TR-15 night late spring trip to Torino, Gargnano (Lake Garda), and Milan (no photos)

I returned from a wonderful 15-night trip to Torino (5 nights), Gargnano on magical Lake Garda (8 nights), and Milan (2 nights) in late May. I just now found the time to write a TR. I don’t take photos aside from one or two personal ones that might land on my holiday card (strange, I know). Nonetheless I hope some of the details that I provide about logistics, “vibe” and how I spent my time, and where I ate might be helpful to some here.

Background on trip

The trip to Lake Garda was very hastily planned. It came about after I learned with only two weeks notice that I would be in Torino for work and then in Milan, also for work. I had 8 days in between these two cities on my own dime—a great problem to have. Complicating things further, the two weeks I had to plan my 8 nights were extremely busy ones at work, so I couldn’t take a deep dive into my usual obsessive research. I did what I could in the time I had by rapidly reviewing numerous TRs and throwing myself on the mercy and insight of folks on the Fodors and the TA forums. I’d long wanted to spend more time in the Italian Lake district, having only visited Lake Como (using Bellagio as a base) and Lake Bolsena previously.

I’d been to Torino several times and have always loved it. I agree with everyone who says that Torino is one of the loveliest, most underrated cities in Italy. Milan I’d only transited through, and so I was excited to have two late afternoons/evenings to run around the city as much as possible since my days were occupied with meetings.

In terms of the 8 nights, my goal was to base in one northern Italian lake town for the entire time; hike daily (for somewhere between 3 and 4 hours); and enjoy a beautiful, quiet, scenic, relatively untouristed town. I also wanted to base in a lake town that was more likely to be frequented at that time of year by Italian tourists since I enjoy using my mid-level Italian. I wasn’t interested in doing much, if any, town-to-town hopping by ferry; I wasn’t interested in shopping; and I really did not want to be around crowds.

I initially wasn’t going to rent a car. I don’t drive at all. I travel mostly alone and use public transportation and private drivers. (The latter only when necessary for transfers that would otherwise be too much of a hassle by public transport.) When DH joins it is the same as he prefers not to drive. He ultimately decided that he would join the trip and that he was willing to drive in the lake area once we learned about the tradeoffs of not having a car for the lake town base we’d selected. Renting a car BTW was fine and it was far less of a hassle than we’d envisioned.

Lake base selection

Gargnano on Lake Garda was suggested to me as a perfect fit, given my preferences by TA’s marvelous, exceedingly generous Vagabonda. She was exactly right. We cannot wait to return there—hopefully in spring 2026 or 2027. Vagabonda convinced us to rent a car for the Gargnano portion of the trip because quite a few (though not all of) the hikes we might want to undertake didn’t originate in town and we’d miss the chance to do some really special, longer treks in the national park without being able to drive to another village to pick up the trailhead. Many thanks again to Vagabonda and others on TA and Fodors for helping me in a rushed state to plan this trip through a combination of direct responses to me or through the many TRs I speed read.

In what follows, please find a TR focused on logistics, dining, natural beauty, walking, and lodging.

Torino (5 nights, mostly work but some good meals, park walking, and people watching)

I have little to say other than the fact that I have always loved Torino and continue to love it. I would be so pleased someday to spend a fall or spring in this elegant, interesting, and uncrowded city. Many here may not know it (and it may matter to very few), but Torino is a center of swing dance culture in Italy. It’s a style of dance, e.g., the Lindy Hop, that originated in the 1940s in the US. The GIs brought it to Italy and it never left some of the cities. During this trip I was unable to stay out late enough to go dancing (as it starts far later in Italy than in the US) because I had early morning commitments every morning in Torino.

Lodging: NH Collection Torino Piazza Carlina

I’ve always been put up in fairly “meh” hotels in Torino. I’ve moved away from renting apartments in recent years. For this trip, I wanted a really beautiful hotel, well located in the historic center, a great staff, and someone at the front desk 24/7. The latter is always a must for me as a woman usually traveling on my own. My favorite kind of hotel when in Europe is in an historic structure, but beautifully renovated and made to feel modern on the inside while preserving the historic character of the building. I don’t like hotels that feel to me “fusty” or cluttered and where the public spaces are beautiful and full of character, but the guestrooms feel like they need a big refresh and the plumbing is funky. I also love family run B&Bs where the family is on site.

After some research, I found the NH Collection Torino Piazza Carlina and reserved a Premium Room with a View. (Based on reviews, I requested a higher floor room with a view of Piazza Carlina, though I imagine that the other “view rooms” with a view of Mole Antonelliana are also lovely.) I had (even by US standards) a huge room. It was also a beautiful, uncluttered room and the hotel was exactly what I was looking for in all respects. I will stay there again during any future trips. The breakfast BTW was outstanding and served in a gorgeous space with indoor and outdoor seating options. Piazza Carlina itself is lovely, illuminated by beautiful, colorful streetlights, full of young people out on warm nights (but on my higher floor room it was quiet), and there is a great gelataria across the street and diagonal from the hotel. I neglected to note its name. But I went there many times. In addition to the usuals, they have many unusual, more artisanal flavors.

I didn’t have much time on my own in Torino. But when I did, I roamed the lovely historic center and I spent a good deal of the free time I had in Valentino Park. Park walking and people watching in European cities is one of my favorite ways to pass the time when traveling. Valentino Park is vast and gorgeous. There are lovely sculpture installations there. I also took a walk up to the Hermitage one afternoon so I could enjoy the big view and get in some uphill walking.

Dining:

Torino is of course a great eating city. The region is a bit meat heavy for me, so I am always in search of fish and vegetable options (though certainly I indulged in and enjoyed meat-filled plin and beef in tuna sauce).

My favorite restaurant for dinner in Torino is Scannabue. Indeed, I ate there twice. The first time I had a tasting menu; the second time I went a la carte and mostly ordered fish and vegetable options. Both meals were incredible, and they were the best dinners I had in the city. The service and atmosphere is lovely. Other dinners that I enjoyed were at Taverna dell’Oca (I ate an a la carte meal—starting with a sou vide egg with asparagus; plin in a sort of meat a jus, and a rabbit roulade filled with sausage and greens) and Contesto Alementare (the latter a Katie Parla recommendation). Both were certainly good (and I enjoyed the atmosphere at dell’Oca especially), though neither were at the level of Scannabue.

I had lunch twice at Pepperino in the historic center. It’s a small pizzeria with a few branches in northern Italy. They make several very special doughs and it was the doughs and the availability of a substantial salad that drew me back for a second lunch. One day I had a pizza on a 9 grain, artisanal dough (a mix of grains such as amaranth, millet, and some other grains-delicious, chewy, full of flavor and texture) and upon my return I had the black dough pizza (its dough was comprised of toasted coconut shells, carbon, and some other things that I’m forgetting—it was actually a beautiful, dark blue-black dough with a great smoky, complex flavor). I loved it—the black dough pizza was the pizza you could imagine if a volcano were to spontaneously pop out a pizza. Lots of terrific topping options—some traditional, some with a twist. They also have quite a nice selection of non-half hearted large salads (by which I mean salads that aren’t just a bowl of arugula with a bit of corn and carrot shavings), which is a plus for me and really not easy to find in this region.

Lake Garda(8 nights of a blissful, quiet vacation full of hiking, lake gazing, and natural beauty)

I’ve described above what we were looking for in a lake town base and how that base came to be Gargnano. I can’t emphasize enough how perfect this location was for us in terms of all of the parameters and preferences I described above.

Car rental:

As I noted above, we took what for us is the rare step of renting a car. I priced various open jaw rental options and ultimately settled on a R/T rental from Brecia city center. (We were picking up the car on a Sunday and so that limited the options. Also, we preferred not to pick up/drop off at an airport. And both of us are very risk averse and inexperienced with renting cars in Europe. Therefore, we wanted to stay with the rental companies that were deemed to have the lowest hassle risk on some marvelous TA-posted guides to renting cars in Italy and companies that get frequent mention in Fodors TRs. We got the smallest car that we could rent from Europcar; reserved the car through Orbitz (an automatic transmission); we did not rent the GPS since we had int’l plans on our Verizon cell phones (and so used Google maps for navigation); and, as I said, picked up and dropped off the car in downtown Brecia. We took the train from Torino to Brecia; at the end of our trip took the train from Brecia to Milan. The train station in Brecia was a 3 minute walk from the rental car office. DH got an Int’l Driving Permit from AAA before we left the US; we took the full collision insurance; and studied up on Italian toll roads, road signs, and ZTLs, thanks to some great info on driving in Italy in TA.

Lodging:

We stayed at the gorgeous Villa Giulia. It was one of the most perfect lodging experiences I’ve ever had. The villa (there are actually three buildings on the grounds-we stayed in the original “manor” building) is like something out of a dream. It’s full of big gorgeous indoor and outdoor public spaces offering sun, shade, lake and mountain views, gardens, lemon and kumquat trees; it’s right on the lake; it’s a very short, lovely walk into town; and the villa has the world’s best staff and the most responsive owner you could imagine. Breakfast every morning was served right on the lake (so close that a few times we had to move back our table when the water was choppy); the house-made very chunky lemon marmalade was unbelievably good, and I’m still thinking about it; and breakfast was a mix of cold items from a buffet and made to order hot and cold items (re the latter my favorite was the smoked trout). The food was beautifully presented. There is a beautiful outdoor pool and a spa (re the latter: we did not have any treatments, but did look at the spa). Yes, it was a real splurge for us to stay there. But very much worth it.

Noting that there are a few odd reviews of the property online. I find them completely unfathomable and simply cannot imagine the circumstances that led those few people to write what they did. The owner (and all the staff) were so helpful to us, even giving us granular advice about various hiking trails (e.g., warning us about slippery conditions at a few stretches, difficult to find turns, etc.), restaurants, and the work of a sculptor of fischietti, Mariano Fuga, who works in Gargnano. We saw his work both at Villa Guilia and at the Heller Gardens (more on the gardens below). Fischietti all feature hidden whistles in strangely proportioned figures (they have a sort of “ugly beautiful” quality). At our request, the owner even arranged for us to visit his studio, which was both an honor and great fun. We had a great chat with Fuga about his work. We bought a very small piece for our fireplace mantel, which thankfully made it home on the flight in one piece.

Hikes we did and loved:

The hotel had wonderful hiking guides for many trails. The tourist office also had a lot of information on hiking. The hikes we did included: Montegargnano (trail #2 as described on an itinerary of the commune di Gargnano); Hermitage of San Valentino; Cima Comer; La Toscana del lago (trail #3); Limonaie di Gargnano (trail #1); part of the Denervo hike (#5); the walk of D. H. Lawrence (he lived in the town for a bit); and the Santelle Tour. (And noting for my own future reference--next time we’d like to try (among others) the Muslone-Piovere trail (trail #4) and finish the Denervo trail)).

Day trip:

We took only one day trip from Gargnano, involving taking the public ferry to another town (Gardone). Perhaps in the future we will take additional trips. But we got so wrapped up in hiking every day, having a late lunch in town on the water, and then lounging or reading at our lodging until a cocktail and then dinner that we just didn’t want to leave to go anywhere else.

The one trip to Gardone was both to experience the ferry (easy and scenic) and to walk through the Heller Garden (a botanic garden completely packed with the most amazing collection of sculptures). In the future, we’d like to take a day trip to Isola del Garda and return to Gardone to visit the poet, Gabriele D’Annunzio’s villa and gardens. Noting that the town of Gardone itself didn’t overly impress us.

Dining:

The two restaurants that we enjoyed most for dinners were La Minghla and Casa Caseri. The former is tiny and on a charming alley with a side view of the lake. We felt fortunate to land one of the six tables on two evenings (once indoors, once outdoors). Clearly in high season one would have to book far ahead. We loved it so much that we wanted to book a third dinner there, but couldn’t get a table. Both meals were perfect in every respect (we always shared two appetizers-they have some really lovely ones; shared a wonderful fresh pasta starter—the favorite was a rabbit filled cannelloni; we each had our own fish entrée—favorite was a miso cod in a wonderful broth; and we shared a dessert). The young couple who own the restaurant (the wife hosts and serves, the husband is the chef) are absolutely lovely. We chatted with them for a while about some of the ingredients they used in really novel ways. One especially tasty starter featured anchovies with freshly baked, delicious bread served with a preserved lemon butter. (Note to self to make that butter. And when chatting with the chef he mentioned that the likes to use preserved lemons on roasted chicken. I have to try that, too.)

Casa Caseri is also wonderful. It’s right on the water and we enjoyed dining outdoors both times. I was suspicious at first that the food would be mediocre because the location was so wonderful and atmospheric. Wrong. We ended up returning a second night because we so enjoyed our meal and our chats with two lovely servers were delightful. Favorite starters: a baccalá mantecato and a great, inventive mixed vegetable starter; favorite pasta was a very light, lemony pesto (I’ve never thought of lemon in pesto-it was brilliant); and we tried several fish mains. all were terrific and the staff were absolute delights.

Ristorante San Martino is a beautiful restaurant with amazing views and gorgeous interior. The service was excellent. But the food was not of memorable quality and we wouldn’t dine there again. There was one interesting thing that we enjoyed a great deal and that was a smoked olive oil that was served with great bread.

A few nights when we were tired from hiking or tired of eating big meals on the later side, we went for simple light, early suppers on the lake at Ristorante da Sandro (for roast chicken, potatoes, and salad), Pizzeria al Lago, and one night we had a picnic by the lake with takeout from the marvelous shop, Fratelli Bignotti Gargnano. The latter has a vast array of prepared hot and cold foods, savory pastries, frittatas, cured meats, cheeses, along with uncooked meats of various types. We also bought makings of several lunches for our hikes at the shop.

We enjoyed a few port side simple lunches of large salads (insalatone) with hardboiled eggs and tuna at Bar osteria al porto in Villa Gargnano.It was nice to ratchet back on carbs at lunch so we could enjoy a pasta starter every evening.

Gelato:

The gelato question is always an important one in Italy. We absolutely loved Alberto’s and went there every day after sampling mediocre gelato elsewhere. As a person who loves tart and bitter tastes, I fell in love with their bitter orange sorbetto and had it every day, usually with some other delicious flavor. I also loved sharing their massive pistachio tartufo (a ball of wonderful pistachio gelato covered in a crunchy not-to-sweet pistachio shell and topped with bits of pistachio). We were sharing the tartufo on a lakeside bench and a small group of people out for a stroll came up to us and said “we must have that, where did you get it.”.

Milan (2 nights, mostly work with a little late afternoon/evening exploring)

Lodging:

Hotel Spadari al duomo was perfect. Well located, great staff, lovely room and public spaces, great breakfast (with an expansive, attractive buffet with anything one could want and also some made to order eggs), and some free snacks in the room (with more variety of free snacks in the lobby), and free soft drinks and juices in the room fridge. We had a very early departure for Linate and the staff packed us (without our requesting anything) a very expansive to go breakfast bag. I requested a courtyard facing view because I wanted an especially quiet room and I was also told when booking that these rooms had bigger, walk in showers. The hotel had the amazing Pecks market on one side and the Ciaccocafé/gelateria on the other side. I absolutely loved the amaro gelato. (I had tried to stay at the Hotel Gran Duca di York, which is at a somewhat lower price point than Spadari. But there was no availability. I’d happily stay at Spadari again if I wanted to be in the historic center. However, as noted below, if I am able to return I’m inclined to stay in Brera or Porta Nuova.)

Sightseeing and neighborhood and park strolls:

I reserved a late day duomo with terrace skip-the-line tickets and enjoyed especially the view from the terraces (and took a small detour to the lovely Guastalla Gardens). I’ve seen numerous photos of Milan’s amazing duomo and especially of the terraces. But the in real life experience really stunned me. I walked around the Castello Sforzesco (but didn’t go in) and took an early evening walk in the Parco Sempione. I did a quick walk through the Porta Genova and Navigli neighborhoods. I didn’t find Parco Sempione, Porta Genova, and Navigli especially memorable, at least compared to other big city experiences I’ve had elsewhere in Italy. If I were younger, I am sure I would have found Navigli exciting.

I really enjoyed the Brera neighborhood and this is where I would stay in the future when I can stay in the city for more than 2 two nights. I also walked through the Porta Venezia neighborhood. I didn’t love the neighborhood itself, but I absolutely loved the Indro Montanelli Gardens in the neighborhood (indeed, in some ways it reminded me of the Villa Borghese Park in Rome, which is a favorite of mine). It was simply a gorgeous park.

And finally in keeping with my theme of walking neighborhoods and parks, I walked in the Porta Nuova neighborhood. As with Brera, I also loved the feel of the Porta Nuova neighborhood and would also consider staying in during a future visit. In Porta Nuova I so much enjoyed the Bosco Verticale and the Biblioteca degli Alberi. What marvelous green spaces.

Dining:

I didn’t have any especially memorable meals in Milan. But that was my own fault because I opted to grab a quick pizza one night at a random place and one night had a few things (delicious, but hurried) at Pecks since I wanted to use my limited free time in the city for as much “flaneuring” as possible. Also, by this point in the trip (though it seems weird for me to say it), I was tired of restaurants and big meals.

Shopping and browsing:

I had a goal of shopping at Midinette, a retro-inspired women’s clothing store selling new clothes at quite reasonable prices for the quality and beauty. This was to level up my swing dance wardrobe. The store did not disappoint!

I also walked through a few consignment shops that I just happened upon in Brera. I neglected to note their names. The prices were sky high (though I’m sure a fraction of the cost of couture). It was fun just looking at the clothing—almost like being in a museum of fashion.

Miscellaneous observation:

I didn’t get the impression that I would love Milan on the level on which I love other Italian cities had I had a longer time there and had I not been working for most of my short time there. Obviously, I had very little time to explore the city during this trip. However, I do want to return. There were several museums and galleries that had modern art exhibits that I really wanted to see. But I couldn’t. So, I can imagine returning for a modern art focused visit. I also would like to wander some more in the neighborhoods that interested me, return to the parks I loved and, if lucky enough, go to the opera. As a few others have noted here, the city was simply inundated with people of all ages with way above average beauty. I saw more fashionable people than I’ve ever seen in one city. It was humbling to see people so well turned out, even when they were just wearing jeans and sneakers.

Many thanks to all who helped directly or indirectly with the rapid fire planning of this wonderful trip. Writing this TR makes me wish I could return to Italy very soon. I’ll never tire of visiting favorite places there and exploring new spots.

Hi, stundenttobe! I will read this thoroughly and savor later, just writing to say you know I love Torino, the NH Piazza Carlina, Contesto Alimentare, and Scannabue. So we are on the same wavelength. I also like Milan quite a bit, but I agree that it lends itself to a focused visit (i.e., "I want to go to Milan to see XYZ exhibition at the Fondazione Prada," etc.). Torino is a great hangout city.

Headed off to Italy day after tomorrow, will be renting a car. It's been two years since I have driven in that country, so I appreciate that it was low-stress for you and your partner.

Here are some photos of the hotel, restaurant & city so you cannot say "no photos" in your title.



View from room - perhaps yours was similar?




Elegant, relaxed Torino.

I was Googling pistachio tartufo long before I reached the end of this report.
Oh..my.. yes, please.

Enjoyed your thoughts on these destinations.

Great trip report!

Re Turin, we are going there for a week later this year and considered the NH you stayed at but found a great rate on a suite at the Principi di Piemonte so booked with them. Did you consider staying there? And did you pass by it while you were in Turin? We will definitely try the restaurants you recommend, esp Scannabue..

I am a Milan fan and try to get there at least once every year. First, because it's easy for me to catch a train that goes straight to Milan (or take the IC to Lugano and then head to Milan on the regional train, which is also Swiss run). Second, because I worked for a while with a Milan-based company and traveled there frequently.

We were going to stop by Lake Garda for only two days but after being there only a day we kept begging our hotel to extend our stay. Unexpected beauty, enjoyment and value. We wanted to stop somewhere on our journey from St. Moritz to Milan and Garda seemed more interesting than the traditional Como. Lucky us! We were going to spend some time in Milan but ended up at Garda instead. No brainer.

Thanks, all!

Leely2: Indeed, our tastes really track. Thanks for attaching the photos and saving me from a photoless report. Indeed, you captured the lovely room view, street vibe, and the uncluttered, contemporary room very well. And, as you know, the lights of Piazza Carlina are just so lovely at night. Most importantly: that delicious braised beef on potato puree sitting on a perfect Barolo sauce--I can taste it now. That was course three on the four course (and reasonably priced) tasting menu at Scannabue. Makes my upcoming desk lunch seem uninspired indeed. Hope your upcoming trip to Italy is a great one (where are you going?, if you don't mind my asking). I recall that you took your mom on a special three stop Italian city trip this fall, which was a lovely thing to do. And great point on Milan-I do hope to return for a focused trip around modern art, parks, and immersion in one of the two residential neighborhoods that really appealed to me.

wildiowa: I get it! I'd go back to Lake Garda in a heartbeat. Glad you also loved your time there.

Adelaidean: understood on the tartufo--I could go for one now!

WeiserTee: Wonderful that you'll be in Torino. Indeed, I did look at Principi di Piemonte, but it had no availability in my price range during my last minute arranged trip. I don't recall walking past it, but when I look at it on google maps it seems I must have. It looks wonderful and how great that you scored a great rate on a suite. I bet it will be marvelous. Great to get your perspective on Milan. I do hope I can return and experience more of the city. I love that you can do quick getaways there and already have a background in the city. That makes such a difference..

Thanks so much for taking the time to write this great, very informative, trip report.
Torino is on our itinerary for spring 2026. We've never been and this report is making me excited that we've chosen to go. I also really appreciate the hotel recommendations since your criteria for picking a hotel closely matches mine.

Thanks so much for posting. Looks like I need to add Torino to my ever-growing list of places to visit.

Architetta and Melnq8: thanks so much for the feedback. Glad architetta is planning a visit to wonderful Torino and understood, Melnq8, re the ever growing list. Mine seems infinite at this point.

Just a quick note. Thanks for the report, first of all.

We spent just 2 nights in Turin, at the "other" NH Hotel, Torino Santo Stefano. It's a lovely hotel, but the area was not to my liking, many homeless and a high police presence within a short distance. Thanks for the reco for the sister hotel. We hope to go back to Piemonte soon and include time in Turin, and also go north to the mountains.

Lake Garda seems like a really good option for an add on to that trip.

Really good to know, natylou. I will definitely not put that other NH on my backup list if the one I stayed out is unavailable during any future trips. Agreed on Lake Garda--hope you can get there at some point.

Thank you studenttobe for this TR. We have quite a similar trip planned for 2026, so your insights are much appreciated. I’ll be posting my own questions on this forum, but you’ve already answered a couple of questions for me regarding Milan and Torino. Thanks for taking the time to write a report. 😊

Most welcome, JoanYUL-glad to help!