Lake Garda, Italy’s largest lake, is undoubtedly one of Italy’s most beautiful spots. It’s less expensive than Lake Como and its mountain-ringed horizons offer gorgeous views, pretty villages and a host of vineyards to visit. Its calm waters also make it very popular with families and water sports lovers.

But the beautiful surroundings come at a price. This summer, parts of the lake attracted such large crowds that one town, Sirmione, employed staff to keep people moving on its overcrowded streets after they became gridlocked with tourists. Italy is no stranger to overtourism and its effects, so I wanted to find out if travelling at quieter times of year makes a difference.

Itinerary for 3-4 days in Lake Garda

Day 1 – arrive in Desenzano, walk along the lakefront, enjoy an aperitivo and visit the Roman Villa

Day 2 – take the ferry to Bardolino or Garda on the eastern shore

Day 3 – take the ferry to Sirmione, visit the castle and the Grotte di Catullo di Sirmione

Alternative destinations: you could also visit Peschiera del Garda, take a daytrip to a local vineyard or take a ferry to explore the towns on the western shore of Lake Garda like Limone sul Garda. 

Where to stay on southern Lake Garda

After some research, we settled on Desenzano del Garda as our base for a four-day long weekend in mid-September. Desenzano is the largest town at the southern end of the lake and felt less touristy than the many picturesque small villages which crowd the eastern shore. It also has great transport links to Milan, making it relatively easy to access from either Milan Malpensa, Milan Bergamo or Milan Linate airports. It has a lovely lakeside promenade to stroll, which is especially beautiful at sunrise and sunset. Desenzano also has excellent ferry connections to villages and towns across the lake, from Sirmione and Bardolino all the way up to Riva del Garda in the north. When we arrived on Saturday afternoon, a harvest market was in full swing with local cheese, olives and honey stalls the whole length of the lakefront.

Desenzano has a relaxed vibe in the evening, with many restaurants and bars where you can select a spritz of your choice and enjoy some free snacks for an aperitivo. The local spritz is a Hugo, made with elderflower, but limoncello spritz (made with local lemons) was definitely my favourite.

Where to visit in southern Lake Garda

Sirmione sits on the south-eastern side of Lake Garda and is one of its most-visited villages for good reason. It’s very pretty with a lovely small, moated castle that you can climb for a great view over the village. Keep an eye out for the neon pink crocodile in the castle moat! The centre of the village is pedestrianised, so you can relax as you walk in the footsteps of the great Italian opera singer, Maria Callas, who lived in Sirmione for many years.

You can visit the Grotte di Catullo di Sirmione, the largest Roman villa complex in Northern Italy,  which you’ll find an easy 10-15 mins stroll out of town on the headland. There’s also a thermal spa in Sirmione, although we didn’t have time to check it out during our visit. 

If you want to enjoy Sirmione without the crowds, take one of the first ferries in the morning from Desenzano. By the time we left Sirmione at 11am, there were hundreds of people around!

We also visited Bardolino on a warm September Sunday when the temperature was 29C – unsurprisingly it was packed! There’s less to see here than in Sirmione. The best thing to do in Bardolino is to hire a bike or walk around the lakeshore to Garda village (about 45 mins), which would be a lovely way to spend an afternoon mid-week.

In Desenzano, the Roman Villa in the centre of the town has some interesting mosaics, most of which are under cover for a rainy day!

My favourite places to eat and drink were Santa Pizza in Desenzano which does delicious pizza al padellino (deep pan pizza) and Munus in Bardolino, a courtyard bar which has an extensive winelist and spritz menu (look for the Italian Ape van outside!).

How to get to southern Lake Garda

Fly to Milan Malpensa, then take a train/bus from airport to Milano Centrale station and then a train to Desenzano del Garda.

Fly to Milan Bergamo, then take a Flixbus to Desenzano and other southern towns on Lake Garda.

Fly to Milan Linate, then take the bus to Milano Centrale station and then a train to Desenzano.

Any questions about visiting Lake Garda? Drop me a comment below and I’ll be happy to help!