If I had to go for 6 days in Lake Garda what is the best town I can stay in with regards to public transport, scenary and day trips, is it Sirmione, Malcesine, Garda or Bardolino. Also how possi
If I had to go for 6 days in Lake Garda what is the best town I can stay in with regards to public transport, scenary and day trips, is it Sirmione, Malcesine, Garda or Bardolino. Also how possible is it to visit the Dolomite from Lake Garda, are there some direct buses or may be Tour Agencies that offer these excursions? I need to be somewhere relaxed picturesque with nice scenary and mountain views, but easy to get to other towns using public transport..I will fly into Milan and take train to Desenzano.
You will not get any mountain views near Sirmione or anywhere on the south end of the lake. Southern Garda is broad, flat and boring scenically. It gets progressively more dramatic as the lake narrows to the north. My favorite town on the lake is Riva at the extreme north end, but it is not the easiest to get to. The best way to day trip on the lake is by boat. You have only two transportation options on Garda - the boats (which are fun, but take a long time) and the bus, which can also take a long time because the lake road can get backed up. Still, I would choose the north end. Of the towns you mention I would choose Malcesine - very pleasant, overlooked by a castle and has a cable car up the mountain. The advantage of the south of the lake is that you are nearer the train line. It is possible to take the bus from Riva to Trento if that's helpful to you.
Will there be taxis from Desenzano to Riva del Garda or to Malcesine...do you think Riva is too far for example to go to Gardaland, or may be a other towns?
It's much too far to taxi up the lake from Desenzano to either Malcesine or Riva. I think it would be prohibitively expensive. Better to take one of the faster hydrofoils, but they are not always conveniently timed and will still take over an hour and a half to go the length of the lake (from memory). Gardaland is at the south end of the lake, so if that's important you may want to base to the south. Gardaland is an amusement park so unless you have kids I don't recommend it. For me the most magical attraction on the lake is Il Vittoriale in Gardone - be sure to walk the garden paths. Nearly every town on the lake shore can be visited by boat. You just have to keep in mind that it takes a while. Garda is actually larger than lago Maggiore. It is Italy's great lake so travel times can be long on the slower boats.
I will be staying in Peschiera Del Garda, just booked everything. Do you have any idea how can I do a day trip to the Dolomite Surroundings, or whether there are some private tours?
At any time of year, the weather in Peschiera del Garda can be very different from the weather in the Dolomiti. If it is rainy or cloudy in the Dolomiti, it is not worth the time to go there because clouds will make it impossible to see the mountains. So if you plan to go, check to make sure the weather forecast in the morning says it will be clear in the mountains.
I enjoyed my stay of a few nights in Peschiera del Garda, which is sweet-natured town with a long history, and of course now is famous for Gardaland. I stayed rather far from the train station and Gardaland, but I could walk to the ferry docks, and I enjoyed going to Bardolino, which has a pretty church, plus its famous wine.
In addition to using boats to visit other towns on the lake, there are many places that are less than an hour away by train: Verona, Vicenza, Padova and Venice. In the other direction, I understand that the Santa Giulia Museum in Brescia is wonderful, and that Brescia has interesting Roman ruins, but I've never been.
