LAKE GARDA: Immerse yourself in beauty

Jan 5 2008 by Hannah Stephenson, Liverpool Daily Post

Lake Garda works its magic on Hannah Stephenson

DRIVING along the precarious, winding roads and through tunnels cut into the jagged mountains reminded me of a scene from The Italian Job.

But it wasn’t a Mini we were travelling in, the location wasn’t Turin, and Michael Caine was nowhere to be seen.

In fact, we were doing a circuit of Lake Garda, Italy’s largest lake, which lies in the foothills of the Dolomites in the north of the country.

Hollywood star George Clooney may have chosen nearby Lake Como as his summer residence, but Lake Garda, peppered with a mixture of elaborate hotels, pebble beaches and beautiful towns against a stunning mountainous backdrop, has plenty to offer the discerning traveller.

Thankfully, unlike other popular resorts, architects haven’t dug into the spectacular hillside to create holiday apartments or commercial villages.

The scenery varies enormously, from the craggy mountains of the north, to the rich vineyards of the middle reaches and the gentle plains which back the southern shores.

We were staying at Europa Silvella, a pretty campsite near Salo, on the south west of the lake, shaded by olive trees. Figs were also abundant and my children took great delight in picking ripe ones from a tree right next to our mobile home.

Our drive north took us past Salo, through tree-lined roads alongside picturesque towns including Gardone Riviera and Gargnano and, almost at the tip of the lake, to the more commercial town of Limone, where you can hire pedalos, go for a swim, or even catch a car ferry across the lake to Malcesine, also known as the Riviera of Olives, which was loved by many celebrated writers and artists, most notably Goethe.

Many of the campsites around Lake Garda (and there are a lot of them) are situated on the hillside and enjoy stunning views of the lake. We were able to access the lake from our campsite for a swim and to just watch the world go by.

Make sure you have jelly shoes or other water-resistant footwear, though, as the big stones which you have to tackle to get into the water can prove hazardous if you attempt it in bare feet.

Shaped like an axe with its thin shaft pointing upwards, the lake’s longest point is just over 31 miles, while its widest point in the south is around 11 miles.

The Romans had a significant presence in this area. Sirmione, a medieval hamlet in the southern peninsula, was a spa destination in Roman times and even now has thermal springs and impressive Roman ruins at the end of the promontory.

While this historical town has been choked by tourism, if you visit in low season you’ll probably gain more from not having to fight the crowds walking around the ramparts of the 13th- century castle, the Rocca Scaligera, with its swan-filled moat, and visiting the Grotte di Catullo (caves of Catullus), a huge Roman villa on Sirmione’s northern tip which is believed to have belonged to the poet Catullus.

It’s 98 miles around the lake, so you can drive it in a day, although we were keen to explore the many gorgeous villages and towns on its banks. To the north, nearer the mountains, it is windier and narrower, just two miles across at its narrowest point, and that’s where much of the sailing and windsurfing takes place.

Farther south, there’s still a plethora of water-based activities, from water skiing and jet skiing to scuba diving and fishing.

We hired a motor boat from Moniga Del Garda in the south for the day to explore the lakeside towns from the water.

Setting off early morning, we weren’t prepared for hugely choppy waters prompted by the wind, but we went around the Isola di Garda - where you can take a tour through English and Italian gardens and a few rooms of the impressive early 20th-century neo-Gothic-Venetian style villa - and on to the elegant Gardone Riviera, a welcoming town featuring a promenade lined with benches for visitors to sit and relax.

As the water calmed down in the afternoon, we did some exploring in the south, dropping anchor off the pretty beach of Manerba del Garda where we swam off the boat in the crystal clear fresh water before setting off on a much more sedate voyage back to base.

We found the west side of the lake slightly less commercial than the south-east, which houses a variety of theme parks and other tourist attractions, although the east is also home to the stunning lakeside port town of Bardolino, where you can buy a very palatable red wine from grapes grown in vineyards in the region, and Garda, a bustling town with a weekly market.

All in all, the perfect Italian job.

* HANNAH STEPHENSON travelled to Lake Garda courtesy of Keycamp. Twelve nights at Europa Silvella in May, 2008, starts from £297 for two adults, and up to five children staying in a Classic Midi mobile home, accommodation only. Seven nights in August costs from £621.

* FLY-DRIVE packages, rail travel or ferry crossings and overnight stops are available at a supplement. Visit www.keycamp.co.uk or call 0844 406 0319 to make your booking or request a brochure.

Child Friendly

EATING out in Lake Garda is not cheap for families unless you live on shared pizzas.

It is the Cote D'Azur of Italy, so expect to pay accordingly.

We found the Italians extremely child-friendly, the water cleaner than a lot of the Mediterranean, and the ambience stylish but relaxed.

We liked the fact that the theme parks - Gardaland is the biggest and most impressive - are all situated within the same area.

But check your dates - the day we drove to Canevaworld, a water park, was an Italian bank holiday and, by the time we had got through the two-hour traffic jam, the water park was crammed, almost dangerously, to capacity.

Daily Post Travel

IF THIS travel feature has whetted your appetite for a trip to Lake Garda, the Daily Post Travel Service is running an eight-day visit.

Various departures May to July, September and October. Priced from £299, including return flights from Liverpool and Manchester, airport to hotel transfers, seven nights B&B at the El Condor Hotel (upgrades available for a supplement), a tour manager. Further details, tel: 0151 227 5987.