Lazise, Italy: lively village and resort on Lake Garda

Visit Lazise

The village and resort of Lazise is situated to the south-east of Lake Garda, between Garda (to the north) and Sirmione (to the west). The name of the village comes from the Latin name Lacisium, so the name Lazise literally means Lake Village!

Exploring Lazise

Italy This Way review: there are several very lovely resorts around the shores of Lake Garda, and although Lazise is not the most visited it is one of our favourites: the absence of cars and the pretty harbour, old town and promenade together make it a very relaxing destination to visit.

Parking was quite a challenge even when we visited Lazise in late May, so I imagine it is quite difficult in the summer...if possible you should arrive before the crowds!

You enter the town centre through an ancient gate through the fortified walls - these walls and the castle you can see just inside the gate were built in the 14th century by the Scaglieri family of lords from Verona who controlled much of the region at that time.The castle provides a dramatic backdrop to the town but is not open to the public.

Most of the centre is pedestrianised which adds considerably to its charm.

You quickly reach the harbour in the centre of Lazise, a very lovely harbour with colourful small houses - many of them now restaurants - on two sides, and the 12th century church of San Nicolo on the third side which contains numerous medieval frescoes. The only boats in the harbour are traditional small boats so the village is not dwarfed by mega yachts and cruise ships!

If you continue along the lakefront beyond the harbour you come to a long waterfront promenade, a lovely wide promenade where there are lots more restaurants and picturesque views across Lake Garda. On the lake to the south of the town centre there is also a sandy beach, which is quite unusual on the shores of Lake Garda.

Behind the harbour you will want to explore Lazise old town. There are lot of narrow streets to explore, with a wide range of shops and restaurants, colourful traditional houses with balconies, and small squares to discover.

One important monument in this part of Lazise is the church: the baroque style facade includes columns and statues and a fronton to resemble a Greek temple, and the interior is also in the baroque style, although less highly decorated than many churches in Italy.