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Base for visiting Lake Garda

Is Verona a good base for visiting Lake Garda on a day trip? Or should I use a different location for a Lake Garda base, and visit Verona on a day trip instead?

Posted by
16086 posts

How many days do you have at your disposal to visit both?
The choice is yours but you need a full day to see Verona, and if you plan to attend the Opera at the Arena you need to spend the night, because the operas end very late, well past midnight.

Posted by
36 posts

We are thinking about 3 total days between Verona and Lake Garda.

Posted by
700 posts

The main sights of Verona can be seen in an hour - there is the bridge, the castle, and the remains of a two story Roman wall. You can skip the Rome/Juliet house as a tourist gimmick, and the amphitheater is very similar to Nimes and Arles. It's very attractive, but I would say that there are some troublesome youth in Verona - hanging out at the cute bridge, and around the train station. We didn't enjoy the restaurants there that much either. So I have mixed feelings about that place. I preferred Bolzano, Merano, and Trento to the north, or Bergamo to the west.

As for Lake Garda - and all of the Italian Lake District cities - they are usually small and cute, and easy to traverse by ferry to other such cities. They tend to be a little more charming more to the west north of Milan but Lake Garda has some nice towns too. Did you consider Sirmione - which can be a bit touristy but a striking castle and other attractions. There are also other nearby towns which are cheaper and nice in a quiet way too.

Posted by
36 posts

Thanks very much. I have considered Sirmione. I'll look into that more.

Posted by
169 posts

Desenzano is a great base for exploring the southern part of Lake Garda, with good ferry connections to towns like Sirmione, Bardolino, Lazise, and Garda.

Posted by
16086 posts

Below is some suggestions for a full day in Verona, assuming you stay at lake Garda and you come by train or bus on a day trip. Obviously you can't attend an opera performance at the Arena in that case because those end well past midnight.

One hour is not even enough to go from the station to the historical city center and back, let alone visit the main sights. If you plan to visit Verona in one hour, I suggest that you forget about it, and don't go at all.

https://thetravelfolk.com/one-day-in-verona-italy/

The best part of Lake Garda is the north lake(the mountainous side), unfortunately the train goes only to the south side (the flat side). If you were planning to see the lake only, I'd suggest Malcesine, or Riva, or Limone, or Torbole, or any town in the north. But from there to Verona it's a bus ride which I think requires a change in Garda (town), so that is almost a couple of hours, when everything is said and done.

Sirmione is pretty (albeit touristy) and on the south side, but not on the train line, therefore you'd need a taxi/bus to the train station in Peschiera. I'd suggest to stay in Peschiera if you plan to take day trips elsewhere (north lake and/or Verona). Peschiera is the main town on the rail line, along with Desenzano, but it is closer to Verona than Desenzano, and it has bus service to the north lake via Garda town. Ferries are also available although from south to north it's a long voyage so you won't have time to visit a lot by ferry. A good strategy is to take the ferry going up, and return by bus, which may run until later in the evening.

Posted by
36 posts

Thanks very much, Roberto. We would definitely spend more than an hour in Verona; we'd make a full day of it if we decided to make a day trip there from Lake Garda.