Sirmione

Sirmione sits on a peninsula running four kilometres into Lake Garda, and the Scaliger castle of the thirteenth century stands at the neck, entered over a drawbridge, with a walled dock enclosing a harbour for the fleet, one of few surviving fortified lake harbours. At the far tip stand the Grotte di Catullo, the ruins of a large Roman villa of the first century spread over two hectares among olive trees, the largest in northern Italy; the name is traditional and the link to the poet Catullus, who did write about Sirmio, is not proven. Thermal sulphur springs rise offshore and feed the town's spas.

History

People lived here from the 6th to 5th millennia BC, and pile-dwelling villages stood here in the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC. From the 1st century BC the Garda became a favourite resort of rich families from Verona, and the poet Catullus praised the place and wrote of a villa he had here; in the last years of the Lombard kingdom Ansa, wife of King Desiderius, founded a monastery and a church in the town (Wikipedia, Sirmione).

Highlights

• The Scaliger castle - a moated fortress with a walled fleet harbour.
• The Grotte di Catullo - a two-hectare Roman villa ruin at the point.
• The peninsula - four kilometres of land running into the lake.
• The thermal springs - sulphur water rising offshore and piped to spas.

When to go

April to June and September; July and August are extremely crowded and cars are restricted at the neck. The Roman villa closes Mondays.

What to expect

Summer crowding is severe on a narrow peninsula with one road in. The old town is largely souvenir shops. The villa is a ruin with foundations rather than standing rooms.

Nearby

Desenzano lies west; Verona is southeast.

Key facts