Getaway: Lake Garda
Heading home after a tour to Cres in Croatia, Phil and Linda Raynor decided to stop off for a few days at beautiful Lake Garda, to enjoy their first visit to Italy
TAKING A SECOND trip to the Croatian island of Cres (Practical Caravan Summer Special 2018) involved me promising my better half (aka Mrs Miggins) a stopover at Lake Garda on our way back to Blighty. So, after eight nights on idyllic Cres, it was time for us to head to pastures new and a stay at Camping Fornella on the western shores of Lake Garda. It was in the delicious-sounding area of San Felice del Benaco, and everything was booked through the Caravan and Motorhome Club. We had said goodbye to our new friends and neighbours the previous evening, and left Camping Slatina a bit like Steve Mcqueen and ‘that’ tunnel. So silent was our departure that we barely disturbed the sleeping security guard at the barrier. But he woke and cheerily waved us on our way, carefully checking his watch to see if we were within the legal departure time. We didn’t encounter another vehicle on our 25-mile journey to the port of Merag. However, we were treated to a spectacular sunrise. So, as our ferry approached, we wondered where all the waiting traffic had come from. Would we fit on the ferry? Miraculously, we were loaded in good order, with some of the cars being told to hang fire. “What a shame they won’t fit on,” observed Mrs Miggins, at which point, the floor was raised and the waiting cars disappeared into the bowels of the ship.
Border crossings
After the brief and calm crossing, our journey was some 280 miles and I had reckoned on seven or so hours to achieve this. Sadly, that increased by an hour as soon as we reached the Croatia/slovenia border, because of the many people wishing to cross when only two officials were on duty. The sat nav was proving to be very good indeed, so much so that the paper maps had now taken a back seat. The next hurdle was dealing with the tolls. Europe drives on the ‘wrong’ side of the road, of course, so their toll booths are also inappropriately situated! This meant Mrs Miggins had to climb down from the car and manually insert the credit card in order for us to progress. We noticed that even folk with left-hand-drive cars had the same problem. Even though they weren’t towing, their arms didn’t extend to 2.89m, either. Thankfully, Mrs Miggins had pressed the right buttons, the barrier went up and she jumped back in the car. Payment was taken without the need for a PIN, which made me think about how diligent I needed to be when the next statement turned up. (Actually, I needn’t have worried).
The roads were good, the temperatures were in the mid-thirties, but there was more traffic than in Germany or Austria. Having never been to Italy and coming from a rural area myself, I was amazed just how much acreage is dedicated to the grape – field upon field, mile after mile. There must be a wine lake somewhere.
Coffee and cake
After an hour or so, we stopped for coffee at a place with a big golden ‘M’ outside. It’s not a chain I use that much nowadays, but I have always enjoyed their coffee. What an eye-opener! Totally different to the branches we’ve visited in the UK: much more choice, freshly baked croissants and a vast array of cakes and chocolate things, which looked delicious. Eventually our turn-off appeared and we headed in a northerly direction up the western side of Lake Garda. By this stage, after negotiating more roundabouts than I ever saw in Milton Keynes or Telford, the immortal words, ‘At the roundabout, take second exit’, were indelibly printed on my memory. At least the views in Italy are great, bordering on spectacular. If only the traffic wasn’t quite so heavy! After what seemed like an eternity (actually, about 40 minutes), we heard ‘At the next roundabout, take first exit’. Hurrah! Soon we were at the entrance to Camping Fornella, along with half a dozen other customers, all eagerly wanting to get to their pitch and looking likely to forget their manners if that didn’t happen now. Calm was immediately restored when we were given directions to our super-pitch (because we’re over 7m). The gate slid back to let us in, while the ‘throng’ at reception were herded in a different direction. This is a large site, with quality facilities, swimming pools, restaurant, café and bar, sports facilities, a shop – and an automatic toilet-cassette cleaning unit (so I thought). Instead, this turned out to be a very modern emptying point, which was adjacent to the motorhome drive-over waste station. On pressing the button to clean what I thought was the cassette, I ended up being drenched – with water squirting out of the ground from all directions! Too late, I realised this was actually an upside-down shower! At least it entertained Mrs Miggins, who was in fits of laughter. Back to our now-set-up caravan in a leafy pitch, sheltered from the sun, surrounded by hedges and bushes, flowers and fauna. Very nice indeed. For the first time in nearly two weeks, we encountered some British campers
and it was good to be able to exchange notes about our travels. A dip in the swimming pool was more than welcome as the temperatures climbed to 37°C. Sadly, the pool closed at 7pm. We ate at the site restaurant, but were not overly impressed. However, what we did find impressive was the quietness of the campsite after curfew. The peace and quiet was shattered in the middle of the night, though, by the loudest thunderstorm we’ve ever encountered. It seemed to be directly over the site and the lightning was spectacular. Strangely, the temperature only dropped a couple of degrees, but it freshened up the air.
Lakes and canals
Garda is a very big lake and we were only able to see a small part of it, but what we saw we liked very much. We caught the ferry to Sirmione, which took 2.5 hours and stopped at five or six villages along the way, and then the fast catamaran back, which was much more direct and only took 40 minutes. Visiting Venice for a day, using the train, turned out be a very long and tiring trip, and pretty expensive, too. If you can book ahead, it will be lighter on your pocket. But Venice was a revelation – simply stunning. However, if you don’t like crowds, Venice might not be for you – it’s extremely busy. I didn’t like the dozens of street vendors in all of the popular tourist spots. Not everyone wants a selfie stick! We saw all of the ‘touristy’ sites by using the vaporettos, which were also very busy. But away from the crowds, it was majestic. We meandered through the deserted back streets, stopping for refreshments at one of the many fine cafés. Historically and architecturally, Venice is a magnificent place – there aren’t enough superlatives in the dictionary to describe it. But I must admit, I was glad to get back on the train, for two reasons. First, I was exhausted, and second, I did find the whole experience a bit ‘Disneyfied’. There is also so much to see, it is difficult to take in all of the incredible splendour set
before your eyes in a short space of time. In fairness, we really needed to spend more time in Venice to do it justice, which we simply didn’t have. I’m now doing some research to plan for a return visit. As a contrast to busy Venice, we spent another day meandering around the less well-known Lake Iseo, which is to the west of Lake Garda. It also has stunning scenery and is much quieter than its more illustrious neighbour. We loved the tranquillity, serenity and beauty of Sirmione early in the morning. Arriving well before the crowds, we could wander around the deserted streets and alleyways, exploring this spectacular peninsula to our hearts’ content.
Watch the world go by
Later, we watched as the shopkeepers opened their shutters, proudly polishing up their marble or stone frontages, ready to impress the hordes of visitors. Ice cream sellers, cafés, the butchers, bakers and candlestick makers, all came alive as we watched from our lakeside coffee table. Even the ‘tourist tat’ sellers seemed to be offering a better quality tat! We hopped on a boat that took us around the peninsula, past the ancient Roman fortress and back via the castle moat. We saw the house where opera diva Maria Callas once lived, then marvelled at the little church we found tucked away on one of the back streets, and the stoneclad buildings covered in bougainvillea. This is a gem of a place, but by midday, it’s very busy, so it was time for lunch and then a swift exit, to return to the comfort of the caravan for an afternoon nap. There are hundreds of great cafés, bars and restaurants along the lake, and it would have been a sin not to try the pasta or pizza while we were in Italy. We dined in the picturesque little port of Portese, just a few minutes from the campsite. We also discovered excellent eating places in the gorgeous market square of San Felice del Benaco, again almost on the doorstep. We found all of the food to be of good quality. All in all, we tried to absorb as much of Italy as we could – this was our first visit, but it certainly won’t be the last. When it was time to go, we headed south around the lake, then north through the Dolomites into Austria, over the Fern Pass and into Germany – another staggeringly beautiful 250-mile drive – and then onwards back home via Luxembourg and Belgium.