Holiday at Lake Garda, Italy

Lake Garda, Italy

It's not as fashionable as Lake Como but Lake Garda, Italy's largest lake, can give the whole family a true taste of Italy.

Not many destinations can cater for every type of holiday maker: the culture buff, the sports enthusiast, the sunseeker, the gourmand, the adventurer, the idle beach fanatic - and kids.

But Lake Garda, nestled at the foot of the Alps in northern Italy, does go a long way to satisfying everyone.

We family of five, three teen kids - managed to cram in virtually every holiday type on a whirlwind week-long visit to Italy’s biggest lake.

We based ourselves at the four star Parc Hotel Germano in Bardolino on the southern shore of Lake Garda, a touch of modern luxury set back into the hillside with commanding views across the lake.

From there it’s a quick 30km road trip to Verona, 100km to Milan and just 130km to Venice.

The Mediterranean climate here produces a rich vegetation with lemon trees, oleanders and magnolias prominent. And grapes are everywhere - there are over 130 wine producers in the region. You’ll recognise some of the brands, all named after their local towns: Bardolino, Valpolicella and Soave. I popped into Zeni’s winery in Bardolino and stayed for three hours sampling their fare.

The light red wines of Bardolino perfectly complement the local cuisine. With a well- stocked fresh water lake on your doorstep (with 30 diffdrent fish species), it’s not surprising that the food is fish oriented.

We hopped on a ferry from Bardolino across the lake to the small town of Sirmione, nestled at the end of a long thin finger of land that juts into the lake. This was once home to opera diva Maria Callas, and where Formula One legend Michael Schumacher still has a pad. Here is also the remains of a great Roman villa - the "Grotte di Catullo" – alleged home to the first century Roman poet, Catullus. The sulphurous water spring in the town supplies a very active, well equipped, spa complex.

At the Hotel Pace just off Sirmione’s main square, we sat in the shade for an afternoon on the terrace as the water from the lake lapped against the hotel’s own docks, and sampled five exquisite courses of fresh Lake Garda fish complemented with a different local wine for each course. We were sitting so close to the water’s edge that we could hear the waves lapping against the dock’s wooden slats and the clear water meant we could see the fish swim beneath.

The Hotel Pace (Italian for peace) is a quiet oasis in what can be a very busy tourist town. It was a favourite of writers James Joyce and Ezra Pound, who both stayed, and it is reported, did some writing here.

Throughout Lake Garda, there are restaurants for every budge and pallett: classy Michelin starred restaurants, home-style trattorias, rustic farmhouse establishments and cozy wine bars.

To work off the indulgences of the local produce, you can choose from an array of water-based sports – skiing, sailing, windsurfing, swimming – or jog (as I and teen son did), cycle (wife and daughter) or walk around the shore-side path that stretches virtually the whole way around the lake. Summer temperatures here can get into the 30s centigrade, so slap on the suncream and drink lots of water. Best to keep extreme exertion to the early morning or later evening hours.

For the more adventurous, travel to the town of Malcesnie where you can climb the 1750m Monte Baldo peak (No takers on this one - it was just too hot for the exertion needed). Here there are over 11 km of ski slopes of various difficulty for winter sports fans. In summer you can also try various mountain sports, including mountain biking and paragliding.

Feeling even more adventurous? You can get married on the roof of the peak of Malcesnie’s 13th century Castle Scaligeri and treat your guests to a reception at the town’s Michelin starred restaurant Vecchia Malcesine.

However, if you prefer to exercise your brain, the Roman city of Verona is the home to the third largest amphitheatre in Italy seating 25,000 in its 44 tiers of marble seats. The city puts it to good use too. Each summer it hosts a two-month long opera festival. We went to see Aida, staged outside with a capacity audience and a cast of 400 including horses. The 90 Euro cost is high but the elaborate staging is a true modern theatrical spectacle. However, beware. The weather here is unpredictable and summer storms at night are frequent. The festival’s policy is that there will be no refund if the fat lady has started singing, whether it be one minute in or three hours in. And if you're not an opera fan, like our kids? Elton John was playing the arena the week after we left and rock bands are booked frequently.

Verona is also the setting for Romeo and Juliet, and the city claims the story as its own, earmarking a house in a small town-centre square as the 14th century home of Juliet. It has a balcony where lovers can pose for pictures and in the courtyard stands a bronze statue of Juliet baring her breast. Couples who rub Juliet’s left breast will preserve their love forever. But don’t touch her right breast – that brings bad luck. You have been warned.

All the villages around Lake Garda are pretty, with medieval streets preserved and beautifully tended. But they can become crowded. This is a tourist centre for northern Europe and there are lots of Germans, Scandinavians and Dutch who holiday here. Driving can be frustrating with clogged roads and logjams in towns frequent. With whiny impatient kids in the car, it's not a good idea to drive. You'll spend a lot of time in first gear.

So for those who don’t want to travel too much, the many inlets and small stretches of pebble beach along the lakeshore are just the place to lie back, relax and get a tan. We all did this. It's what the locals do at weekends, so go to the lakeside early to book your place - it gets very crowded.

Go Lake Garda:

Travel: By Air to Verona from London and regional airports

Local Dish: Fresh Fish from the lake

Local Drink: Red Wines- Valpollicella, Soave, Bardolino

Language: Italian, English spoken in most establishments

Temperature: Summer - 28C average, but the water temperature stays at a pleasing 19-22C
Winter - 8C, some snow, but conditions ideal for windsurfers

Prices: Simple meal for 2 with wine - £45

More information:

Crystal Lakes www.crystallakes.co.uk; Tel: 0871 230 8180
and Thomson www.thomsonlakes.co.uk; tel: 0871 230 8181
both offer an extensive range of holidays to the Lake Garda region flying from airports around the country.

Hotel Parc Germano Bardolino, Via Gardesana dell'Acqua, Bardolino
Tel. 045 6214011,
www.parchotel.it/ul/garda

Hotel Pace, Piazza Porto Valentino, Sirmione Tel +39 030 9905877 www.pacesirmione.it

Vecchia Malcesine, Malcesnie, Via Pisort, Malcesnie Tel: 045 7400469
www.vecchiamalcesine.com

Arena di Verona: www.arena.it