As the ferry arrives at the Gardone Riveria, the first building you will see is the Grand Hotel which was a very popular holiday location for Winston Churchill.  The hotel still looks as splendid and attractive now as it did when Churchill was painting the Lake.

The parks and gardens at Gardone are very special, following the roads and paths away from the lake (they can get steep though!) leading to the gardens and former home of the poet Gabriele d' Annunzio, Vittoriale degli Italiani, but this does make for a great day out exploring the eclectic range of buildings and gardens.   There is also the Botanical Garden of Arthur Hruska, which consists of an interesting combination of modern sculpture and the trees, shrubs and attractive flora of the original gardens including camphor trees, bamboo plants and water lillies.