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Riva del Garda is Trentino’s gateway to Lake Garda, and the castles of Arco, Drena, Toblino and Tenno are all a short drive away. Riva’s picturesque location and healthy climate drew the European aristocracy from the early 1800s. Today it is a popular tourist resort.

DISTANCE: 60km (37 miles)

TIME: A leisurely day

START/END: Riva del Garda

POINTS TO NOTE: If lunching at Castel Toblino (Toblino Castle), be sure to make a reservation.

Riva del Garda

If arriving in Riva by car, park near the castle, ideally in the car park by the waterfront, the Giardini di Porta Orientale, or the adjoining Congress Centre.

As a medieval port for powerful prince-bishops, Riva del Garda 1 [map] became a pawn in the dynastic struggles between such city states as Milan, Venice and Verona. In 1703, during the War of the Spanish Succession, the port was sacked by the French, leaving Riva a shadow of its former self. Like the rest of Trentino, Riva was revived under Austrian rule (1815–1918), and it flourished as a fashionable resort, attracting such Mitteleuropean literary heavyweights as Franz Kafka, Thomas Mann and Friedrich Nietzsche. Contemporary Riva draws large numbers of tourists: middle-aged people off-season, and, in summer, a younger crowd who enjoy the watersports as much as the culture.

Thanks to its microclimate, Garda Trentino is favourable to wine-growing, and vineyards are abundant. The most noteworthy grape is the Nosiola, which produces dry white wines and Vino Santo Trentino. The latter is a sweet dessert wine made with grapes that are dried out on wooden racks and then pressed during Holy Week, before being aged for three years in oak casks.

Begin your tour of Riva at the lakeside Rocca, the moated medieval castle upon which the resort is centred. This austere military stronghold, which once included an arsenal, barracks and palace, evokes only a partial sense of its former glory. The Rocca was designed as a fortress, but the Renaissance prince-bishops of Trento turned the interior into a patrician residence. It was further domesticated during Austro-Hungarian times, when its fearsome appearance was compromised by the lowering of its corner towers.

Beyond the drawbridge, the Riva del Garda Museo (Piazza Cesare Battisti; www.museoaltogarda.it; charge) has a minor art collection, sculptures from regional churches and archeological finds going back to the Bronze Age.

After the Rocca, you might hit a lakeside café, or, from the adjoining Piazza Garibaldi, take Via Mazzini to Piazza Cavour, the main inland square, which is often obscured by market stalls. Here, you can buy local olives, cheese and wine at the Wednesday market; for excellent coffee, head for Bar Pasticceria Maroni.

Return to the Rocca and head west to the main Piazza 3 Novembre, which opens onto the lake. The square is lined with 15th-century Venetian-Lombard palaces, including the town hall. With its 13th-century gateway, a view of the 16th-century bastion above, and Hotel Sole, once an Austro-Hungarian rulers’ residence, the square is a microcosm of Riva’s history. The hotel has lost much of its grandeur, but its sunny terrace is good for drinks.

For spectacular views over the lake, take the lift up the Torre Apponale (www.museoaltogarda.it; charge). The tower has previously served as a prison, a store for salt and grain, and as a look-out point during World War I. Still today, it makes a great spot for people-watching.

Torbole

When you are ready to leave Riva, set off east along the main SS240 for 4km (2.5 miles) to Torbole 2 [map]. Presenting the less genteel face of Lake Garda, what was once a fishing village is now a lively watersports centre that benefits from unusual wind conditions. Just before midday, the Ora southern wind whips down the lake and fills the sails of windsurfers until early afternoon.

If lunch is now a priority, you could try the Trentino specialities at Torbole’s Piccolo Mondo, see 1 [map], by the River Sarca, or, if you fancy lunch in Castel Toblino, start driving north following signs for Arco and Trento.

Alternatively, the footpath from Riva to Torbole (4km/2.5 miles) along the waterfront affords fine lake and mountain views. Goethe described Torbole as ‘a wonder of nature, an enchanting sight’. The setting is as alluring as ever, but the village is rather spoilt by the main coastal road slicing through. However, this is no deterrent to hikers, free climbers, paragliders, windsurfers or sailing enthusiasts who descend on Torbole all year round.

Arco

After 5km (3 miles) you come to Arco 3 [map], a spa once favoured by Austro-Hungarian grand-dukes, and renowned for its gardens and pleasant climate. In the late 1800s, the resort was characterised by belle époque balls, health cures and carriage rides.

The former archducal gardens overlook the wizened stump of the Castello di Arco (www.trentino.com/en/highlights/castles/castello-di-arco; charge), which looms above the resort. A steep path winds up to the castle, but the interior, for all its fragments of Gothic frescoes depicting courtly scenes, does little justice to the striking setting.

Drena and Toblino castles

Continuing 18km (11 miles) north to Toblino, you will see on the right (beyond Dro) Castello di Drena (www.trentino.com/en/highlights/castles/castel-drena; charge). The stark late-12th-century castle, controlling the Sarca and Cavedine valleys, was destroyed in 1703, but has undergone restoration in recent years. Today it serves as a venue for exhibitions and conferences. A museum contains local archeological finds.

Castel Toblino 4 [map] (www.casteltoblino.com), set on the tiny lake of the same name, and with an atmospheric restaurant, seems to materialise from nowhere. Diners at the Ristorante Castel Toblino can visit the atmospheric interior, complete with Renaissance courtyard and 17th-century stoves. Others can enjoy a coffee or glass of wine in the bar/café below, with a lovely terrace overlooking the lake.

Retrace your path to Sarche and take the first right turn – towards Comano Terme. The start of this western route skirts the Parco Adamello-Brenta, named after the Brenta rock formations, a Dolomite group marked by towering limestone pinnacles and surfaces bathed in a pink-tinged orange sheen. Toblino’s vineyards give way to neat barns and lush Alpine pastures, deep forests and sheer rock faces.

The road to Riva

Comano Terme 5 [map] is a thriving spa resort, with its curative waters gushing out of the rocks at 28°C (82°F). Next head for Bleggio Superiore 6 [map] (5.5km/3.5 miles), a rambling village in a lovely Alpine setting, well-signed from Comano Terme.

From Bleggio follow the signs for Fiavè 7 [map] (5km/3 miles), which has an archeological site mired in the bogs just outside the village on the Riva road and the Museo delle Palafitte di Fiavè (www.cultura.trentino.it; charge), dedicated to prehistoric pile dwellings. The nature reserve features the remains of a late Neolithic village.

Continue on the Riva road (the SS421) to Lago di Tenno 8 [map] (11.5km/7 miles), a lake formed by a landslide. The medieval village of Tenno 9 [map] clustered around a private castle, lies 3km (2 miles) to the south.

From here, the road twists down to Riva del Garda. On the approach to Riva, the reappearance of olive groves represents the clearest shift back to the sultry Mediterranean microclimate of Lake Garda.

Food and Drink

1 [map] Piccolo Mondo

Via Matteotti 108, Torbole; www.hotelpiccolomondotorbole.it

This family-run hotel restaurant serves typical Trentino fare – game, dumplings, mushrooms, polenta and apple strudel – as well as Mediterranean cuisine. €€

2 [map] Al Volt

Via Fiume 73, Riva del Garda, www.ristorantealvolt.com

In the elegant little rooms of a historic palazzo, you can try Trentino specialities with a modern twist or fish fresh from the lake. Extensive wine list. €€