annhig,

There you go again...getting it all correct! You stated clearly our objectives.

Re: Salo. Many tourists milling about at night, many restaurant choices, the shopping consisted of high quality stores. We did not uses the ferry but saw it docked in center of lakefront area.

There you go again...getting it all correct! You stated clearly our objectives.>>

i_am_kane - perhaps we were separated at birth.

Funny!

Ah, ok, makes sense now that it has been clarified. Your mentioning of the train station made it sound like the train station was a factor.

Improvisor - just leave it to annhig for clarification...she's terrific.

Good to know she's good at something.

Now, now, be nice.

I am also interested in this area. I just started my research and came upon this post. Sounds like Garda will suit our needs well based on Annhig's description. I have a few questions:

What are some of the best town to visit in this area?
Is it easy to use public transportation (ferry/bus) to get around?
We are interested in the thermal baths and would like to visit at least one (maybe two). Any suggestions on which ones?

Thank you

Hi debp,

Public transport [bus and ferry] are super easy especially the boats around the lake. one of the reasons I liked Garda was that you could easily get to either end of the lake for a day trip, and across the lake too, whereas if you stay at either end, getting to the other end in a day and back is pretty hard work.

what the best towns to visit are rather depends on your interests. if you like walking, you might like to head up to Malcesine, and get the cable car up to the top of Monte Baldo; if you like recent[ish] history, you could go across to the Gardone riveria and walk up to the Vittoriala. all of the towns round the lake are interesting in their own ways, which is the fun of getting the boats and exploring.

i can't help you with thermal baths, but google might!

There is a wonderful thermal spa complex in Sirmione, inside and through the centre, on the left near the Cortine Hotel.

Thank you for your help. I will do some research on the different town. So far, I really like what I've seen.