Lake Garda, but where exactly?

[TheLittleMagician]

We've set our minds on going to Lake Garda in the summer. We've found some reasonably priced flights to Bergamo so feel that the south of the lake would be best.

However, we can't decide where will be best. We'll have a hire car but don't intend on doing much driving as we're planning on using the ferries to see other parts of the lake.

DC are 9 and 12. We've done the holiday parks in Europe for years staying in static caravans. The pools at those parks have really been the draw for us in the past but the kids don't really make friends, preferring to play together or stay with us. They're not really into the evening entertainment either.

What we'd like is somewhere between the holiday park and hotel - great pools but without the crowds. I've looked on expedia.com at loads of hotels but have been surprised as how basic some of them are unless you paying £3k upwards for a week.

Any recommendations would be great - even holiday parks - so that we can get it booked! Thanks.

We stayed at Camping San Francesco near Sirmione a few years ago when our dc were 11 and 13 and thoroughly enjoyed it. We visited Verona and took the cable car up Malcesine (sp?). This campsite is right on the lakeside. Would love to go back to Lake Garda, enjoy!

Yes i have stayed at that site too. Was beautiful and has a mix of caravans, static caravan, chalets and tents so you can take your choice!

There were a bunch of self-catering apartments that seemed best value when you need 4 beds, some in hotel complexes, but many with pools. Try looking for family-friendly apartments and Garda - there was a block near Sirmione I was tempted by, with pool.

Thanks for these suggestions. I've been looking at Belevdere Village as it has apartments but the reviews of it are mixed and it's not that close to the lake. We'd like to be within walking distance of the lake to swim and hire a boat and, of course, get the ferry.

Has anyone been to the Bella Italia site?

We've preferred staying near the top of the lake - Riva, Torbole and Malcesine. The scenery is more dramatic and the wind better for watersports. However Sirmione is lovely and the South East easier for access to Verona.

We stayed at the Residence il Sogno in Desenzano last year. It has a pool and the apartments are comfortable. Ten minutes walk to town, ferries, buses and trains. Very easy to travel around without using a car.

We stayed at Camping del Garda last year (large mobile home.) Our DCs are teens; didn't bother with the pool but used the lake to swim as it was 5 mins walk away! 20 mins walk along the lake into Peschiera, which is lovely, and plenty of bars, etc along the way. My DCs have never been into making friends on holiday, though it gets harder as we have boy/girl. They enjoyed it though, and wandered off to the on-site bars to find wifi!! It's a very safe, gated complex; not been to Bella Italia as it seemed a bit "full-on" for us.

Thanks for your tips. I'll have a look at Camping del Garda. The DC love to mess around in swimming pools, though I'm sure we'll head to the lake too.

I booked the flights last night as i was scared that the prices would shoot up. Just need to sort the accommodation out now. There's plenty to choose from - i just need to decide exactly which part of the lake we want to be. We'd like to be lakeside near a lively-ish town with bars and restaurants. We prefer to go out in the evening so I'm not bothered about evening entertainment where we're staying.

There's a big campsite right on the lake in Peschiera (in the south with great transport access) Sorry I'm not sure what it's called but it's got a good reputation.

On sorry, I should've rtft before posting