A ferry trip back in time to the ruins of the Roman villa on Lake Garda, Italy

When we planned this vacation, the Sirmione peninsula and Roman villa ruins became a magnet and we scheduled a day trip into history to visit an ancient vacation spot of extremely wealthy Roman citizens.

Planes, trains and cars … but we chose the ferry system

About 15 minutes from our hotel is the town of Salo, which is the location of the docks for the ferry service. The ferry system offers scenic steamboats on the lake or more time efficient hydrofoils; all depending on your time and budget constraints.

We opted for the hydrofoil and caught the midday boat with two more stops before our destination. As we moved away from the pier we began to notice white caps and a slight swell in the water that once again reminded us of the sheer size of this lake … an hour later we were arriving at the Sirmione docks.

A brief history of Sirmione

The peninsula has a very long history, but we will save you … in short, it went from a fishing village in the stone age to a holiday destination in the 1st century for very rich and powerful families from Verona, to a strategic army . defensive position with a fortress in the 13th century, up to an outdated castle fortification in the 15th century that was eventually converted into a storage facility in the 19th century.

Lemons in Lemoncello

After all that turbulence, the inhabitants of Sirmione settled into an idyllic agrarian life full of olive trees, fruit orchards and lake fisheries. But at the end of the 19th century, some enterprising people, using a metal pipe, discovered a way to access a thermal spring on the peninsula.

Let’s see … we have hot mineral spring water (158 * F), a castle, a collection of ancient churches, a piece of land with beautiful views on the largest lake in Italy topped off with a fairly intact Roman villa / bath ruins . … a new tourist attraction was reborn on the peninsula.

A stretch, but marketing wins over precision

Their creative and entrepreneurial minds were revved up and the main attraction was now called “Grottos de Catullus”.

Some liberties were taken as there was actually no grotto, just a series of dilapidated buildings with collapsed walls and a few caves. Also, as far as the Catullus part is concerned … the villa was created around 150 AD and the famous Italian poet Catullus had died almost 200 years before the villa was built … but that didn’t stop the show .

Once again tourism finds Sirmione and crowds return to this ancient village … now complete with a medieval castle, three churches, spa hotels, thermal baths, restaurants, shopping areas and of course the famous ruins of the Roman villa / baths.

The main square is right next to the pier area and full of souvenir shops and the more or less usual gastronomic options for tourists … but it is easy to find a good pizza in Italy and enjoy a dinner outside with tablecloths checkered red.

Scaliger’s Castle (Rocca Scaligera)

After a short walk from the square we found the advertised “fairy tale castle” … the 13th century Scaliger Castle. The castle is surrounded by a moat and can be accessed by two drawbridges. The drawbridges were built for defensive reasons to ward off the invaders and also the locals.

Twelve euros ($ 15) and about twenty minutes later we had “seen” the castle and walked the ramparts … to the next landmark … looking for the ruins as the signage was quite limited.

We noted that the crowd focused on the shopping and restaurant areas of the old town, Scaliger Castle, and the three small churches (Sant’Anna della Rocca, San Pietro in Mavino, and Santa Maria Maggiore).

After making our way through the crowd, we spotted an electric train that offered rides from the thermal baths to the entrance of the ruins. For one euro per person in each direction … a good deal as it is more than a kilometer uphill.

The further we were from those places, the less crowds. So going the extra mile was worth it as the ruins were practically empty of foot traffic.

Caves of Catullus (Grotte di Catullo)

The grounds around the ruins of the old villa are approximately five acres in a park-like setting with wonderful views in all directions … we finally found the time “it was worth getting here” and not too soon.

Entry to the area was through a very well done archaeological museum that had exceptional exhibits in a multi-story structure. A picture really is worth a thousand words … it goes without saying that the intact ruins were very impressive and justified the trip.

The ship back to Salo ‘

We got back to the dock area a bit before our scheduled ferry back to Salo as it was the last of the day and we didn’t want to miss it. There was an alternative ferry service called “Taxi Boat Sirmione”, but it was priced higher.

Queuing for anything in Italy is always an interesting experience. Tourists often hold something like a line and Italians just mingle at the door. So when the ferry approaches the dock, all forms of discipline go out the window … some refer to this as chaos … we just smile, squeeze the lines, and shuffle forward.

In summary

Our Lake Garda adventure was coming to a very positive conclusion and our last dinner at the Hotel Bolsone Dimora was an exceptional culinary treat and a perfect ending to our visit.

We will leave for Sestri Levante in the morning and head further south towards the Ligurian coast and the Mediterranean Sea.

After all, what’s the rush … be inspired.