The second half of our time in Lake Garda was spent in the northern region of Trentino. We stayed in Riva del Garda which is located at the northern tip of the lake, and the base of the Italian Dolomites. The landscape is very different at the northern point, but just as breathtaking as the southern portion of the lake. This region is a favorite spot for the Germans and Austrians to visit so you see their influence in the architecture. The locals impressed me by being fluent in English, German and obviously Italian.

Brian and I both loved being surrounded by the Germans, it felt very nostalgic for us both. My mom’s side of the family is German and Brian was born in Germany. In fact, at the restaurants the staff would speak to us in German before Italian or English. There were more Germans than Italians, and we seemed to be the only Americans around. So it was easy to see why they go with German first.

The Trentino region is very active, and offers so many activities that allow you to enjoy the natural beauty of the area. We decided that a hike on Monte Baldo would be more our speed. I’m not much for paragliding or windsurfing, but beautiful scenery is right up my alley. The cable car station for Monte Baldo is located in the town of Malcesine which is about a 35 minute drive from Riva del Garda.

We arrived in time for the first cable car up the mountain. You can find their time-table and pricing information here. It was a very cloudy morning but we went up anyway hoping the clouds would move on quickly, allowing us a glimpse of the lake below. It was eerie to be up in the clouds that way. We stayed along the spine of the mountain since the cloud cover was so thick. But by mid day the sun had come out and we were able to complete our hike and take in all the views. This was Brian’s favorite day of the trip, by far!

After spending most of the day up in the clouds, we ventured down from the mountain top in search of food. We walked the short distance from the cable car station to the Malcesine city center. It’s another beautiful Lake Garda town. We ate by the water (as we always did) and then wandered around the streets for a while before heading back to Riva del Garda.

We stayed at the Hotel Sole in Riva del Garda which is located in the city center, right on the water. The view from our room was amazing! (Second image below was taken from our room!) When I walked in I ran straight to the windows and leaned outside to take it all in. I ended up sitting by the window for a while, just taking it all in. It is truly one of those “pinch me” views that are almost too beautiful to believe.

We didn’t explore too much of Riva del Garda until our last morning, but I was so happy we chose this area as our second place to stay on the lake. It’s an easy distance to most of the attractions in the Trentino region. The town itself is also so beautiful. Situated at the foot of the mountains and right at the tip of the lake. I found the weather to be very unpredictable because of this unique location. The trick is to layer!

We ate at Alla Torre one night for dinner which was very good. It was right across the street from our favorite place to stop for a cappuccino in the mornings. The Hotel Sole breakfast wasn’t the best so we preferred to start our mornings at Casa del Caffé – Omkafé.

Riva del Garda was a hard one to leave. I could have sat at my window and stared at those mountains forever. xo Bryn