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If Lake Maggiore has the primo sights and Lake Como is the postcard prettiest, Lake Garda, largest of the Italian lakes at 143 square miles, is the one with a bit of everything for everybody, from ancient ruins to lakeside promenades, historic villas to tiny villages, and medieval castles to adrenaline sports.
In fact, Garda is the most sporting of the Italian lakes—with some of Europe's best windsurfing up at the lake's north end around Riva del Garda and Torbole—which goes a long way to making it a bit more family friendly than the others (I can tell you that, when I was 12, I dug the peacocks Lake Maggiore's Borromean Islands, but otherwise the lakes were a giant snore)—to say nothing of Gardaland, Italy's greatest theme park. It isn't quite Eurodisney, but can be great fun for the younger kiddies.Lake Garda also has more refined pleasures as well: villas and gardens, Roman ruins and medieval castles. Lake Garda has long been a haven for intellectuals, and counts among its earliest Grand Tour aficionados the likes of DH Lawrence (who lived in Limone for spell), Lord Byron (who loved Desenzano), and Goethe (who spent time in Malcesine)—not to mention the larger-than-life 20th century Italian writer Gabriele d'Annunzio, who built an incredible villa, Il Vittoriale, at Gardone Riviera that ranks among the lake district's most popular destinations.
The castle in Sirmione. (Photo by yilmaz ovunc.)Starting in the 13th century, much of the lake's eastern shores fell under the dominion of Verona's Scaglieri family, who fortified Sirmione (a postcard resort town with Roman ruins as well), Torri del Benaco, and Malcesine (where Goethe was once arrested) with terribly atmospheric medieval castles.
Lake Garda also covers the history of Italy in a nutshell, from Roman villas at Desenzano and Sirmione to medieval castles at Arco, Sirmione, and Malcesine; and from Renaissance art to the fall of Fascism and rise of the Republic. All of which just goes to show: the Italian Lakes are about more than just fun in the sun and pretty vistas.
Garda has an interesting geo-political situation. It actually borders on three very different Italian regions:
For more info:
South & west shore: www.bresciatourism.it and www.rivieradeilimoni.it.
North shore: www.gardatrentino.it
East shore: www.veneto.to and www.tourism.verona.it
The one-day tour (from Viator.com)
Lake Garda & Verona Day Trip from Milan
For western and southern shores in Lombardy (www.bresciatourism.it and www.rivieradeilimoni.it), there are offices at:
For the northern tip in the Trentino (www.gardatrentino.it and www.visittrentino.it), there are offices at:
Verona is the closest major city, and luckily Desenzano del Garda, at the southwestern corner of the lake, is a stop on the main Venice–Milan train line.
If you don't take a tour or have a rental car (recommended), the easiest way is by bus (www.trasportibrescia.it covers the western and southern shores from Desenzano to Riva; www.atv.verona.it covers the eastern shore from Verona to Riva) or—less frequently but far, far more scenically—by boat (www.navigazionelaghi.it).
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For more info:
South & west shore: www.bresciatourism.it and www.rivieradeilimoni.it.
North shore: www.gardatrentino.it
East shore: www.veneto.to and www.tourism.verona.it
Hotels on Lake Garda (Booking)