, an well mantained road that connects all the towns on the coast, divided into Gardesana Orientale (Eastern section - SS249) and Gardesana Occidentale (Western section - SS45 bis).

By Bus

From Verona it is possible to reach the main towns of the south and east coast by bus from the Porta Nuova train station or the historical center (Piazza Bra and Corso Porta Nuova bus stands). You can check lines and timetables on the website of the public transport company of Verona (ATV) and Brescia (GBM).

By Plane

The nearest airports are Valerio Catullo in Verona and Montichiari in Brescia. From there shutthle buses and taxi can take you to major destinations.

Accommodation

You'll be spoilt for choice about where to stay to visit Lake Garda. The entire coast and the hinterland are dotted with hotels of all types, budget, costs, apartments and holiday homes, campsites, etc.
The southern area is characterized by thermal springs and both around Sirmione and Lazise there are some interesting spa hotels.
There is of course no lack of agriturismo (farmhouse lodging) and wineries with accommodation.
It is also possible to stay overnight in the hinterland as far as Verona and Brescia and go to Lake Garda for a day trip.

Things to do on Lake Garda

Such as an important destination as Lake Garda offers endless opportunities for activities and things to do during your stay. Below you will find some tips and suggestions from the tourist guides of Lake Garda.

1. Visit a Castle

2. Visit and archaeological site

Lake Garda has been inhabited since the most remote antiquity experiencing a great development in Roman times. Remains of the old roman harbour have been excavated in Peschiera. In Sirmione and Desenzano there are the remains of the two most important Roman villas in Northern Italy and both, for different reasons, of great interest. The one in Sirmione, although little remains, is impressive for the monumentality of the great ruins and the spectacular position in which it was built. The one in Desenzano preserves an extraordinarily large and well-preserved mosaic floor.

3. Take a Boat Trip

4. Winery tour and wine tasting

5. Going around the lake

For those who like to drive, doing a full tour around lake Garda it is definitely one of the best ways to appreciate it. The road that completely surrounds the lake has a length of about 250 kilometres (155 miles). You can easily drive around its entire extension in a few hours, depending on traffic conditions. Even with few stops here and there it is something you can easily do in one day. You will be impressed by how the landscape and atmosphere will change as you go along, from the flat southern coast where it feels like being on the seaside, to the peaks of the northern side reminiscent of the Alps. Some tree-lined roads that run a few meters from the water are so scenographic that have been used multiple times for movie shootings and TV commercials.

6. Sailing

7. Go Hiking

The area around the lake, with its hills and mountains, is ideal for hiking and walking enthusiasts, enriched by the pleasure of admiring the view of the lake seen from above. From Malcesine you can also take the cable car that in a few minutes will take you to the top of Mount Baldo which with its 2200 m is the highest mountain in the province of Verona. There are numerous signposted paths to follow, huts and refuges where you can take a rest and have a drink or something to eat. In winter the peaks are covered with snow and it is possible to ski while admiring the lake below.
For the more daredevils from Prada di Monte Baldo you can practice paragliding all the way down to a platform specially installed on the water of the lake.
From Peschiera to Garda (about 20 km - 12 miles) a footpath winds alongside the water and you can walk it even for short stretches. Ideal for walks with children.

8. Taste Garda Lake Specialties

As long as you are on the lake you must of course try some of its gastronomic specialties. A simple and popular cuisine that mixes the products of the water with those of the surrounding hills and the immediate hinterland. More typical dishes and products are:

1. Tortellini di Valeggio
2. Pike in sauce
3. Grilled lavaret (lake fish)
4. Bigoli with lake sardines
5. Stuffed Duck
6. Carne salà (marinated raw meat)

9. Visit an oil mill and have an olive oil tasting

10. Bird watching

11. Fishing

Pikes, carps, lavarets, perches, tenches, eels, trouts, in the lake there is certainly no shortage of fish and those who practice sport fishing along the coast or the river Mincio. It is necessary to have a regular fishing license.

12. Do a spa treatment

13. Visit a war memorial

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How did lake Garda formed

The continuous process of sliding from north to south of this immense mass of ice shaped the basin of Lake Garda through erosion. At the end of the last glaciation (Würm glaciation) about 10,000 years ago, climate change caused the melting of the ice curtain that covered the north of the Italian peninsula.

Mount Baldo, with its 2,200 metres (7,200 ft), the highest mountain in the province of Verona, managed to soar free of ice during the tens of thousands of years of glaciation. This allowed many plant species to continue their evolution, creating an extraordinary biodiversity.

From north to south the lake is about 50 kilometers (31 miles) long.
At the narrowest point in the north, the width is about 2 kilometers (1,2 miles), while the widest point in the south is about 17 kilometers (10 miles).
The depth is about 350 meters (1,150 ft) in front of Torri del Benaco.

Climate

he large mass of water of Lake Garda acts as a thermal flywheel, accumulating heat during the summer and slowly releasing it during the winter and vice versa. This creates a mild micro-climate all year round, with cool, windy summers and winters whose minimum temperatures are constantly above zero despite the latitude. This allows the growth of a typically Mediterranean vegetation with olive trees, palms, bougainvillea and even citrus fruits that were once grown commercially so much so that there is a village called Limone (lemon in Italian), and you can still find lemon trees on some terraced slopes.

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The History

Lake Garda has been inhabited since ancient times. The remains of pile-dwelling settlements have been found in many parts of the coast. Among them those of Desenzano, Manerba, Peschiera, Cisano. As in many of the lakes in Northern Italy, they were part of a complex Neolithic culture dating back more than 5,000 years ago, whose archaeological sites, scattered throughout the Alps and sub-alpine areas, became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011.
Rock carvings have been found on the rocks of some hilly areas of the coast.

Romans

From the 3rd century B.C. the lake was subject to Roman expansion thanks to its strategic position as a link between the mountains and the plain, between east and west. The name of the lake in Roman times was Benacus. Along the south coast ran the important via Gallica that connected Verona and Milan passing through Brescia and dotted with milestones (the ancient "road signs") and mansio (the service stations of the past).
Peschiera, Sirmione, Desenzano became ports and important settlements. In Sirmione and Desenzano were built two of the most important and sumptuous patrician villas in Northern Italy. The one in Sirmione, according to tradition, was the home where the poet Catullus lived. You can take guided tours of both the villa of Sirmione and that of Desenzano with its beautiful mosaics.

Barbarian Invasions and the Middle Ages

During the barbarian invasions the lake maintained its importance. Many military structures were built there with watchtowers and fortresses. One of these, on a rocky spur of the east coast, gave the name to the village below and consequently to the whole lake. Warda, in the ancient Germanic languages of Goths and Longobards, means "guard post", "watchtower" and from there would later derive the term Garda.
In 951 Adelaide of Burgundy widow of Lotario king of Italy, was locked in the fortress of Garda by Berengario II. Berengario, self-proclaimed king of Italy, wanted Adelaide to marry his son Alberto, thus legitimizing his reign. When Adelaide refused, he imprisoned her. She escaped and married Otto I, King of Germany.

The Age of state town (Comuni)

During the Middle Ages some of the small fishing villages that dotted the shore of the lake managed to achieve a certain degree of independence.
Lazise, in 983 A.D. obtained from the Holy Roman Emperor Otto II, the right to build a fortified wall, to exercise fishing rights in some areas of the lake and to impose taxes autonomously. This makes Lazise the first Libero Comune (independent state town) in the history of Italy.

The Scala family age

With the establishment of the seigniory in Verona, the eastern and southern coast of Lake Garda gradually entered the sphere of control of the Scala family, lords of Verona. For the Scala family the lake had a fundamental strategic role and they equipped it with imposing castles: Valeggio sul Mincio, Sirmione, Peschiera, Lazise, Bardolino, Torri del Benaco, Malcesine. Some of these ancient manors are in an excellent state of conservation and can be the object of guided tours.

Venetians

ith 1404 all the old territories of the Scala family, including Lake Garda, became part of the Republic of Venice. They remained here for the next 400 years.

In 1438 and 1439 the lake was the scene of one of the most incredible naval feats. In order to effectively fight the Visconti of Milan who had taken possession of the west coast, the Venetians transported thirty warships from the Adriatic sea to Lake Garda, sailing up the Adige river and crossing the mountains to the north on wooden rollers. After an initial defeat, in 1440 the Venetians managed to take total control of the lake.

Napoleon and Unification Wars

With the arrival of Napoleon and the consequent upheaval of the geopolitical order of Europe and northern Italy, Lake Garda often found itself at the center of wars and dramatic events.
Rivoli, Borghetto, Valeggio, are places of battles and daring escapes of Napoleon and his army.
With the restoration of 1815 the lake and the whole of Lombardy-Veneto region came under the control of the Hapsburg Empire. The situation of apparent stability did not last long, however, as the lake became once again a friction line between the Austrians and Savoia family during the Wars for the Unification of Italy. Peschiera, Pastrengo, San Martino, Solferino, Castelnuovo were the scene of bloody battles during a war that ended with the annexation of Veneto to the Kingdom of Italy.
In Solferino, in the hinterland of Lake Garda, just after the massacres of the Wars of Independence, the Red Cross was born. In San Martino and Custoza you will find monuments and memorials.

The World Wars

The northern end of Lake Garda, belonging to the Trentino region, remained Austrian even after 1866 and was part of those territories for the annexation of which Italy entered the First World War. Many villages on the lake were bombed on both sides, Italian and Austrian.
With the end of World War I, Gabriele D'Annunzio, who had been one of the protagonists with his spectacular exploits, retired to his villa-museum near Gardone: the Vittoriale degli Italiani, which, together with its amazing park, is still open to the public and where it is possible to take guided tours.
Many historians see D'Annunzio as a precursor of the political movements that led to the rise of Fascism and Mussolini.
After 1943 the lake became sadly known during the Italian civil war because Salò, a pleasant town on the west coast, was the capital of the Italian Social Republic, a puppet state controlled by the Germans in the last, convulsive phases of the World War.

Modern Age

After World War II, the lake gradually changed its economy, originally limited to pure subsistence with agriculture and fishing, towards tourism, becoming one of the most organized and flourishing international holiday destinations.
The humble fishing villages were transformed into charming places of fun and relaxation with hotels, restaurants, bars, discos that still characterize the area.

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