Sightseeing in Bardolino

Sightseeing in Bardolino means vineyards, olive groves and the lake more than monuments. The Bardolino DOC dates from 1968 and blends Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara; its Classico zone wraps Bardolino, Lazise, Garda, Affi, Cavaion and Costermano. Chiaretto, the rosé, and the Custoza white fill out a tasting, and the olive oil carries a Garda DOP recognised in 1997. In Bardolino itself the Carolingian church of San Zeno dates from the ninth century and the Zeni wine museum from 1991. Inland, Pastrengo is the military chapter: Austria built four forts above it in 1861, and a Piedmontese army fought an Austrian one there on 30 April 1848.

Bardolino sightseeing tours are mostly half days that end at a table. Cellar visits of 90 to 120 minutes cover vineyard, fermentation room and barrels before four to eight wines and a board of cold cuts and cheese; one cellar stands beside Lazise's medieval walls, another is a biodynamic farm with donkeys and ponies. E-bike rides of three to four hours cover about 20 km, mostly flat with 200 m of climbing, from Bardolino, Lazise or Pastrengo, and end in a cellar or at Forte Benedek, now a relais. Private boats from Lazise carry up to eleven people for 90 minutes past Bardolino, Garda and Punta San Vigilio, or for four hours on to the Isola del Garda and Sirmione. A bee farm, an olive mill with four oils, a painting class in the vines and a horseback picnic fill out the rest.

Practical. Highs run near 30C in July and 7C in January, with frost inland on winter nights, so spring and early autumn suit the bikes best. E-bike rides and some tastings take guests from 16, the Pastrengo fort tours from 18. Most wineries sit in the hills a few kilometres behind the shore, and Tenuta La Presa lies at Caprino Veronese, further inland, so allow for a short drive. Most bookings refund in full until the day before, and the horse ride is called off in bad weather.