Northern Italy Lake region

Since you are in Venice (and eventually flying back from Venice), and intend to also visit Verona, then Lake Garda makes the most sense. The others would require additional travel time since they are farther away.
Lake Garda is the largest lake in Italy and is very long. My favorite part is the northern side of the lake. The train (if you travel by train) however stops only in the south (Peschiera and Desenzano) along the Venice-Milan line. I have always had a car at the lakes, but there are buses and ferries that criss cross the area.
On the northern lake I recommend, Malcesine or Riva or Limone (which is smaller), however any town upthere is nice. Peschiera and Desenzano (in the south) are the larger towns on the lake. They are the boat transport hub, so you can stay there if you want. Malcesine and Riva can be reached by frequent buses directly from Verona (at the train station). If you intend to take trips to the nearby majestic Dolomites mountains, I recommend renting a car (you can do so in Venice at Piazzale Roma). Driving in the mountains is not hard. Just take a drive along the Road to Hana in Maui for practice a few times, and you'll be fine.
In your shoes I would in fact rent a car in Venice and drive to the lake Garda, simply because I like that flexibility of having a car when I visit outside of big cities (where cars aren't needed). But that is up to you, since I know Americans don't like to drive in Europe, even though they can't detach their arses from their cars when they are in America (go figure!).

Thank you for such a quick reply. I should have been more detailed. This is the middle of a trip that will conclude with a week in southern Germany. We will have five nights after we leave Venice before taking the train through Switzerland. Verona was just a passing thought. Driving would not be a problem.

Lago di Garda is still good, but perhaps you should look at train connections to Switzerland to help make your decision. From Lago di Como I have taken the train to Switzerland several times.

We have been looking into that and we think you may have a good point.

Lake Garda. Look into Riva del Garda which is at the north of the lake, about halfway between Verona and the Austrian border. Perfect for seeing en route from Verona and on the way to Munich. It's beautiful - the mountain and lake panoramas are gorgeous - and while you are there, there is quite a bit to see and do. We spent three days there without car, and found it relaxing and engaging.

Be aware that Riva del Garda has two parts to the town - one (the west part) is directly on the water with the town center and nice hotels. Very beautiful. The other, eastern, section of the town is not as advisable - you're in a jungle of hotels and lots of tourists with no direct water access.

kk,

One thought to add is that getting around Lago di Garda without a car will not be as easy as some of the other lakes. Riva, Limone and Malcesine at the north end are basically only accessible by Bus, boat or car. Only Peschiera and Desenzano at the south end have rail access. If you're intent on staying at Lago di Garda, I'd suggest using Peschiera for a home base as transportation options are good.

If you'd like to consider Lago di Como or Lago Maggiore, I can offer a few suggestions there.

Aloha Ken
As it turns out, we have selected a lake view home in Varenna and we have decide to pick up a car in Lugano since we will be returning it in Zurich. This will save several hundred in drop off costs if we rented in Italy and returned in Switzerland. Besides which, we will be in Milano for a walk around before heading north and the
train to Lugano appears to be easy to do and we will be happy to see that area anyway. We plan to drive around the lake instead of taking the ferry since it appears that it will be quicker and we won't be worrying about getting to our place after dark that way.

So it's four nights in Varenna with a car. We will depart very early on our last morning and drive across the Alps in the morning. We will have come across the Austrian Alps by train to Venice earlier in our trip, so this should give us the benefits of both. From Varenna, it looks easy to just head north and connect with the Swiss HWY 13. Any tips for Varenna appreciated.

kk,

Not sure what type of tips you need on Varenna, but a few that come to mind.....

• You might want to tour the elaborate gardens at Villa Cipressi and Villa Monastero (small charge as I recall).
• I always stop at Al Barilott in the main piazza for lunch and one (or more) glasses of Vino. I've always found the food good and hopefully that hasn't changed. There are often locals dining there, so that's a good sign!
• Take some time in the evening to walk along the promenade that runs between the main part of town and the ferry dock in front of Albergo Olivedo. There are benches there and it's nice to just sit and watch the boats going back and forth.
• I vaguely recall that there's a Falconry or something located above town, but I'd have to go through the guidebook.
• You might enjoy a short day trip to Bellagio. That will likely be quicker by Ferry, as it's only about a 20 minute ride. It's an elegant town, with some nice hotels and shops. Menaggio is also easily accessible.
• There's not much to do in Varenna, so a perfect place to practice the fine art of Il Dolce Far Niente.

Sounds great! That sounds like a plan we would enjoy. We may rent a boat for a few hours and we wondered about whether driving on the shore road for a bit would be nice. I haven't come across many comments about it. Thanks for the restaurant tip. Otherwise, we will be quite happy with the sweet nothing. Thanks for sharing.

kk,

The Al Barilott "restaurant" is more of a small wine bar, but some seating is provided (I usually sit at the bar and visit with the staff). Another place you may enjoy is the restaurant at Albergo Olivedo, which is right in front of the ferry dock. I've always found the food to be good, and if the weather is good they provide outdoor seating as well (nice to watch all the people coming and going from the ferry). Note that they don't open for dinner until 19:00.

If you have more of a "generous budget", you could also consider dinner at either (or both) Albergo Milano or Villa Cipressi. The menus are available online. If you really want to live it up, you could take the ferry across to Bellagio and have dinner at Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni. Perfect for that "special occasion", but it won't be cheap!

All this talk of restaurants is making me hungry!

Since you are staying in Varenna, even though you have decided to rent a car, you might consider taking the public ferry for some day trips as it is beautiful to see cities from the lake as you approach. The ferry ride from Varenna to Bellagio takes only 15 minutes (approx)

Aloha Susan,
We are certainly planning to be on the water some. It's likely we will take the ferry at least a time or two. The car actually helps us most when we are leaving and driving over the Alps, but we needed it since our house is outside the main town area by a mile or so.