Page 216 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Venice & The Veneto

214  THE VENE T O AREA B Y AREA

r Salò t Gardone Riviera long been a popular resort – the
magnificent 19th-century Villa
* 10,000. @ ( Sat am. * 2,500. @ n Via Repubblica 8.
(0365 203 47). Alba (now a congress centre) was
Locals prefer to associate this built for the Austrian emperor to
elegant town with Gaspare da Gardone’s most appealing escape the bitter winters of his
Salò (1540–1609), the inventor feature is the terraced public park own country. The Art Deco
of the violin, rather than with that cascades down the hillside, Grand Hotel on the waterfront
Mussolini, the World War II planted with noble and exotic was built for lesser beings.
dictator. Mussolini set up the trees. Equally exotic are the High above the town is the
so-called Salò Republic in 1943 Mediterranean and African Villa il Vittoriale, built for the
and ruled northern Italy from plants in the Hruska Botanical poet Gabriele d’Annunzio. His
here until 1945, when he was Gardens, founded in 1910, which Art Deco villa has blacked-out
shot by the Italian resistance. benefit from the town’s mild windows (he professed to
Happier memories are evoked winters. Gardone has loathe the world) and is full of
by Salò’s buildings, including curiosities, including a coffin-
the cathedral with its unusual shaped bed. The garden has a
wooden altarpiece (1510) by landlocked warship, the prow
Paolo Veneziano. The main raised high over Lake Garda.
appeal of the town derives from
its pastel-coloured waterfront P Hruska Botanical Gardens
buildings, picturesque squares Via Roma. Tel 336 41 08 77.
and alleyways, and a long Open Mar–Oct: 9am-7pm daily.
pedestrian promenade with & ∑ hellergarden.com
beautiful views of the lake. P Villa il Vittoriale
Salò marks the beginning of Via Vittoriale 12. Tel 0365 29 65 11.
the Riviera Bresciana, where the Open Apr–Sep: 8:30am–8pm daily;
shore is lined with lovely villas Oct–Mar: 9am–5pm daily; ticket office
and grand hotels set in semi- closes 1 hour earlier. Closed 1 Jan, 24
tropical gardens. The Art Deco Grand Hotel in Gardone Riviera & 25 Dec. & = 8 - ∑ vittoriale.it
Valpolicella Wine Tour 4 Affi
This wine-producing village is surrounded
This circular tour takes in the beautiful, remarkably by vineyards planted in the sheltered Trento
varied scenery of the wine district that lies between basin of the Adige Valley.
Verona and Lake Garda. On the shores of Lake Garda
itself, deep and fertile glacial soils provide sustenance
for the grapes that are used to make Bardolino,
a wine that is meant to be drunk young
(see p240). Inland, the rolling foothills
of the Lessini mountains shelter
hamlets where lives and working
rhythms are tuned to the needs
of the vines. These particular
vines are grown to produce the
equally famed Valpolicella, a red Lago di Garda
wine that varies from light and
fruity to full-bodied.
3 Bardolino
Famous for its light
red wine, Bardolino
Tips for Drivers hosts a grape festival
in September and
Starting point: Verona. has numerous cellars Peschiera
Length: 45 km (28 miles). offering tastings. di Garda
Approximate driving time: 2 Lazise
3 hours. Lazise has long been the
Stopping-off points: The main Key chief port of Garda’s
village of the Valpolicella region, eastern shore, its
San Pietro in Cariano, has cafés Tour route picturesque harbour and
and restaurants. Other roads medieval church guarded
by a 14th-century castle.

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